I am 5'9", and weighed about 140-150 pounds until about 4 years ago.  I was underweight for most of my life.

I quit smoking about 4 years ago, and didn't want to gain a bunch of fat (I was eating everything in sight), so I started working out.  Not really knowing what I was doing, I focused mostly on weight training.  I didn't gain a lot of fat, but my weight did skyrocket up to 180 pounds.

After about a year, I started drifting in focus from my workout plan.  Over the next few years I steadily gained weight until I reached about 210 pounds.

One day I woke up and I realized what I was doing to myself.  I was depressed (I often am), I wasn't doing anything (activity wise), I wasn't going out and meeting people which was making me lonely, further fueling my depression.  Something had to give.

I take medication for depression, but that only does so much.  I decided that working out would be a good way to counter-act the depression.  Working out would also have the added benefit of increased confidence, self-esteem, and body image.

About a week into this workout regiment, I realized that the way I was eating was having a counterproductive effect on all the work I was doing.  It was then that I decided I was going to eat better, and try to get back to about 180 pounds, a healthy weight.

I am still depressed, but to much less of a degree than before.  I am no longer in a slump - I am doing something about it.  I still don't get out much and meet people, but I am getting better at that.  I can feel my confidence rising, and I feel good about the changes in my body.  So far, I have lost 13 pounds (I am under 200!), I'm using the next notch up on my belt, and my pants are fitting looser.  Also, I don't look fat (or paunchy) in clothes, and the difference in my stomach is easily noticeable.  I feel good.  Not great, but good.  I am still lonely, but hopefully that will change soon.

My eating habits have changed significantly.  I was a coke-aholic.  I would usually drink 2-3 20oz. bottles of Coke at work, and then drink the better part of a 2 liter at home.  I shifted to tea (sweetened), but have gradually reduced the amount I drink.  Now, I have a single 8oz. glass of tea in the morning.  I drink water or milk the rest of the day (mostly water).  I eat whole grains and get the fiber I need.  I eat more fruits and vegetables and less empty calories.  I am having cravings for fast food less and less often.  I have also significantly reduced my sodium intake.  I don't use table salt, and I choose less foods which are high in sodium.  I feel good about the way I eat, and I feel that I can keep it up, even when I get into the maintenance.