Use it and Lose it.

I spent the winter months eating and drinking everything within reach of my shivering body. As a result, my weight skyrocketed. Ok, I gained like 7 lbs. But now that I'm preparing to live somewhere warm and beachy, I've begun taking the necessary steps to lose the lard. The whole no-drinking-for-a-month thing has already shown results. My stomach is flatter, I have more energy, I'm eating less.

Another thing I'm doing is using this iphone (and possibly other smartphones) app called Loseit.

It's like a food diary but much more effective. You input your current weight and goal weight and it gives you a daily calorie limit. Then you input the food you eat at each meal and it adds up the calories. You also input the exercise (or, if you're like me, the 5 min walking to and from the subway) you've done that day.

So say you, like I did yesterday, eat a Five Guys cheeseburger and fries for lunch. Okay, approximately 900 calories spent, so I knew I would have to walk back and forth from the subway for 7 hours or eat a small dinner (ie. a pudding cup). It seems simple but for someone who is visual like me, (and someone who thinks all of this looks delicious) seeing it all plotted out is immensely helpful.

You can also follow your friends' weight loss progress. Fear not, they don't tell you anyone else's weight. It's another way to stay motivated and on track.

The app is free at the app store.