i just graduated from purdue with a dietetics/nutrition major and 'm currently in the middle of my rotations/internship. i am..by far, not an expert or a professional, but i can share with you some insight..and "knowledge" i guess i've gained from school.
i'm 23 and 110 lb, so i can't say that i know what you're going through, but i've been helping my mother and a couple of her friends (who are diabetic) with diets and exercise.
it IS a lifestyle change and you do have to commit, but it's always okay to slip up and eat something you absolutely love (i'm not a huge meat fan, but i am a carb lover! to the extreme. hehe. )
the main struggle is to go back to your diet/exercise plan after you slip up. many people believe that if they mess up one day and eat whatever they want, they totally failed their diet plan. you didn't! just get back on it.
one key to eating the things you love is moderation. you don't necessarily need to cut it out, just eat in moderation.
my mom has had knee surgery on and off for the past year, so getting up and walking is not an ideal way to exercise. we do a lot of leg rotations, strength (weight) training to help her build up muscle and lose weight, while she's sedentary.
with other people who come up to me (apparently everyone thinks i'm an expert since i've spent the last 5 years learning nutrition
), i tell them to get on an exercise plan BEFORE they start cutting things out of their diet and going to other extremes.
one of the ways i exercise (instead of hitting the gym because somedays i just don't feel like it) is to take mocha out for a 30 minute walk after dinner, when the sun is setting so it's not too hot. or even just going out and playing catch with her for 10 minutes. the furbaby loooves it.
i'm not really big on the diet pills that are out there on the market. a lot of them seem to be too good to be true, which is exactly true. it's way too good to be true for it to work. there's always some side effect. if anything i would recommend supplementation on certain vitamins if you insist on cutting out a particular food.
i don't know if any of that made sense and it's a really long post. i tend to ramble when i get going.
