Half of weight loss is a decision. If your head isn’t in the right place, you probably won’t lose weight, because you won’t stay on your diet consistently enough to move the scale. Weight loss has to be rapid to be reinforcing. Slow weight loss does not shrink your stomach or re-train your eating habits or preferences. It just prolongs the agony. In one study, patients who got down to goal were 5x more likely to maintain their weight, than patients who didn’t reach their goal weight. Figure out what motivates you (health issues, vanity, clothes you can’t fit into, a reunion, etc.) and use it.