Lots of good advice on this thread. I don't think I could cut out animal fats completely though, I eat very little red meat anyway because I much prefer eating seafood (does this count as meat?) and chicken. I do eat plenty of non-processed cheese and half-&-half in my coffee, so I'm taking in some bad saturated fats.
But you gotta live! I can't see my wife and I ever being on a super restrictive or no-tolerance type diet plan, we just try to keep the best daily diet we can, some days being better than others.
I've cut way back on alcohol the past couple of years. I'm going to be enjoying a little alcohol tomorrow evening for the first time since <checks Molly Ringwalds thread> Mar. 4. I even turned down a fridge full of beer at a recent family reunion! Moderation is key.
I can't stress enough how good working out makes you feel (Mrs. agrees)! Even if you don't like gyms, a cheap bench and set of weights is all you need. This weekend I'll be looking for a more comfortable dedicated curl bar.
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One of the biggest problems IMO is portion sizes, they're absurd! Yeah, I know you can take it with you (and I do) except that I'd rather enjoy a smaller indulgence and leave it [the indulgent eating] at the restaurant. Sometimes splitting a plate is perfect, but this can take away from variety which has become more important to me that quantity. At places we frequent ("frequent" being relative), we have it down pat what to order.
After a concert Saturday night we had a rare splurge of dessert at a Waffle House...
We normally get different things for variety and we share, these are "Small Size" slices!
Check out the numbers:
========== Regular Slice..........520-880 Calories Small Slice..........260-440 Calories
Going by calories, a "Regular Slice" would have been *twice* the size you see in my pic! That would be about a quarter of a pie?! IMO, there should be an even smaller option like the slice of cheese cake you use to get at Chick-fil-A (which was more of what I was expecting).
I believe the *amount* we eat is at least an equal factor of the current weight problem as to *what* we eat.
Hey Mark, the pie looks great! Trust me when I say that this Marc knows no one that was a bigger eater of meat and dairy then I was in the past. I had a particular lust for Colby cheese and would eat a lot of it every week and I had eaten meat and dairy every meal of every day for my entire life. No one in my family or friends can believe that I'm eating a vegan diet. None of them thought that would ever be possible, including myself but when I was done doing my research, the facts couldn't be denied. I'm not having any trouble eating this way at all, in fact it's easy as most of my meals are raw so there's no cooking required. I'm far from a strict vegan, I had scallops and pasta on Mothers Day and will indulge myself in sweets when and if I feel the need. Here's how I've been rolling lately...
Moderation is key. 
