well removing temptation usually works for me. if there is ice cream in the fridge I 'll find a reason to eat. no ice cream - no problem or at least finding a good substitute - frozen gogurt bars or the like.

Need more detail if you want a good answer. To give you a direction we need to know where you are at and where you want to be. For example, how much training are you doing? What are you currently eating? What are your goals? How much sleep do you get? How much stress do you have in your life? Etc. All of these will play a role in nutritional habits and goals, and what steps it will take to get there.

Right I Understand abs or made in the kitchen I know they are there somewhere I just cant seem to get my nutrtion down to find them....

My day consists of this:

8:30 break fast - Whole wheat bagel Peanut Butter Maybe some fruit.
11:00 Lunch - Sandwich Ham on Whole wheat bread some Pretzels or a yogurt
2:30, 3ish Snack Fruit or a Candy Bar (I know that is not good)
6:00- Dinner - Chicken, Veggie, Pasta, or SOmething or the grill....

Now my weakness lately has been eating Fast Food I have been eating Wendys which I have SPicy Chicken Fries and a Tea. OR like today I had Quiznos, A 12inch Italian Sub on Wheat

My training is as Follows: I workout everyday around 1-2 hours a night. I cycle a lot. I run every other day and try and get to the pool 2-3 times a week. No strength training (but I would like to incorporate more) I try and not snack at night if I do The wife and I sometimes go get ice cream and if that is the case I usually get a med Vanilla Cone.

My usual training is ALL cardio, recently my wife and I started doing a deck of card a night. Red crunches and black Push-ups. And I recently got P90X and I am thinking of starting that regiment in the near future I just have to find the time.

Any Ideas?

I'll preface this with the fact that I was 267 last year and am 176 now...

When you lose a lot of weight, even slowly, it takes a long time for the last bit of visceral fat to burn off. I still have some I'm working on and it just takes time and determination. Slowly but surely, it is going away.

Defined abs will come from diet moreso than exercise albeit you need both. You have to slightly cut caloric intake say 300-500 per day less than you burn. You have to figure out what you burn and go from there. Cut out bad carbs, not all carbs but limit those as well. You need to stick with fish, nuts, oatmeal, eggs, fruits, veggies, lean meats and the like. Limit even your whole grains and dairy intake but you need to have 'some'. Wheat based products, even whole grains, should be limited but not done away with all together. You do need to know that if you don't alter the diet, you will more than likely not get defined abs unless you are gifted genetically....most of us aren't.

Let yourself cheat on a schedule so your 'diet' is not a chore. I am a chocoholic so I indulge in dark chocolate from time to time. It is decent for you anyway in moderation and lets me be human once in a while. The other day I ate dessert like a pig and don't feel guilty. From time to time I'll eat some ice cream or other treats too. The trick is to let yourself know that you are allowing this treat instead of feeling like you 'fell' and then beating yourself up!

Crunches will not define your abs so you can see them until the fat is gone...that's cardio. I suggest you try to incorporate sprints, walk/run, what ever into your routines. Interval training seems to work well with burning fat. Also, you'll have to incorporate a weight training routine to help you burn the fat. I do free weights 2x's per week (an entire body work out).

Cut out soda (even diet). +1 to the tea and water recommendation above. Also, tea and fruit mixed with whey protein is a great smoothie that feeds your muscles after a workout and won't pack on the weight.

Hang in there and keep pressing on.

Don't get discouraged. If a 6 pack was easy, everyone would have one. It's not, but you can do it with determination.

I hear ya.... I grew up in an Italian home and pasta was king! Along with biscotti and all kinds of other high fat treats...oh, and cooked salami too! Right now I am smaller than I was in high school and that was 1984-87. I was always 'big boned' so they said (everyone being nice!)

Anyway, if you like pastas, eat it once a week but get Barilla whole grain or one of the low glycemic non-wheat pastas. There are several varieties on the shelf. I found great pitas with flax, oat bran and other stuff at Walmart and use those for lunch.

What carb foods do you have trouble with in particular?

I love Bread. I can eat any kind of Bread you put in front of me...

Yea well I love Pizza and wings as well...

my husband went to a fancy restaurant last night for a business dinner and "thoughtfully" brought me home a beautiful piece of tuxedo cake. OMG. I can hear it calling my name in the fridge. I will eat the slice over the next 3 days

This thread sounds familiar. You could of bumped your old thread that's almost identical :)
http://www.trifuel.com/forum/18857/im-not-training-correct

Do you really want to know what to do, or do you want to know how to get motivated to do it?

I can come up with a killer plan on what to eat during the day for myself, and I can even follow the plan for a few days. The hard part is consistently getting the right foods at the grocery store and preparing them. Once they are available, I'll eat them. If Wendy's sold salmon and fresh fruit that was as cheap and easy to get as a spicy chicken sandwich, we'd all see our abs.

Ah, the bread monster! Well, there's always a blind fold....

try flatbreads and pitas. Less calories and you can even get some that are lower carb. This of course is going to require some dicipline on your part.....

You can try to limit your bread intake to once per day before 2pm. This'll help some but you really need to nix anything other than whole "grain" bread.

on a side note, pizza hut has an all natural crust now which I think is whole grain....just skip the pepperoni! :)

...reading your old thread...sounds like you really need weight training to put on some muscle mass. 165 at 6" is fairly slim. If you put a bit of muscle mass on that will also even out the bit of skin that's left... if you are interested, I can send you my work out log and you can compare it to what you eat. Over the last year I tracked everything I ate all day, and measurements, cycling and running. It's a large excel spread sheet but you're welcome to look at it.

I would definitely substitute out the P90X for some of your workouts. You'll see a HUGE difference in muscle definition, power, and strength by adding some more powerful maneuvers and reducing your cardio.

On eating, I think what you need to do is make sure you have the right food on hand. Make sure you have plenty of good quality protein. One thing we do is BBQ up a whole ton of chicken breasts on the weekend, then we have grilled chicken to add to salads, soup, etc. whenever we want. Make sure you have tons of greens and other veggies available, especially stuff that's easy to snack on like snap peas, carrot sticks, celery, pepper slices, etc. Slice 'em up in tupperware containers over the weekend so you have them ready to go for the week.

Here's what I tell my kids (and myself): a meal is a protein, a fruit, and a vegetable. Anything else (bread) is extra, should be limited and/or come only after you've finished the protein, fruit, and veggies. Fill up on the good stuff, leave the rest as a treat.

I understand where you are coming from. It's hard during the summer when everyone has parties and BBQs. A lot of it is about discipline and also shopping smarter. Try to cut out any alcohol if you can. +1 on the no soda and lots of water. Also try to eat plenty of fruits and veggies. The fruits may help crave your sweet tooth and they have lots of water, which helps with hydration. They are great recovery food. Look for grains such as quinoa, barley, and lentils to help you with your carb intake. Quinoa has a lot of protein for a grain. It's easy to cook too. Lastly, really try to stay away from fried foods. They are usually cooked in peanut oil or vegetable oil.

Congrats on losing all that weight.

What my overall goal is to be able to loose just a few more but ultimately build muscle yet stay lean and thin....

I am really considering doing the IM next year. So I want to be able to cross the finish line healthy...

See I dont drink Alcohol I dont drink soda I only drink water and Tea.... So That isnt the issue. It is the pizza and the burgers and fries..... I just love it....

So many good suggestions! Not to mention you must be doing something right with losing 70 lbs - great job!! I do the same as someone one else mentioned. Saturday is my "crap-eating-day." Unless I have a tri the next day then my "crap day" is after my tri. I picked Saturday mostly because that is the day we are running around and my eating schedule gets all mixed up anyway and I can get pizza or take out because I don't have the time to cook. Plus, during the week, all the times I say "no", I think about how Sat. (or Sun.) the food is going to taste really good! I eat a lot of protein with complex carbs. I do the 5/6 meals a day schedule and ALWAYS have some sort of protein (even if it is just almonds) and some fruit. There is not a meal that I have that doesn't have some sort of protien and complex carb. The trick is having stuff available. We buy chicken breast in bulk. We always have chicken in our refrig. We always have veggie to go with it. Brown rice (there are good kinds out there). Rather than buy the regular pasta I buy pasta that is made with brown rice. Can't tell the difference except it is less starchy. You do need to plan a little more but so worth it!!

Seems like you love food more than the potential six pack ;-)

One item that I read in an article on the site recently, which is working tremendously well for me is to not eat ANYTHING after 7:00 at night and to make sure that I get 7-8 hours of sleep every night, which is cutting me down tremendously.

Also, as people noted, choose a day to be bad and don't let that stress you out - i.e. have pizza on Friday's with a side of sour dough bread and some fried rice to dip it in - okay, just kidding, but you seem to love your carbs.

Also, the P90X is a good idea - I am planning on doing once the season ends as a way to change up the training for a bit, slim down, and strenghten my muscles / core. I have started it before and it's a great program.

Keep working, keep focusing on eating right, keep sleeping 7-8 hours and it will come - It's not a rush!