How to get an injured cat to lose weight ?

I have a three year old domestic short hair cat, who only responds to kitty. Kitty has always been greedy with food, she always wants her bowl full to the brim and on average goes through a bowl and a half of whiskers brand dry cat food.
Now when kitty was a year old, my black lab leaped on her and she fractured her leg on a very weird and uncomfortable spot. It was between her thigh and ankle so they decided it would be best to keep in her in a confined space and let the injury heal itself instead of getting her a cast. Kitty seems comfortable right now, walking and running, albeit with a limp, but she is not comfortable enough to play for long periods of time like she used to. So between her injury and her cheap, ( I'm quite sure ) unhealthy food and her greedy mentality, she is rapidly gaining weight. She goes into the vets office once a year for check ups, but because I wasn't comfortable with her current vet ( the same one who sees my dogs ) I literally did an in and out check up. I did not ask for info and I was not given info other than " she is generally healthy " ( unprofessional and unethical. I know . To add to that my vet tried to force me to get her a three year rabies shot which is rumored to cause cancer ).
So it's time for a new start for kitty. I'm looking for a new vet, and meanwhile I'm trying to find her better food and get her into a healthier life style . How and where do I start and do you guys have any budget friendly ( 30 dollars tops ) cat food recommendations ?

If she does not exercise much, then your only option is to control her calorie composition and intake. Instead of free feeding, transition to scheduled meal times with a specific number of calories. In general, wet food is better for cats due to the moisture as well as generally being higher in animal protein and lower in carbs. The articles below explain in more detail.

http://www.thecatsite.com/a/transitioning-free-fed-kibble-kitties-to-timed-meals

http://www.thecatsite.com/a/how-much-food-should-i-feed-my-cat

http://www.thecatsite.com/a/choosing-the-right-food-for-your-cat

http://www.thecatsite.com/a/transit...-to-a-new-type-of-food-canned-raw-or-homemade

Agree with vball91 about scheduled feeding. And, on a whole, I have found that cats do better eating canned food to lose weight.

1 1/2 bowls is very likely double or triple her daily calorie requirement (depending on bowl size.)

As for food options, I love Nature's Variety Instinct. If you choose to any feed dry food, this would be one I would check out. It certainly would cost less than $30 to feed 1 cat a month.

Other brand options that are ok (in no particular order
- Taste of the Wild
- Wellness CORE
- Orijen
- Innova
- Evo

I order almost all of my food from Chewy.com. I have been hard pressed to find anyone that can beat their prices.