No joke --wear a corset. Not spanx, but a tight corset. It will kill your appetite.

My natural weight range has a 10 lb variance. I think I look better on the lower end of that range, so I've done various diets over the years to drop 10 lbs when I felt inspired. Basically, I think you can either do a lot of work (new exercise routine you stick to 3 days/week + calorie count & portion control) or you can go the easy route. For me, the easy route, a shortcut of sorts, is to go primal/adjusted paleo. It really is no effort at all - you just knock out grains and starchy bulk from your diet but no additional exercise or calorie counting required. When I'm eating eggs, meat, veggies, fruit, some plain yogurt - I can only eat so much of it and it's not at all tempting to over eat, so there's no need to measure out portions, yet I feel full and by the 2nd week, cravings go away. Pretty simple and easy.

Shakes aren't balanced meals. They aren't teaching you how to fuel your body.

Anonymous wrote:Protein shakes are not meals. Starving yourself is not a plan.

Actually they are well balanced meals. One shake with milk is 330 calories. Two a day is 660 calories. Follow up with chicken and vegetables for dinner and you will be at 1200-1500 calories.

The best way to lose weight is to eat at a deficit. You need to figure out what that deficit is because it may be above or below the usual, generic suggestion of 1200 per day.

Protein shakes are not meals. Starving yourself is not a plan.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Follow this meal plan:
Breakfast-Protein Shake
Lunch - Protein Shake
Dinner-Salad with Chicken Breast and as many veggies as you want, no dressing.

No alcohol, sweets or sodas/juices.

how did you make your protein shakes?

Optimum Nutrition Powder mixed with low fat milk.

Anonymous wrote:Follow this meal plan:
Breakfast-Protein Shake
Lunch - Protein Shake
Dinner-Salad with Chicken Breast and as many veggies as you want, no dressing.

No alcohol, sweets or sodas/juices.

how did you make your protein shakes?

Anonymous wrote:Follow this meal plan:
Breakfast-Protein Shake
Lunch - Protein Shake
Dinner-Salad with Chicken Breast and as many veggies as you want, no dressing.

Don't do that. Eat real food. Make your own dressing with olive oil, vinegar and spices.

I am close to your stats. I am 5'4" and was 150 lbs a year ago. I am now 140. I did not eliminate any foods, but here is what I *did* do:

- Exercised more strenuously 3-5x per week. For you, I would suggest doing intervals of 1-2 minutes fast as you can go, 3 minutes of "moderate" pace. Adding strength training, as PP mentioned, is also a good idea.

- Reduced alcohol significantly. For me, this meant forgoing my nightly (generous) glass of wine and saving alcohol for weekends, only. I was never a soda/juice drinker, so alcohol was really the only empty calorie beverage I was drinking.

- Joined WW online for 3 months and tracked food/exercise. This helped me better understand (i.e., see in print) what I was doing right/wrong. 3 months was all I needed -- I eat pretty much the same things over and over, so once I pretty much memorized points, and serving sizes, I felt I could continue with the basic principles, without paying.

- Reduced carbs or swapped them for dessert or wine. I wasn't willing to give up pasta and other carbs entirely, but I figured I could do with less. So, if I decided I really wanted a glass of wine, I would not have carbs for dinner. Or, if I really wanted an ice cream cone, I'd pass on the bread/rice.

- Looked for reduced calorie recipes for things we eat regularly. Skinnytaste.com is good for this.

- Tried to eat salad for lunch 3x/week, and with dinner 3x/week with tiny amounts of dressing and no cheese.

- Switched out some desserts/sweets with lower calorie/fat items like coconut macaroons.

- Weighed myself every week.

- Stopped putting sugar in my coffee.

- Consciously made myself drink more water.

I will not lie, it has taken me almost a year to lose the 10lbs. Also, I gained a few pounds back over the holidays/winter and then had to lose them again. I suppose I could have done it more quickly with having nothing but protein shakes twice a day, and eliminating sweets entirely, but I knew that was not sustainable for me. I'd just be hungry and pissed off.

Good luck!

Follow this meal plan:
Breakfast-Protein Shake
Lunch - Protein Shake
Dinner-Salad with Chicken Breast and as many veggies as you want, no dressing.

No alcohol, sweets or sodas/juices.

ideas for you:
drop the white carbs
change your walking pace and/or course (add more hills or steps)
add strength training (squats, push ups, etc)

Would you consider cutting out all white carbs (i.e., no bread, rice, pasta) until you lose the weight? That would probably be the quickest way to lose the weight. If you then step up your exercise (add duration or if you are limited by time, intensity).

....Just saw that someone else posted a similar thread Oops!

I'm 5'5" and 150. I'd LOVE to be 140 lbs (even though some would consider that big for my height). I am a SAHM and moderately exercise by walking for 30-40 mins 3x/week and recumbent biking 2-3x week. My diet is OK-- no fast food, but no elimination of entire food groups (i.e. I eat carbs, sugars, whole grains, meats, etc). What's the best way to tackle the last 10? Simple calorie reduction + more exercise? Cutting out bread and carbs? I need to wrap my mind around a new routine that will help me shed that last 10 lbs...something doable and not extreme. TIA!