MB, if you don't mind, I think you should give people an idea WHERE you started......it's quite inspirational!
DP,
Sure, no prob. I'm not much of a linguist, but I'll give you guys the basics in as short a version as possible..... I WAS REALLY FAT! Throughout childhood and high school I was obese, gradually ballooning up to 280+ lbs. No sob stories or real genetic defects, I just didn't work out a lot and (more importantly) I didn't watch what I was eating at all. I drank, did drugs and was totally self destructive to say the least. I think I get this from my father, LOL
So, long story short at age 16 I decided to lose some fat. I had a ton of it. I knew the key was going to be my diet. I studied the majority of diets around, and had even tried a few briefly without much luck. I targeted all the junk I was eating and attacked with no remorse! I cut everything way down cold turkey. I started eating more protein... my parents were a-holes about buying me what they considered "special food," so I made a weekly trip to the store by bus to buy several cans of tuna fish (the 25 cent cans thats akin to cat food) and a big bag of walnuts. This was all I could afford, but I was willing to choke it down if that meant fat loss. The rest of my diet was vegetables we had at home. Mostly celery, cucumbers and lettuce.
I also road an exercise bike (that I purchased at a garage sale) 20 miles a day low intensity, as many days a week as I could. I also walked to and usually from work 6 days a week... a total of 6 miles a day. I didn't know much about weight training, nor did I have the desire to lift weights (I had no car and no weight set). I was also still pretty self confident about exercising, so I mostly hung out in my basement on the bike and watched TV.
Within a month I had lost 15 pounds. Three months, 40 pounds. After six months, I was down to 185. It was hell, but I made it down to what I thought was a reasonable weight. Not to mention I had been receiving compliments since the first 10 pounds came off... so I figured this level was good enough.
BUT.... after a while of 185 I had a strange, sudden desire to be big and muscular, not just thin (although I was still somewhat chubby at 190. Never got BF tested, but from pictures I would guess I was still 17-18%). I guess I missed being "big." Or missed being hard to move, LOL. Also, for some strange reason (still not sure why) I remember my dad bringing me home Ironman, Gold's Gym, and M&F mini-books from the library. You know- those thin paperback books with the BBs on the front. Each chapter is a basic routine compete with "hardgainers guide to packing on muscle."
Well- long story short I fancied myself a "hardgainer!" LOL!!! I probably liked the part about eating so much that I ignored the rest. Anyways- I was totally convinced that everything in the books and magazines were true. I had to lift heavy and eat myself sick to gain muscle.
I did the routines (I still had confidence issues so I hadn't really lost my "gym cherry" yet) at home in the basement using some simple used equipment. I was probably using terrible form and I skipped around a lot. I started eating mad calories! I was sure that I had to eat every 3 hours or I would die. I was also sure that I needed carbs and protein in ridiculous amounts. I bought MetRx bars, made protein shakes, ate PB&J sandwhiches with corn chips and cottage cheese AS A SNACK!. I would eat until I was no longer hungry.... not a good idea for me or anyone who used to be fat! (I can still to this day eat anyone I know under the table if you get me in the right mood)
I also utilized lots of junk food (ahh, glorious junk food) in my diet. Why? Because the books and magazines said I could cheat DAMN IT!
Anyways, part II of my story culminates at age 17.
I had gained 40 pounds, most of which I thought was muscle. I got BF tested for the first time in my life at a college PE course. 25% Fucking 25%!!! Hit me like a ton of bricks. I was fat again. Not just chubby, but fat. And again! After all I had gone through the first time around, I allowed myself to get that big- all the while trying to do something healthy.
I was confused. I tried a low fat diet, as per the suggestions of my college health text. 20% fat was the maximum allowed, carbs and fat would be about 50/50 (or 40 and 40% respectively). I was familiar with protein shakes, so I kept using those. I added juice, fruit or low fat bread or corn chips for carbs.

I kept with the 5-6 meals a day. Usually 3-4 shakes, a breakfast of skim milk or cottage cheese, cereal and eggs. Dinner was usually chicken breasts (plural) and rice, potatoes or pasta. I kept calories at or around 3000 because I was convinced of my need to eat 40 g protein or more per meal. I started lifting weights even more, 4-5 days a week.... this time at the gym and at school.
Surprisingly this actually worked to some degree. I think I got down to 200-205 in about 3-4 months. I was however starting to wonder about my methods (low fat)... and I found myself incredibly hungry and tired all the time, especially if I only ate 4 meals or something.
Next, summer came around. I decided I not only wanted to be back down to a healthier BF%.... but that I wanted to be ripped. As ripped as my body would allow. I started reading every little book or article I could about fat loss and the human metabolism. I read lots and lots of books on bodybuilding (this time I shunned M&F and went mostly old school and/or lesser known stuff) I was beginning to see why my previous diet of tuna fish, vegetables and walnuts worked so well, and why my diet of protein shakes and fruit didn't quite pan out despite my constant effort.
So, I went ketogenic again. This time I ate whatever I wanted (beef, whole eggs, bacon, etc) and kept carbs as low as possible. The rest was fat and protein with trace carbs from vegetables.
The concept of a eating carbohydrates a few times a week in small meals was introduced to me through my readings (Jay Robb, various plans that included a "cheat day") and I went with it. This made sense, as the original fat loss diet included some cheating. Not a lot, just half a dozen or so times that I had to eat w/ parents/family or on holidays that fell in the 6 month period. It was maybe once a month, and it didn't seem to halt progress. Basically what you would call a CKD (cyclical ketogenic diet) or TKD (targeted ketogenic diet).
Oh yeah, long story short... another 4-6 months of getting serious and I'm 180 again. This time at 7% BF!!

There were some pitfalls and snags... but that's another post!
So, basically through a long painful process I found out all of the same damn information available on this site! Newbies, consider yourself blessed to have found such an informational haven!!!
My advice to those starting a similar journey to ripped-hood: Don't get fat in the first place. Don't overtrain (different story for a different post). And last but not least.... Don't be afraid of ketogenic dieting!!! This is how our body works! Believe me, I found out the hard way.