"beforeandafterfatlosspics:  I'm 6 feet tall.  Been eating unprocessed food and working out regularly for the last year and a half… However, these two sets of pics show how things have changed over the last few years… If I could offer any advice, what worked for me was eating 90% unprocessed food.  I allow myself to eat as much fresh fruit and raw/cooked vegetables as I want.  I use very little salt or oil in my cooking, and eat a couple pounds of veggies (raw and cooked) each day, along with fruits.  I eat smoothies (all natural ingredients, nothing from a jar/powder), and eat frozen fruit blended in a blender that makes it taste something along the lines of ice cream. I limit high starch veggies (i.e. potatoes) and eat no rice, no pasta, no bread, almost nothing from a can, etc. I will eat meat, eggs, etc. almost every day, but I do get most of my protein from nuts, seeds, and veggies.  It is a total misconception that only meat has all essential amino acids, even romaine lettuce has all essential amino acids.  I'm not hating on meat, just saying a lot of ""common knowledge"" about nutrition is downright BS, and this ""high protein diet"" thing these days may not be as healthy as just eating mostly fruits/veggies, full of all that great stuff a body needs. Of course, when craving it, I'll eat just about ANYTHING for a meal/day, in ANY amount, but then it's back to what got me here, and I truly enjoy my stirfrys, soups, stews, smoothies, fruit bowls, etc. Once I stopped eating processed food, my palette really changed, and fruit actually tasted sweet, veggies had flavour, etc.  And, best of all (for me, anyway) I NEVER count calories, I NEVER measure food, and I still eat A LOT. I'm never hungry, and my taste buds enjoy the hell out of fresh, from the ground, edible plant stuff.  I never worry about reaching any kind of calorie limit, just eat when I'm hungry, and keep eating til I'm full… Wow, I really do think I have all the answers, don't I?! ;-) For exercise, I gave up my gym membership. Now I mostly just do pushups, chinups (I have a climbing board mounted above my door), explosive burpees, sprints, body weight squats, and some workout rubber bands I bought, and train on days when my body says it's ready (i.e. not still sore from a previous workout). I gotta start working more on flexibility and balance, as I'm still stuck in the ""getting muscles/losing fat"" phase but ultimately health is more than that…  I've been going a bit harder/more focused for about 3 months now with my workouts, and I'm looking forward to another 6-9 months to see where that gets me, really want that ""V"" that shows there's some muscle/fitness going on… I would like to say, for me, for the most part, SCREW THE DIET/FITNESS INDUSTRY!  Eating real food as close to the way it came from the ground as possible works for me, I move in ways that gets my heart pumping and muscles burning, and I trust  my body and its intuition. In my experience, so much of the diet industry is about rules and measures and eating food that is more harmful than health.  So much of the fitness industry is special programs with secret tips that promise an amazing/perfect body when the plain truth is move til you breathe hard and it gets tough and your body will respond and be the best it can be. Yeah, there are exceptions in the diet/fitness arena, and some people do need the experts/rules, but so many people give up their power, responsibility, and knowledge to those that would rather, and let's cut the BS here, THESE COMPANIES WANT TO KEEP YOU IN A SYSTEM THAT ALWAYS KEEPS YOU IN THAT SYSTEM. THEY WANT A PAYING CUSTOMER FOR AS LONG AS POSSIBLE.  CALORIE RESTRICTED DIETS THAT INCLUDE ANY SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF LOW NUTRIENT FOOD (PROCESSED FOOD) WILL ALWAYS BE A TRAP, IT WILL NEVER BE EASY, IT IS ALWAYS WALKING A TIGHTROPE, ALWAYS USING THEIR SYSTEMS TO KEEP YOU ON TRACK. I'd like to finish by saying, if you choose a certain lifestyle, you can eat without fretting, workout with convenience and without paying, and just let your body do the rest. No body is ever perfect, but better health is attainable to everyone, everyday. Best of luck my brothers and sisters! Email Submission"