ver the last 13 months, I have had the privilege of working with a woman who is highly motivated to lose weight. So far, she has lost exactly 70 pounds, just ten pounds short of her long-term goal. I have witnessed some truly miraculous and inspiring changes in her and I thought you would enjoy hearing about her journey. The following is a brief interview with a real-life success story named Beth B.

JS: How long had you been overweight?

BB: About 5 years.

JS: Had you ever tried to lose weight before?

BB: Yes, but not successfully. I tried different crazy fad diets half-heartedly. But they were never permanent, proactive strategies. Looking back now, I can see that what I was doing was not coming from deep inside of me, from my heart. It was just whimsical and silly and it wasn't about changing my habits.

JS: How was this time different, what motivated you to lose weight?

BB: My dad had a talk with me and told me he was concerned about my weight and how it was affecting my health. He asked me to lose weight and that was very motivating for me. Also, I had been getting sick a lot and I got tired of being unhealthy. I had a friend who was ready to lose weight so we paired up and decided to encourage each other and work together. Finally, I saw a picture of myself that really grossed me out. I think all of those factors came together at the same time and it was the right time. I never thought of myself as having willpower and suddenly a light bulb went off in my head that my lifestyle was unhealthy and it was time to change. This all came to me very suddenly, too. I just woke up one morning and I was ready to change my life.

JS: What type of approach did you take?

BB: It was a straight-forward approach to eating healthfully and using portion control. No gimmicks or fads. I'd say I changed my eating habits 95%. First, I tried to change or upgrade my favorite foods. For example, I didn't cut out pizza, I just switched from having several slices of sausage and pepperoni pizza to having a small slice of vegetable pizza once in a while. If I have a burger, I'll only have half now. What's really significant is that now I use vegetables to fill myself up and round out my meals. I always liked vegetables, but I never really ate them. Now, they form the bulk of what I eat. I also learned from you about creating balance in my meals, like having some protein with some fiber from whole grains or vegetables. What's been really important too is eating the right portions and using the palm of my hand to guide my serving sizes. It's just a smart approach to eating; I pay attention to what I'm eating, when I'm eating, and how much I'm eating. I realized that little changes can make a big difference. I know I can still have a cookie if I want it, but I just can't have the whole package. I don't feel deprived at all because I allow myself to eat what I want, but I set limits on how much and how often.

JS: What was the easiest change to make?

BB: I think using portion control was probably the easiest thing. I didn't have to eat as much as I was eating before because I would eat until I thought I was going to explode. I don't want to have that feeling anymore so I stop eating sooner. I don't undereat at meals, but I don't overeat.

If I'm hungry between meals, I'll have some water and a piece of fruit for a snack. I don't feel deprived at all. I remember reading that the first bite or two of food tastes the best and after that it's all about how you remember it tasting. I always keep that in mind and that allows me to control how much I eat.

JS: What was the most difficult change you had to make?

BB: Nothing was that hard, really. It was hard to change my habit of overeating but it was even harder to upgrade my food choices. For example, switching to nonfat milk from 2%, having regular drip coffee with milk and cinnamon instead of a full-fat mocha coffee drink, and having balsamic vinaigrette instead of Thousand Island dressing on my salads. Those were painful adjustments, but it would have been much harder to eliminate my favorite foods than to swap them for healthier versions. Honestly, I won't allow myself to give up the foods that give me pleasure because that's what keeps me motivated to maintain my lifestyle change.

JS: What has been most helpful in terms of changing your diet?

BB: Knowing that I can succeed at this, having the knowledge and tools to help me approach this sensibly, having you as a resource and cheerleader, and my newfound interest in nutrition and healthy food. Your newsletters have been a great source of information for me and the recipe makeovers are inspiring.

JS: How do you track your progress?

BB: I keep a food journal and write down every little bit of food that I put in my mouth. In the beginning, I would calculate the number of calories in everything, but now I know intuitively how many calories are in what I'm eating, so I don't have to write them down. I also weigh myself once a week on Thursdays and record that in my food journal, too. I don't journal on that day because it's my "bad" day—the day I allow myself to eat whatever I want. I don't binge, but I do allow myself to eat whatever I want but in proper portion sizes, like one slice of pizza or one cookie or a fun coffee drink, but not a lot of anything and everything. Using the journal has been so important, too, because I can look back and see how I ate over a week that helped me lose more or less weight than the previous week. The food journal has been essential to this process. I got a little hung up on the numbers in the beginning, but in a good way because I used the numbers to guide my eating since I didn't trust my willpower to keep me on the path. I'm not a walking calorie counter or anything, but I can mentally estimate the number of calories in a plate of food pretty easily.

JS: Did you set out a goal for yourself when you started?

BB: I set my goals in 20-pound increments. Having smaller short-term goals made success more frequent and attainable for me.

JS: How does exercise fit into your plan?

BB: Surprisingly, it didn't fit into my plan for the first 50 pounds of my weight loss. But I know that exercise will play a major role in helping me maintain my weight loss, so I've started to get active recently. I'm practicing yoga twice a week and I go to the beach with my friend on Sundays to roller skate or bike ride. I recently converted my car into a mobile locker room with a tennis racket, tennis balls, yoga mat, athletic shoes, and roller skates. That way, I have no excuse not to exercise whenever I have a chance. I'm also finding that scheduling time to exercise is very helpful. Next week, I plan to add walking with some co-workers to my routine and, eventually, my goal is to work my way from gentle yoga to power yoga and practice three times a week.

JS: Do you ever eat unhealthy foods?

BB: Yes, of course--but I go in with a plan of attack. I like to have popcorn when I go to the movies, but I only allow myself a little portion and only about 10 minutes to eat it. After that, I give or throw away the remainder of the popcorn. If I have a doughnut, I immediately break off a small portion and throw the rest away before I'm tempted to eat more of it than I should. I just know that I have to instantly get rid of the portion that I have decided not to eat. Surprisingly, my favorite foods don't taste as good as they used to. I don't get as much enjoyment out of them as I used to. That's partially because I know they're unhealthy, and partially because I enjoy eating different types of foods now.

JS: Do you feel guilty when you do eat junk foods?

BB: No, not if I eat junk on my "bad" day. If it's on a regular day, though, I do feel a little guilty, but I use the guilt in a positive way -- I think it's my form of mental will-power. It helps to keep me from eating more bad stuff and encourages me to eat very healthfully for the remainder of the day. I don't get hung-up with guilt so much that I skip a meal or anything—I know first-hand that that strategy always backfires in the long-run. I never feel deprived.

JS: How do you stay motivated?

BB: I love all of the positive feedback I get from people I haven't seen for a while. But internally, my health and the way I feel motivates me—and it's fun to shop for clothes now!

JS: Aside from the physical changes, have you noticed any other changes in yourself?

BB: Yes! I feel so much better in general. I'm more energetic and mobile, physically and mentally. I'm eating so healthfully that my immune system is stronger, I'm sick less often and, in my mind's eye, I can see that my insides even look healthier than they used to.

JS: Have you encountered any saboteurs along your journey and how did you deal with them?

BB: Surprisingly, yes! I did not expect that at all, but I have certain people in my life who try to tempt me with junk foods or tell me that I don't need to be so strict with myself. I've learned that I have to be firm and say "no, thank you" to those people—sometimes more aggressively than others. Some friends do it unconsciously, too, but that's probably because they don't know the new me as well as the old me.

JS: What advice do you have for people who need to lose weight and are at the point where you were a couple of years ago before you had your epiphany?

BB: Anything is possible—I have no willpower, but I've been able to make these huge important changes. I think that if I had known how easy this would be, I would have done it sooner. This is a very mental process and I wish everyone a light bulb moment or epiphany like I had. I think that was a significant turning point for me. I don't know exactly how to get there, but try to start seeing yourself how other people might see you, talk to the people who love you and find out if they are concerned about how your weight is affecting your health. I think learning more about nutrition and healthy eating is an important thing to do before you start the rest of your life. Begin to prepare yourself for the changes in your lifestyle and negotiate a plan with yourself. Having a buddy to help encourage and motivate me has been really helpful, as well. Finally, I have a mantra: Never give up!