Just to share, although some points are obvious, here’s everything I’ve learned about losing weight… which doesn’t mean much as I have been trying to lose weight for a long time, but am finally seeing some results:

1. It’s not easy. If it were easy, everyone would be fit and trim.
2. Muscles burn more calories than fat. The point of exercising is not simply burning calories while exercising, but building muscle mass so they can burn calories even when you are not exercising.
3. As we get older, we lose muscle mass. Therefore, even if we stay the same weight as we get older, without exercise, likely it means we are losing muscle mass and gaining fat. It then becomes a vicious cycle because we then burn less calories, meaning the same amount we eat will cause us to gain weight.
4. Therefore, we need to exercise just to maintain our muscle mass, let alone trying to build up our muscle mass. Not fair!
5. Life is not fair!
6. I heard somewhere it takes 3 years to adapt to new metabolism. No wonder people gain the weight back if they quit in less than 3 years.
7. Starving is not the answer. Studies have shown people who exercised while hungry actually lost muscle mass. Losing muscles is a natural reaction to starvation as the body tries to cut down things in your body which is burning up calories since the body thinks it is being starved to death. Losing muscle mass is the exact opposite of what you want to do.
8. To avoid the body think it’s being starved, eat lots of vegetables. Fruits still need to be taken in moderation as fruit has sugars. However, fruit is better than junk food.
9. I don’t believe in deprivation!!! I still need to have my sweets… daily!
10. I have no self-control, but am perhaps getting better.
11. I have a very accurate scale as I mentioned here. I weigh myself (and record) every day. (Obviously, not something to be recommended for anyone who might get upset over changes in weight.) What I found this has done is make me very aware of decisions I make every day since I know I am going to weigh myself the next morning…. like do I really need that 2nd serving…
12. To lose weight, I really need to aerobic exercise 4 times a week.
13. It’s really requires a life-style change.
14. I used to drink soft drinks a lot! Now it’s very rare. Instead, I’ve been drinking hojicha.
15. I remember hearing a while back a study of people who were successful in their diets. Their conclusion was that people who were successful tried more times than they’ve given up.
16. As in life, if you do the right things, the right things work out. (Or perhaps I should say “as in golf…” or “as in anything”...) The right thing is to eat healthy and exercise and avoid bad things. If you do this, then things are bound to turn out well.
17. It’s a matter of priority. If your health is important enough to you, you’ll take the time to take care of your health.
18. I have found significant improvement to my blood pressure, but I would attribute this to frequent aerobic exercise. (Also to my improved attitude to be more patient.) I also take my blood pressure multiple times per day when possible and record the readings.

Anyway, I just wanted to share. It sounds like you are on a good track to achieving your goals!