Welcome to Gaia! ::

You've already identified the problem, so the solution is pretty easy. I'd start by eating only when you're actually hungry. When you do eat, make it something healthy: fruit, vegetables, whole grain products including brown rice, lean meats, fish, low-fat or fat-free dairy products.

But don't deny yourself, either. If you have a monster craving for a cookie, eat half a cookie, or even a whole one. Don't eat something other than a cookie, because later on you'll still want the cookie -- so you'll wind up eating the cookie, plus whatever substitute you came up with in the meantime, thus making you eat more calories than you would have eaten just by having the cookie when you realized that the craving was the kind that wasn't going to go away.

Well, since you have become accustomed to eating when you aren't hungry, don't simply force yourself to resist the random urges. The desire may fight back with you. I'd take baby steps in order to get to where you don't eat when you're not hungry.

To start off with, have bite-sized snacks nearby that aren't processed or bad for you. If you like cherry tomatoes, have a few of them in a bowl, or add some random things that are yummy. Basically, have fruits and veggies nearby so that way you can snack on them instead. Like, prepare a 'finger-food' salad so you can munch on low-calorie foods. Also! Have a big glass of water that's always full so that you can absent-mindedly sip on that. It'll probably make you less hungry, and water is good! XD

try to find something to take your mind of being hungry. Eating when your not hungry is almost always boredom eating. That was my big problem. When I'm skiing however, I enjoy it so much, I often forget about lunch. "time flies when your having fun" if you must munch something, munch something with litle or no fat, like an apple. Or just drink water or juice. Avoid exercising right before eating too, cause that will just increase your hunger. It;s best to exercise half an hour to an hour after eating. So your not hungry but you've had time to digest a bit.

Good luck!

P.S. 15 pounds is still an acomplishment, remember muscle weighs more than fat, you shouldn't pay too much attention to the scale.

muscle doesn't weight more than fat it is more dense than fat. A pound of muscle still equals a pound of fat it is just that the muscle takes up less space in the body which is why the scale misleads.

If you were comparing how much muscle was in a per square area of the body (or whatever) and the same of fat the muscle would weigh more since it is more dense so that holds true. Otherwise a pound is a pound is a pound.