It’s a harsh reality. Weight reduction is difficult, and in order to lose weight, you must be hungry at times and not eat, or at least not eat as much as you want.
Its also important in maintaining as much control over your environment as possible in order to avoid being exposed to triggers.
We can't change our increasingly obese society, but we can control our own environments, such as how often we eat out vs. cooking at home, and who we hang out with.
It also makes it a lot easier to avoid thinking about food in black and white.
Instead of thinking of foods as "good or bad", think of them as "more processed" or "less processed," "nutrient rich" or "nutrient sparse."
It's remarkable how much the desires and cravings decrease when there are no good or bad meals and no forbidden foods in your eating perspective and you simply seek to eat 80-90 percent of your calories from nutrient dense, unprocessed food.
It's a well-known axiom that you crave what you're not permitted to have. Everything changes if you give yourself permission to eat whatever you want as long as you keep the calories under control and consume at least 80% nutrient dense foods.
It's arguably the most crucial piece of advice I can give.
Yes, you must limit calories (be in a deficit), but you do not have to limit foods. If you're in a calorie deficit, you can eat everything you want and still lose weight.
You'll also maintain good health if you eat nutrient-dense, unprocessed foods the majority of the time.