your diet is the biggest thing you have to worry about. If you work out like a mad man and don't have a good diet it won't help you very much. first of all remove all fast foods, sugary candies and pop from your diet, those are what usually cause people to gain weight. Salads aren't the only thing you have to eat and you don't have to starve your self. Do a bit of research and try out diffrent foods, you can have junk food once or twice a month but more than that and it can put on a lot of pounds. -edit and FYI 3500 calories make up 1 pound sounds like a lot but just cutting out 200 calories ( about 1.5 choco bars) a day can help you lose about 1.7 punds a month.