In the beginning of 2018 I just focussed on exercising more and trying to be more careful of what I ate. More vegetables and fruits, less fried foods, cut out eating out almost entirely, no more making cheesecake or ice cream (which really hurt,) etc. Exercise became more frequent as well. I started making time to hike regularly again.
The weight was coming off but it was slow. Then in October 2018 I set a goal to lose 2 lbs a week. That's pretty tough but there are a few apps and other tools I use to help me stay on track and monitor my progress so I can lose the weight faster.