Ever wonder why diets are a cottage industry in America?
Ever look at random photos of people in random places from decades back? Notice there aren't a lot of fat people in those photos? Notice that depending on which decade you are looking at, it is rare to see morbidly obese people? Contrast that to today.
We live in a society that wants everything to be easier, faster, and cheaper. On a personal level we want it to be fun, enjoyable, painless, quick, and simple. The food industry wants profit. As a result they view it plainly -> high yield crop, low bidder, carbs are cheap, add LOTS of sodium and sugar, add LOTs of engineered chemicals to artificially enhance the taste (to lower component costs), trick the brain into continuing to eat well after the point of satiation (so as to increase sales); and extend shelf life (avoid spoilage).
The very first thing we should all do is become educated about what is in the foods that we eat, come to understand what are healthy ratios of not just carbs / fat / protein / fiber - but of sugar / salt / dairy. Then understand that your health is YOUR responsibility and that takes WORK. In short - if you want to eat processed 'diet' meals (crap) you're still eating processed crap AND you're still not accomplishing the real goal - weight loss and a better life through a healthy diet and exercise.
If you have until next October (2015) you have all the time you could need and more. Learn to cook healthy meals and look to eliminate processed sugar and carbs right off the bat. Stop eating: bread / tortillas / pitas / pizza /pancakes / pasta / etc; as well as any form of processed sugars including but not limited to: soft drinks / syrup in coffee / refined sugar / sauces / jelly / flavored yogurt / ice cream; and knock out as much dairy as you can as well. Replace the processed complex carbs with simple carbs - sweet potato, yam, potato, beans. Replace the sugar with fruits or honey.
Just start with changing what you eat - not even how much you eat (at first). If you are really eating clean, heathy food - eat as much as you want. Try to eat 5 small meals a day instead of a couple of big ones. Try to drink @ 100 - 128 oz of water a day. Try to get a little exercise 3 days a week. Then after a few weeks make a few more changes - don't eat after 8:00 pm - ever. Try to get a little more exercise. Try to eat 3/4s of your then current portion size. While you safely loose up to @ 2.5#s a week without loosing muscle - don't focus on the #s/ time. Instead focus on what you want to become and the role that both a healthy diet and exercise play in that. Also - give yourself the grace to fail, but also have the strength to pick it right back up with renewed commitment.
Last thought - if you eat like shit and are a fatass - the odds are your wife (and kids) will be too. Part of being a man, a good husband, a good father is to lead. If you lead the charge - plan the meals, do the shopping, do the cooking - eventually it becomes the pattern, which becomes the lifestyle. Now everyone under the same roof is on the same page with respect to heathy meal choices and the role that it plays in not only how we look, but how we feel, and how we perform.
