Hi! I'm a Brit living in NY. Congratulations on finding your way to LC. It feels great to find a way of eating that you can do without cheating, doesn't it?

Yes, I had a difficult time getting my head around the fact that I could EAT FAT. That was 4 years ago and now my favorite way to drink coffee is with butter and coconut oil blended into it - who'd have thought it possible! As for eating out in the UK, whenever I go back it seems to get easier and easier. I really think more attention is paid to the 'quality' of food there than here. More of it seems to be sourced fresh from local farmers. I just ask for whatever I like and request they leave off any starches or breads. If it comes with starch anyway, I just leave it on my plate. No big deal and no need to go for the stodge ever.

I have 4 year's worth of journaling and it has helped enormously in keeping me accountable to myself. I keep it simple, just jot down each night what I ate at what time of day, what exercise I did, what vitamins I took. I keep a small loose-leaf leather binder by my bed, and at the end of each year I archive the pages into a thicker binder that is put away in a cupboard and refill the leather one with clean pages for the new year. Honestly, I'm not a compulsive-obsessive sort of person, but jotting down my food like this has been so helpful. You can look back and see how much you weighed when you were eating super cleanly and how much you weighed when you weren't. That's an eye-opener, right there.

Good luck and welcome.