Many people think they eat well, but they actually eat horrible. You will never really know unless you count what goes into your body, over time, and identify the pattern. Counting sucks, but it is the beginning step to understanding why your diet has not been working for you in order to implement a complete Lifestyle Change.
Your best resource is to first understand the basics of nutrition and the role of exercise. It is difficult to "unlearn" what we think we know to be fact (and what Dr. Oz tells us). However, if you learn the right way, then you will quickly realize much of what you think you know is probably false.
Here are a few examples of
accurate information...
-You can eat whatever you want as long as you stay within the ballpark of your macronutrient targets (carbs/fat/protein), predominate your intake with a variety of whole and minimally refined foods, leave a minority of the diet open for indulgences (10-20% guideline), and ignore the rules of fad diets while sticking with foods that fit your personal preference and tolerance.
Macronutrient targets:
0.45 grams FAT per 1 lb. body weight
0.82 grams PROTEIN per 1 lb. body weight
Allow CARBS to fill the rest of your total daily calorie intake
FAT = 9 calories per gram
PROTEIN = 4 calories per gram
CARBS = 4 calories per gram
ALCOHOL = 7 calories per gram
-Salt is not bad for you per se, especially if you drink enough water; however the ratio between sodium and potassium in Western diets is typically very one-sided.
-Healthy range for Fiber is about 30-40 g/day. Most of us get 10-15 g. This results in gastrointestinal issues over time. And we will not adequately absorb the nutrients delivered to us from food.
-Most supplements are either a complete waste of money or provide little benefit. The exceptions are a "good" multivitamin and whey protein if you are unwilling to first change your diet. Fish oil has some real benefits at the proper dosage, vitamin d3 and well-sourced magnesium can be beneficial in the right doses, and a decent pre-workout can provide a slight edge in the gym.
-Carbs at night. What a twisted bit of information. It really has to do with most folks already hitting their daily calorie limits by 8-9 pm. So by consuming more calories after you've already hit your limit, you overshoot your goals and you may get fatter over time if this is done on a consistent basis.
-Cholesterol is not bad. The majority of your brain is comprised of cholesterol. High cholesterol foods like eggs don't boost your body's actual cholesterol levels. Low cholesterol levels are actually more of a death risk than moderate or semi-high levels. Lowest all cause mortality is when Cholesterol levels are in the 200-240 mg/dl range.
-Dietary fat is not bad; in fact it is crucial for hormone regulation. Saturated fat is not something to be feared within reason. Butter or lard is better for you than most conventional vegetable oils.
-There is no such thing as "toning". 90% of the exercise routines out are designed for spinning wheels.
THE BASICS
This link will be crucial for you if you want to have a better diet and lifestyle:
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=156380183
Basically:
To cut: Consistently eat 10-20% less daily calories than your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE).
To bulk: Consistently at 10-20% more daily calories than your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE).
^Do this with whole foods, rich in nutritional diversity, and continue to lift weights/remain active.
Here is a calculator which does much of the math for you:
http://www.1percentedge.com/ifcalc/
After you understand the basics, create a free MyFitnessPal account is the next step, but the program requires some tweaks and it is only good for measuring macronutrients and calories. It does a horrible job at measuring exercise, and you need not worry about the micronutrient values. MyFitnessPal's benefits are primarily designed to help you lose weight and keep it off, or maintain/bulk if that is your goal.
1. Go to myfitnesspal.com. Create a free account.
2. Change goals > Custom goals.
3. Adjust your macronutrients, as instructed in the previous link.
4. Make sure that your calories aligns with your macronutrient targets.
5. The types of fat and cholesterol are not really important. You can leave them blank. I have my sodium/potassium ratio at about 2,000/4000 mg, give or take. Fiber is between 30-40 g. My sugars are at 67 g. The rest of the information I left blank because if I am primarily eating the right amount of whole, minimally processed foods then I will be getting adequate micronutrients (especially if also taking a multivitamin). As I said, the fitness goals/cals burned/workouts/minutes of your workout.... all of that is useless. It does not work when you restructure your calories to 10-20% of your TDEE, which includes your daily activity. You will be short-changing yourself if you use MFP for exercise tracking while also inputting calorie goals based on TDEE.
6. Install the app on your smartphone for convenience and add everything you eat/drink on a daily basis until a pattern emerges. I recommend several months at least. You will also see results if done right.