Four years ago I was slim, toned and healthy. I used to box, run, do water and snow sports... the lot. Now, after four years of depression due to an increasingly stressful working environment, binge and comfort eating and almost zero exercise... I've gotten fat.
Four years ago I looked like this:
I don't know what I weighed then. I'm 5' 7" or so and reasonably broad shouldered. I maybe weighed 12 - 13 stone (168 - 182lbs).
Now I look like this:
I weigh just over 18 stone (252lbs) and I feel like hammered shit.
My diet is terrible; bread, pasta, cheese, fruit juice, pesto, fried chicken etc. I rarely eat cake or chocolate though and I never have carbonated drinks. I drink a lot of tea, white with plenty of milk but no sugar.
It's gotten to the point where I have given up my job and returned to education while I figure things out. My job was hellish. 8 hrs a day sat in an office staring at a computer. When I got home, I was too tired to do anything and even though I'd been snacking due to stress and boredom at work, I'd always have a big meal (big portions), and I'd always eat late, like 8pm.
I've started walking every other day and begun a weight routine, but I'm lazy and struggle to stick to these things. The thing is, I'm almost positive that it wouldn't take much at all to start shedding pounds. The problem is that there's so much contradictory information about weight loss and dieting on the net that I have no idea where to start. I need help.
What foods do I genuinely need to avoid and what kind of exercise regime will allow me to lose a shitload of fat? I don't want to be skinny and I'm not so bothered about the actual weight as I would like to come out the other end of this with more muscle mass than before. I just need to sort myself out and I have no idea where to start. Advice would be very much appreciated!