OP - Here's my story.
August 2014:
Height - 6'0
Weight - 265 lbs
Current
Height - 6'0
Weight - 207 lbs
Goal Weight: 183 lbs
Total Lost: 58 lbs
This is what has worked me. It may or may not work for you. Everyone is different. This is going to very blunt but you've put yourself out there and I'm not going to sugarcoat it:
You eat too much. You also probably eat way more than you think you do. Why? Because your BMI is 37.4 putting you well into the obese range. Just to maintain your weight you have to consume 3100 calories a day (I put some number into the calculator here:
http://www.mayoclinic.org/calorie-calculator/itt-20084939 ). I used to say I had an athletic build (BMI was 35.9) but the truth is that I was just fat.
Please understand that embarking on a hardcore fitness regime isn't going to give you longterm weight loss. Most people who do this quit after a few weeks. You need to start making changes to your LIFE style. Losing weight has been 90% diet / 10% exercise for me.
Here's what I recommend you do:
1) Download myfitnesspal or any other calorie counting app or program that you can use. There are tons of them out there and no excuse not to use them.
2) If you don't own a scale, purchase one. Weigh yourself at the same time each day and log it in MFP. I usually do this after I get up in the morning and pee.
3) Log everything goes in your mouth. Every single thing.
4) Do not cheat yourself on portions. It was a huge wake up call for me when I realized that I was easily eating two or three times what I thought a portion size was.
5) Purchase at least a 1L water bottle. You're going to drink at least 2-3 of those each day.
I'm not going to lie to you. It's not an easy start. The first two weeks are rough. You're going to be hungry and cranky because you're not used to eating at a calorie deficit. The real key is find foods that are filling, healthy, and don't kill your calorie goals for the day. Drinking lots of water throughout the day will help you with your hunger cravings and will flush your body of the excess salts you have. I lost ten lbs in the first month just by cleaning up my diet and drinking lots of water.
Do not expect this to be fast. Did you gain that weight in a couple months? It's not going to take a couple months to come off. Be patient, stick to it, and realize that you're making changes to your life so that you can live longer. My wake up call was my dad having a heart attack last summer and realizing that I was heavier than him and that heart disease ran in my family. I was literally going to die if I didn't make a change.
Here's the bad news and there's no easy way around this:
Beer, especially delicious craft beer, has tons of excess calories in it that's hard to justify when you're on a calorie deficit. For example, Sierra Nevada PA has 175 calories in it. This isn't a ton by any standards, but if your goal is 2,000 calories a day it ends up being 8.75% of your daily calories. Two or three of those will ruin your daily goal. The temptation to snack off while enjoying a beer is also very strong.
It's disgusting, and kind of sad, but I've pretty much cut craft beer out of my life except for rare occasions. It's way more important for me to continue to meet my goals, lose weight, and ultimately live a longer and healthier life than it is to drink a six-pack of craft each week. Craft beer has become a treat for me, not a staple of my diet. In my fridge, you'll find Miller Lite. Not because I like the flavor, but because it has 96 calories and I can enjoy a couple on occasion without feeling guilty.
Oh, one last word of advice, never log your workouts as calories burned. It's just an excuse to eat more and that number is really an estimate at best.
Good luck the benefits so far have been:
- Snoring completely gone, way more active sex drive, wife is way more attracted to me, I've lost three pant sizes (42 to 36), two shirt sizes (XXL - L), and my dick has grown a couple inches since my gut is gone. Playing sports, especially my weekend softball league, is much more enjoyable. I'm faster and stronger. Work has noticed as well. It's amazing how people perceive you when you're obese - it's proven that obese people are generally passed over for promotions, raises, etc. compared to their less fat colleagues. It's so much nicer to buy clothes and know that you can fit into them without having to pray that there's a size you can squeeze into.
Best of luck!