Years later, they look like completely different people
Today we’ll bring you the amazing and inspiring tory of Lexi and Danny Reed. These two fell head over heels in love with each other, despite the fact that they didn’t quite meet society’s beauty standards. After they got married, they decided to confront their obesity and change their lifestyle around. They both became a completely different person and turned into real role models.
The road of their transformation wasn’t without any bumps, however. The only way they were able to complete their ambitious goals was by supporting each other to the fullest. Nowadays, Lexi and Danny inspire people around the globe to live a healthy life, watch their diet and exercise regularly.
They went through this process together and have both undergone an amazing transformation. Continue on to see the extreme changes to their appearance!
From a young age, Lexi had been struggling with extra weight. Obesity had been a part of her life since she was only a little child. She tried a lot of diets to shed the weight, but unfortunately she had a hard time breaking old habits. She suffered a lot from the yo yo-effect, which means that you go back and forth between less and more weight.
At the age of 35, Lexi weighed 390lbs (177kg). She knew that this kind of weight was going to cause health issues in the future, so she decided to change things around. She couldn’t have done this without the support of her husband Danny. When she met him, she finally found a way to change her life around.
When Lexi first met Danny, she immediately fell in love with him. After the first few dates, they knew they were meant for each other. Her excess weight was not important to Danny, because he also weighed a few extra pounds too much.
Especially at the beginning of their relationship, they didn't pay much attention to a varied diet or a healthy lifestyle. However, they soon realized they couldn't go on like this. The weight problem became a health problem. They had to make some serious lifestyle changes to be able to feel comfortable again.
It was no secret that the two struggled with being overweight. One of the causes of their weight was that their daily meal routine did not include freshly prepared food. They regularly ordered home delivery and sometimes sat at buffets for hours to be able to eat as much as possible.
The two shared their love of food and yet knew they had to break this habit to work on their health. Danny also weighed over 286lbs (130 kilos) and wanted to change his lifestyle. Together they battled the pounds and began to turn their lives around step by step. Without this drastic change, their life expectancy would have been much shorter.
Many of Lexi's bad eating habits came from her youth, when she was living with her parents. As a child she had already had an unhealthy lifestyle. Her family did not have the means to buy healthy and fresh food, so fast food was often the meal of choice. Lexi has said that her life revolved around food and television. In addition, food helped Lexi deal with emotional issues.
At first, these habits got even worse when Lexi started dating Danny. After all, they were over the moon, and didn’t have time to think about dieting. This changed when they finally decided to do something about it.
Ever since Lexi and Danny started dating, they had a huge impact on each other. Their lifestyle was very similar and involved little physical activity. With a weight of more than 150 kilos, the smallest movement becomes a heavy task, so even simple activities such as walking or cycling were nearly impossible.
Finally, Lexi shared her feelings with her boyfriend, explaining how unhappy she was with herself and her circumstances. She just couldn't muster the motivation to make the changes herself. But then the unexpected happened and Lexi's life changed forever.
Danny got on one knee in front of Lexi and asked her to be his wife. With the marriage proposal, Lexi's dream came true. She seemed to have found the man of her life, who would take care of her and love her just the way she was. Her weight didn't matter to Danny. After all, he loved Lexi for her personality.
Lexi's unhappiness soon returned however. It all came back to her when her weight caused the search for a wedding dress to be an immensely difficult task. Although everyone tried to convince her what a beautiful bride she was, she still felt that something had to change. She weighed no less than 485lbs (220kg) at the time.
The search for a suitable wedding dress was the straw that broke the camel's back for Lexi. Although she eventually found a dress and the couple tied the knot in a fairytale ceremony, the situation gnawed at her conscience. Now that the lovebirds had finished their wedding, they were also thinking about children. Pregnancy and childbirth would cause many problems for Lexi.
Both the child's well-being and hers would suffer because of her excess weight. Her conviction began to take shape and Lexi now found the motivation she otherwise would not have: she wanted to have healthy children.
In addition to the desire to have children, Lexi has known many limitations in her life. She is an incredibly big Harry Potter fan and had always wanted to go to Universal Studios in Florida. But since she lives in Indiana, this dream also implies that she has to travel a long way.
With a body weight of more than 440lbs (200kg), she could not book a plane, and she would not even be able to ride in the amusement park rides. Travel was no longer an option for her at that time. Her dreams faded with no hope that they would ever come true. And then Lexi had had enough. It was time to take action.
After the first year as a married couple, not much had changed. Danny had settled for a lifestyle where food and TV came first. But Lexi wanted to change something. She was too young to say goodbye to her dreams now.
She felt a new drive and and set her goals. It's one thing to make such big changes, it's quite another to take matters into your own hands and work towards your goal. At the turn of the year in 2016, Lexi came up with a plan and went for it.
With the arrival of the new year, the couple changed things around. Lexi took the decision to pursue a healthier lifestyle seriously, and her husband decided to go along with it. Danny was also interested in eating healthier and exercising more. Lexi didn't have to try much to convince him. After all, he too wanted to have healthy children and be able to play with them.
As for Lexi, her own health was also at stake. The motivation was clear to both and so they began to get into the rhythm of their new life and embark on their incredible transformation.
The huge change was not easy for Danny either. He admitted that he liked to hang out on the couch and chill with snacks. However, he could tell from his wife that she really meant it and needed his support to make her dreams come true.
The love for her lifted him off his couch and so they could face a new life together. The best way to support Lexi in this huge assignment was to eat as healthy as she did and exercise with her. However, they needed some clear rules.
Once you get used to a lazy lifestyle, it's hard to change. So they set up some rules that they had to abide by. They had also placed some bets with friends so that they could be motivated in a playful way. They could not have imagined then that with their intent they would eventually become role models all over the world.
The first rules were to stop drinking alcohol, to only cook fresh food themselves, to avoid unhealthy snacks and, above all, go all-the-way and practice sports at least five times a week.
Lexi made it clear that she was sick of hanging out on the couch. She was sick of being fat and tired of not being able to do the simplest things because she was carrying about 100 pounds excess weight. She admitted that she could not even go on a romantic walk with her husband. She was also haunted by the nightmare of not being able to have children of her own because she was overweight.
Lexi started documenting every step of her incredible transformation by sharing her progress with her friends on her social media. That gave her the extra motivation to stick to the plan.
Most weight loss plans require physical activity and a gym is usually part of that. In fact, finding the right gym for Lexi turned out to be a little more complicated than expected. Being extremely overweight, she already had joint pain, so much of the conventional equipment was out of the question for her.
She simply couldn't afford a personal trainer, so they decided to do their own research and tackle this project together. Finally, they found the perfect gym and the battle against the pounds could begin. Once the right gym had been found, the road to weight loss was all clear…or was it?
Lexi had a big problem playing sports in a public place. With so many strangers around her, she didn't feel comfortable in her own skin. Fortunately, they found a gym that wasn't too busy and could use the equipment in peace.
To everyone's surprise, Lexi quickly found a favorite device that relieves her joints and still effectively gets rid of those fat deposits. And so she happily spent a few hours on a device called CrossRamp. She managed to do the exercises – and she even enjoyed it. It could all have been so easy if it hadn't been for the problem with her diet.
Although Lexi and Danny had now become regular gymgoers, one of the most important things they still had to do to shed the extra pounds was to make some dietary changes. In fact, they learned to cook healthy meals themselves. Gone were the days of ordering a quick bite from the sofa.
They even passed on ready-to-eat meals. They were very aware of what they ate and wanted to make sure they only ate what was healthy for them. The passion for eating food had linked the two in the past. Now they could also enjoy cooking it!
One of Lexi's more painful experiences with weight loss in her early life was the yo-yo effect. Diets are usually only for a set time, and even if you can get great results with them, they usually don't last long after you get back into your regular routine. You'll often see the pounds back on your hips in no time. Lexi knew she would have to turn her life around completely to maintain her new weight.
She made a list of her favorite food products and tried to look for healthy recipes that use those products. Not only did this make it a lot easier for her to stick to the new eating habits, but she also enjoyed eating those meals.
Now that concrete changes were afoot and they had made a plan together, all they had to do was follow it. To this day, Lexi is sure she couldn't have done this without her husband's help. They supported each other day in and day out and encouraged each other when one of them had a moment of weakness.
Even now that they had taken the first steps together, they still had a difficult period ahead of them. They were aware of this, but clung to small successes. The transformation was steady and over the next few months they became famous all over the world.
It wasn't long now before Lexi began to feel completely comfortable in the gym. She even enrolled in a number of courses and met new people. She made friends quickly, especially in her Pulse course, which made training a social event.
Not only did she have Danny by her side, she also had new friends who shared the same goal as her: losing weight. She came to the conclusion that she really liked to dance. This exercise was not only good for her physically, but also mentally. And soon the first results became visible.
Anyone who has tried to shed stubborn pounds knows that sometimes it can take a while before you start to see results. That was certainly not the case with Lexi. Within the first 4 weeks she was already able to say goodbye to the first 9 kilos.
And she kept up this pace, as best she could. She was not discouraged when things slowed down sometimes. She stuck to her new lifestyle and healthy eating, and going to the gym became second nature. Lexi had embraced the new way of life and she was enjoying it.
While Danny didn't struggle with as severe a form of obesity as Lexi's, he also adhered to the rules he had established with his wife. This also had a major impact on him: slowly but surely the kilos melted away.
Within 2 years he managed to lose no less than 45 kilos and thus reached his desired weight of 86 kilos. In fact, he had already lost most of his weight in the first year. But out of conviction and support for Lexi, he stuck to the healthy lifestyle and continued to lose weight slowly. It was a period of extreme changes.
Lexi was able to lose a whopping 320lbs (145kg). Her weight had not only been halved, but she had lost two thirds of it! Now she has become a new person. She is barely recognizable and doesn't have much in common with the overweight woman from 2 years ago.
Lexi reported that she noticed the first changes in herself when she sat at the table and found her belly under the table instead of on the table top. Today's – albeit infrequent – restaurant visits are a lot more pleasant for them. The freedom of movement she felt more and more often showed her that she was slowly but surely making great progress and getting closer to her goal.
Once Lexi made her decision to change, she was on her social media all the time, sharing every bit of progress with her friends. She created a new profile called "Fat Girl Fed Up" and regularly uploaded new photos of herself and her new life.
As the months passed, she got more and more fans and followers. Today she has 1.2 million followers on Instagram after her impressive transformation. Lexi became an internet sensation and inspired thousands of people to take their lives into their own hands.
Lexi and Danny's story went around the world and made them famous. The couple stayed together and shared a hugely positive success story with the whole world. They were even seen on television and were able to further increase their fame.
The influx of encouragement the couple received from the media gave them the motivation they needed to continue with their program. Despite the fame, however, they kept their feet on the ground. And what about their dreams? A lot has happened there too!
In the beginning, Lexi and Danny weighed no less than 793lbs (360kg) together. After 2 years they have halved this weight and have now reached a combined weight of 396lbs (180kg). This is an achievement to be immensely proud of.
They are now able to do everything that was not possible before. Including the romantic beach walk at the place where they got engaged. What was previously unthinkable became possible for Lexi. But even though she can now walk on the beach without breathing problems, she still hasn't reached her final destination.
One of her greatest wishes was to be enchanted by the world of Harry Potter at Universal Studios in Florida. And this time, neither the plane nor the amusement park rides were an obstacle for Lexi. She and her husband enjoyed a day at the theme park. Everything she wanted and worked so hard for has come true.
This experience also brought Lexi and Danny closer together. They agree that they saved each other's lives and such an experience does not leave anyone untouched.
Lexi had struggled with severe obesity since she was a child and now was the first time in her life that she felt really comfortable. She can jump, run and dance without getting out of breath. This turning point in her life gave her a previously unprecedented freedom of movement, which completely changed her life.
Although she was a positive and happy person with her 220 kilos, her life is now a lot easier. Lexi says she feels liberated now that she is no longer limited by her own body. The prison that was her body has let her go.
In an interview, Lexi said that she often looks back on the enormous progress and reflects. She has accomplished an incredible amount and has put a lot of blood, sweat and tears into it over the past few years. On her social media, she always encourages her fans to take that first step. It is common knowledge that this is the most difficult step, and Lexi too struggled hard at the beginning of her journey.
She revealed that things didn't just get easier later on, but she got a lot stronger and the challenges were easier to overcome. Her most important tip: Always keep your eye on the prize!
Thanks to strong discipline and a balanced diet, Lexi was able to take control of her transformation into a new person. She really took on a gigantic project and achieved the unthinkable. She did this without taking extreme measures, she only only firmly adhered to her own set of rules.
Not only can she be very proud, but she can also pass on her life experience to others and help many with it. She already shared that sushi is incredibly healthy, but you should just avoid the versions with cream. She also skips carbohydrates by replacing them with miso and salads.
The interesting thing about Lexi's story is that she documented all the highlights, but also her many setbacks. She doesn’t refrain from sharing her failures on her social media. For example, she posted a failed push-up attempt when she weighed more than 440lbs (200kg).
And while she's now lost 300lbs (136kg), the photos of her overweight herself can still be seen online. She doesn't hide or pretend. She doesn't hide anything and that's what makes her so incredibly authentic and popular with her fans.
If you want to lose as much weight as Lexi did, fighting the pounds isn't just physically difficult. Mentally, a lot has to change in order to achieve and maintain success.
Lexi reported that she often spoke to herself and tried to maintain a positive outlook. It was the only way she could stay motivated day in and day out. She also tells you not to be too hard on yourself. Too much criticism is bad. Instead, you have to believe in yourself – this is the only way to overcome the mental challenge and your weaknesses.
With such extreme obesity, the most mundane things are a challenge. Buying new clothes, for example. Lexi didn't just have to compromise when it came to the wedding dress. For example, it was impossible for her to wear a T-shirt of her favorite band.
When Lexi and Danny went to the Vans Warped Tour in 2018, she could finally buy and wear a T-shirt. This little pleasure had not been granted to her in recent years. Yet another little dream come true for Lexi, showing how limited her life once was.
Lexi has a new life today and she likes to take on old challenges to prove to herself what she can achieve now. She had developed a fear of ponds, for example, because she is not a big fan of snakes and insects that could be in the water.
But now that she's tried kayaking, she's found that she also really enjoys the sport. She continues to emphasize that it is not so much about her appearance or the actual pounds she has lost, but about the new life she has created for herself. She inspires everyone with her courage.
In the interview, Lexi also shared that it is very important to her that she also enjoys exercising. There's no point in tormenting yourself for hours if you can't come out feeling good and proud afterwards. She says even a walk can make a difference – just like a few minutes on cardio equipment.
As long as you keep moving, you simply live healthier and it is easier to keep the ball rolling. For Lexi, exercising and a balanced diet were essential to lead a healthy and successful life.
Joining a gym is not for everyone. Many feel watched and – just like Lexi in the beginning – do not feel comfortable in their own skin. However, Lexi keeps reminding her fans that exercise can be done anywhere, and it's not just limited to the gym.
So she continues to post photos where she can be seen hiking and enjoying nature to the fullest. As long as you can get out of your couch, you've already won half the battle and can focus on the next steps.
As you can imagine, Lexi sometimes has some days where she is less motivated. We can probably understand that all too well. And yet it is important to persevere. Talking to yourself is important not to give in. So she shows herself very confident even after the Zumba class.
In fact, like a real early bird, Lexi gets up at 6am to do some exercise before going to work. She emphasizes that it is such habits that provide real transformation. So she made it a habit to do some exercise before her 10 o'clock shift.
There are so many high-calorie components in food that make a meal unhealthy. This way you can still flavor many dishes without all the side dishes or any sauces. On Lexi's social media, she's always sharing tips and tricks to make your meals healthier yet tasty. For example, in a restaurant she orders mahi mahi without mayonnaise and prefers to add salad.
In the restaurant she asks without shame about adjustments to the dishes to make them healthier. In fact, she encourages her fans to do the same. Healthy eating is now the top priority.
A lot has changed for the two lovebirds – in the short span of two years. But despite the many changes, one thing has remained unchanged: their love for each other. They really made the impossible possible and together won the relentless battle against the pounds.
Lexi and Danny seem absolutely made for each other, because only together could they have achieved what they have achieved today. With sheer willpower and a little discipline, they have already been able to fulfill so many dreams. They have proven that it is possible to take your life into your own hands and achieve what you want.
Credits: FatGirlFedUp