Do you guys really like the taste of diet soda? Because I don't know why it has Slurmlike addictive qualities.

I like Diet Dr. Pepper. Other diet sodas (and regular Pepsi) taste so bad to me that I'd rather drink water or unsweetened tea.

Lean protein and whole grains and snack on fruit?

This is me. That and portion control. I do like dessert, so I make a processed food exception for Jello dream mousse and have one of those most nights. Satisfies my sweet tooth and only 60 calories.

When I first started eating this way I DID have to think about food a lot, but once I settled in, I really don't. Even better, I don't have to worry about high blood pressure and feeling sluggish. I'd rather go through a month or two of feeling hungry sometimes and retraining my palate in exchange for not suffering from all the ills of the heart disease my dad had.

David, one sentence? Can't do worse than Michael Pollan:

Eat food; not too much; mostly plants.

For me, that means using a smaller bowl to dish things out; steel-cut oatmeal; whole grains; more salads; lots of roasted vegetables in the winter. I just discovered how great parsnips and turnips are, roasted with olive oil in a 425F oven. NOM.

I used to eat a lot of pasta, and use those box-rice/noodle mixes, like Rice-a-roni and so forth. Now I can't imagine it. I still cheat and end up eating cheese & crackers for dinner sometimes, but I buy expensive cheese so I don't eat it too fast, and I try to vary my diet.

I still don't get enough vegetables, though. Hard to keep them from rotting when you live alone.

Yeah, it's rare that I don't end up throwing away the last little bit of bagged or boxed salads, or the last banana. Tomatoes, corn, and broccoli seem to last long enough for me to finish them.

I wish I could find a way to make vegetables non-disgusting. Without the addition of cheese, that is.

I prefer most vegetables uncooked. I think at least in part because the Midwest way of cooking most vegetables is to cook beyond the point where they've lost all texture.

My natural inclination is the carb. Bread, potato, noodle, whatever. I like fruits and vegetables, but getting enough protein is tough for me, mostly because I'm lazy, especially in the morning. And trying to convince S. that bacon is not really the healthiest protein has been tough.

But dining is a big source of enjoyment in my life, and doing all the point-calculating and management would turn it from a pleasure into an onerous chore.

This is my biggest problem with losing weight.

I'm just trying to get myself used to smaller portion sizes.

I've been making myself do this by taking leftovers pretty much every time I eat out (my monthly cheeseburger excepted - they done't travel so well or have much reuse potential), and not cleaning my plate when that's not feasible.

Further proof that Malki! lurks here (especially the mouseover text)?

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Okay, I've had two servings of fruit now and working on my second serving of veggies (nibbling on baby carrots).

I just did a rescue mission on the crisper bin and found a smallish bag of broccoli florets that wasn't enough for a meal but just right for a quick side. Sauteed that in olive oil and butter and salted it and it was tasty.

Years of WW have trained me to eat fairly well. I rarely cook meat at home, don't snack, don't really drink soda (although booze is still my vice), eat only high fiber/whole grain carbs, rarely eat processed foods, don't eat to overfullness and most dinners cooked at home are two veggie dishes. Even doing that and running (and strength training) I still gain weight. For men it's different but in my experience only calorie counting/WW works if I want to lose weight. If you just want to eat healthy? Mostly eat things where you can identify all the ingredients. Whole foods, not processed.