Hi, I'm DJ, a 63 year old female, that finally got the bejesus scared out of me to finally do something about my weight.
I have had high blood pressure since I was 35, but when my doctor mentioned pre-diabetes, that was my wake up call. I joined a program that the VA (am a veteran too) called move, I gained weight, following the Standard American Diet (SAD). I will say here too, that I was in the process of buying a new house and stress could have contributed to some of the weight gain; but when I hit 301 it was time for something to happen.
My first effort was to stop eating out so much and cooking healthier meals. So I did some, and still doing, research on this LCHF way of eating. I cut out all sugar and bread just after the 4th of July, or let's say I got really serious then. As i said before I started at 301, as of today I am at 277.
This is not a diet it is a way of life. There are no cheat days. My goal every day is to do 20g Carbs, 70g Fat, and 60g - 75g Protein. I'm definitely not perfect every day, but by this time next year I want to have knocked off a 100 more pounds.
There are great books, articles, recipes out there for you to do your own research. Some of my favorite you tube videos come from Ask Nurse Cindy, she's also on Facebook.