Being in a healthy BMI range is a good goal, but keep in mind that BMI does not take into account muscle mass.
Having a goal is important, so maybe have a series of small short term goals, such as a 5 pound per month weight loss goal which is totally doable, one pound per week which you can TOTALLY do if you eat right and exercise, and stick to it (thats the key)
Basically, eat as many veggies as you want, fruit in good but limited quantities, whole grains, non animal proteins, and lastly animal protein. The stuff you want the most of- veggies and whole grains. Those are going to keep you fuller longer.
Your portions are ver dependent on YOU and you are going to have to mess around with what works.
SInce you are just starting out, try a calorie log like www.caloriecount.com. Its awesome because all you do is plug in your food and portion sizes and it does all the math for you. It tells you how many calories, fat, carbs and proteins you ate. This way, you can really mess around with portion size and see what works for you. Plus logging your food makes you accountable, so you are less likely to eat bad food when you know you have to write it down later.
Don't worry about BMI, just get healthy. You're on the right path with what you've already cut out. Stick to only water. Eat nothing fried or high in calories/fat. You really want to prepare your own foods since you know what goes in it. Stick to lean meats such as chicken and fish. Veggies, whole grains, fruits are all great to add to your diet. Ideally you want to consume 1200 calories a day (nothing more, nothing less). Eat smaller portions as well.
As for exercise, you want to get your heart rate going and work up a sweat. If you're just starting to workout then you want to start off small. An elliptical/stationary bike where you gradually increase the resistance for both would be good. Do one of these (or both) for at least 30 minutes a day for 5 days a week. I wouldn't suggest you jump into resistance training just yet but the more comfortable you get with working out, try to incorporate this into your workouts. Most importantly though, push yourself! You won't get anywhere if you don't push yourself.
Most processed foods are garbage, and should be a minimal part of your diet.
Any real food is neither good, nor bad - only your overall diet is good or bad in relation to your activity levels. There's no magic 'eat this not that' when it comes to REAL foods - you have to track what you eat overall.
What kind of dieting do you think YOU would find psychologically easiest? Lots of small changes you have to stick to 100%, or a very simple weight loss diet that affords you the room to have a couple treat meals a week?
Don't go so much by BMI. It's flawed and not accurate. That being said you could stand to lose a fair bit as you are technically obese.
Create an account at a site such as myfitnesspal.com to use for calorie tracking. Cut out processed foods whenever possible. Drink only water for your drinks. Exercise for 30-60 minutes a day, doing total body resistance training 3 days a week with 48 hours rest (only do mild intensity cardio the following day after resistance training).
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Eat more meals, but of smaller portions to keep yourself full throughout the day
Also, do a lot of cardiovascular activities. As Jillian Michael said, the most effective way of losing weight is to combine strength and cardio, so you can do 3 minutes of strength, 2 minutes of cardio and one minute of ab work (for 20+ minutes continuously)--this will also keep you from getting bored!
Drink more water! (it keeps you full--most of the time when you feel hungry, it's only because your body is trying to tell you that it needs more water)
Grapefruits help curb hunger and boost metabolism (but make sure you're not taking any meds--grapefruits can react with some of the chemicals)
Make sure that you eat all colors of the rainbow--red, yellow, orange, green, blue, purple. ;) of course, I'm talking about organic, natural food/fruits, not the processed ones like skittles
eat lean meats, and vegetables and stuff, not a nutrition expert yet lol, but for exercise I reccomend cardio everyday at least 20 minutes, doesn't have to be running it could be a fast pased walk or a stationary bike would work too. by getting cardio in everyday you get the after burner effect which burns fat (very little but still, you know) even after exercising
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