There is some pretty solid information in this thread already. I think I can add a bit to it.
Let me start with a bit of info about me to give some background. I joined my gym the first week of November in 2008. I have worked out religiously this past year. I am between 5'10 and 5'11 and weighed about 220 lbs then. For a couple reasons (including depression doing a 3-month number on my metabolism and my adding muscle) I stayed around 215 until about March. I am now just under 195 lbs and wearing a 33 waist for the first time in my life. I also have maxed out my squat at 295 and bench at 225 (i.e., I have done strength/hypertrophy programs as well as fat loss and have added ~10# of lean muscle).
I think that you are taking the best mental approach to getting in shape: if you like how you look and feel compared to how you felt the last time you thought about it, you are making progress. If your clothes are looser and you feel better, then you are doing the right thing. Beyond initial water weight, though, losing more than 1-2 pounds per week (depending on the individual) isn't healthy and isn't very realistic. People CAN do it, but eating well and burning fat without atrophying muscle/lean tissue is a better way, even if it means you spend 5 months on it instead of 2. If you know you are eating right and staying active, then you should avoid weighing in more than once or twice a week.
AND ALWAYS WEIGH YOURSELF AT THE SAME TIME OF DAY AND IN THE SAME RELATION TO MEALS AND BOWEL MOVEMENTS. Pick one time (probably shortly after you get up, before you eat) and always and ONLY weigh yourself then. Your body weight fluctuates depending on your hydration, meals, digestion...don't get yourself overly excited because you didn't drink water last night and lost an extra pound.
Core work is absolutely important. A solid core allows you to do a lot more in terms of both cardio and strength training, both of which are very important for well-planned weight loss. Core training, though, is more than just crunches. Crunches work the rectus abdominis - the 6-pack muscle. That one is important, but your obliques and erectors spinae need love too.
Learn to love PLANKS. Planks are these:
Hold that position for 60 seconds. Keep your back in its natural arch: don't bend at the waist, pull your toes inward, push up with your arms, or let your lower body sag.
Keep steady. An iPod with the backlight on will let you time yourself.
You will feel it in your abs, obliques, erectors, and probably upper back. One of those is worth more than a set of crunches.
In addition to regular planks, do side planks:
When you first try them, keep the upper arm on your body. Aim for 30 seconds on each side, and build up to a minute. The pressure between your elbow and shoulder joints is likely going to be the limiting factor. Make sure you keep the straight line between feet, hips, and head; don't tilt your neck, either (letting your head be at 30
o from horizontal takes some getting used to.
Get the form right, and then add to the degree of difficulty as necessary (extend arm, dumbbell in extended arm, raised non-support leg).
This will again help strengthen the entire core.
I also highly recommend a Swiss ball (big bouncy thing - they are very useful for crunches, push-ups, leg curls, and lots of other killer good stuff to strengthen your whole body. A medicine ball - probably an 8-pounder - is really useful, as well. A good core workout - incorporating planks and high reps of other exercises with minimal rest - will raise your heart rate and help burn calories while augmenting an aerobic/cardio-heavy overall regimen.
I'm not looking to tone my still-insulated gut, but I found a Men's Health gimmick core workout that has helped me a ton on "off days" when I'm between lifting programs or throwing in a cardio-core day rather than heavy lifting. Combine this with some planks and you'll develop a solid core in no time. It is necessary to have that solid and stable and balanced core. Here's a video of some guy demonstrating the 10 exercises involved in the workout:
Yes, it is Men's Health (more gimmicks than Ed Leslie, I know). But this is solid stuff.
Other than core work, there are 5 major movements that weightlifting encompass:
1. Squat (squats, front squats, leg press)
2. Deadlift (deadlift, Romanian deadlift, good morning, hip extension)
3. Lunge (lunge variations, split squats, step-ups)
4. Push (chest presh, shoulder press, push-up, dip)
5. Pull (lat machine, seated cable row, dumbbell/barbell row, pull-ups/chin-ups)
Find yourself a book like Schuler's and Cosgrove's
New Rules of Lifting for a very interesting approach to designing programs around building muscle, getting stronger, or burning fat.
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As far as nutrition goes, the above posts advocating smaller and more frequent meals are generally useful. In terms of
what you eat, there are a few things you can do, most of which don't require you to screw with your food budget:
1) Meal Plan. Take an hour over your weekend and plan out some actual meals for the following week. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, and the 2 snacks you know you'll want.
2) Organize Your Kitchen. Take another hour and look at how your kitchen is organized. How do you keep your fridge, freezer, and cupboards laid out? What is always 'in stock'? What foods do you have but know you shouldn't? How can you make simpler use of the space?
3) Make a Shopping List... You have your meal plan. Now compare that plan to what is on hand. This is like a high school term paper the first few times. Write down, as a draft, all the things you'll need to make the meal plan work. Check off the ingredients you have and note the things you blow through and need more of. Then go back over this list and estimate quantities (bananas, hmm, I can eat a few this week...I'll go 3-4; apples...god, I love apples...2# of em...I want a burger; I'll go to the meat case and get a half-pound exactly rather than a package 1.5). Now you make the final draft. The trick is: Organize it by area in the store. Produce, Meat, Deli, Cold/Freezer, Packaged, Cleaning/Paper.
4) And Stick To It. It takes a little extra time now, but you can get in and out of the store in no time if you know where you're going, exactly what you're getting, and have a pen to strike through everything you already have. If you have a list to focus on, you teach yourself to make the choices before you get to the store and it becomes easier to eat well. Something you will discover through making a list and sticking to it is the next step.
5) Shop Primarily Along the Edges of the Store. Where is the best food a store has to offer? Usually near the walls. Produce, fresh meat, and dairy are almost always on the walls. You'll want to focus your diet here, as well. Packaged goods will become less and less a part of your life. You won't be making bread or anything, but you'll neither want nor need much of the pre-packaged crap masquerading as food. If you don't know how to cook, though, what good will a meal plan do you? Good question. Answer?
6) Learn to cook more and better. Master a few hearty soups, learn a couple vinaigrettes, and get to know some seasonings better. Learn how to transform the unhealthy foods you are accustomed to into healthy options by taking over the flavor profile. Fatty pork Italian sausage a favorite of yours? Season lean ground meat with coriander, garlic, oregano, paprika, and fennel seed. Make a burger out of it in a nonstick with Pam spray. You just saved yourself 10 grams of fat (90 calories) minimum.
7) Last but not least, ask questions. This applies in the gym, too, but it is really helpful to get food ideas from people who eat healthy without living on b/s chicken breasts, brocolli, and 1% milk.