[solaxun]

This is the only correct answer.

I've put on, and lost, 25 lbs probably 8+ times in my life (intentionally). I weigh 180 at my heavier end so that's a meaningful percentage for me. Depending how disciplined you are able/want to be, the easiest and most consistent way is to count calories.

If you don't want to be that strict, then just cut either your portions by 1/4 or remove a meal/snack that you estimate to be 250-500 calories. For me I just cut breakfast since I'm not really a breakfast person. Some people like to call this "intermittent fasting" and will give you an entire lecture about it's benefits. I call it "skipping breakfast".

Assuming you've cut 250-500 calories per day, weigh yourself every morning before any food/water. You should be losing 1-2 lbs per week, but it can fluctate so I would really look at 4-8 lbs per month as a reasonable target. If you are not losing that weight, you didn't cut enough calories, remove another 250/500 and try again.

On top of this do weight training and cardio, the type doesn't matter.

Good luck!

[newaccount74]

I managed to lose about 10% of my body weight with calorie counting in a few months. I was quite happy.

But it made me generally very hungry and I gained almost all of it back within a year or two.

I guess it only works as long as you don't stop calorie counting.

[solaxun]

I think the idea is that once you've been counting long enough, you know the reduction that you need to make intuitively. Of course weight will come back if you revert to old habits, but I don't think counting calories forever is necessary.

If you're hungry between meals, eat low calorie density foods like broccoli and drink water. I realize that's not exactly as fun as eating doritos, but it's how sustainable change happens. Fad diets never work because they are by definition temporary.