Couple Strive To Better Their Lives, Just 18 Months Later They Have Completely Transformed Themselves

A Match Made In Heaven

While continuing to live her life to the fullest despite her weight, she fell in love when she met Danny Reed. The match made in heaven brought Lexi the love and support she needed, and Danny was not concerned with her size as he loved her for the incredible person she was. Even though Danny was fully loving and truly supportive of Lexi, the couple were living an undoubtedly unhealthy lifestyle. While Danny and Lexi’s unhealthy eating habits and lack of regular exercise were a silent concern, Danny eventually realized that he was supportive of Lexi in the wrong ways.

Troubling Lifestyle

The couple's lifestyle soon spiraled out of control as their unhealthy eating habits became the norm. Danny may have only been just a few years older than Lexi; although, his weight was a noticeable concern at roughly 280 pounds. Danny and Lexi had a mutual comfort that was found in the unhealthy food they so enjoyed. While they ate out often at restaurants for almost all their meals and continued to take advantage of alluring bottomless buffets, the few times they would eat at home were strictly for fast foods. Despite the comfort they found in food, the excess weight soon started to affect their health.

Where It All Started

Lexi believes that her unhealthy eating habits started back when she was a child, as she believes the fact that her parents never cooked and always purchased processed foods played an important role in her eating choices. “Processed foods were always easier to purchase than healthy foods…” Lexi’s statement to PopSugar clearly explained how the vicious cycles all began. There was virtually no end in sight for Lexi as her learned eating habits became more difficult to avoid as the cycle continued into her adult years. The couple admitted that they often binge-watched TV together while munching away. “I was always an emotional eater, also, and no matter what the mood, food was always there for me,” Lexi explained an all too common reason many people battle to avoid the joys of comfort eating.

No Limits To Unhealthy Habits

The couple's weight issues were keeping them from enjoying their lives as they were unable to do most things that other couples could; even though Danny and Lexi were happy together, their relationship was missing the simple pleasures of romantic walks and fun outings such as hiking. Their lives were a bit too simple, as all they were able to do was stay home, watch TV, and eat... Lexi was well aware of the negative impact that her weight had on her life and never denied the issue. Despite being happy, she was fully aware that she desperately needed to change her life for the better. However, she felt unable to make the crucial decision until something completely changed everything.

The Proposal

When Danny Reed finally asked the special question and Lexi accepted, she was in for a disappointing surprise. Regardless of knowing that Danny never worried about her weight or her body, Lexi was found the challenge of finding her perfect wedding dress even more tedious that most brides-to-be. Lexi weighed a total of 485 pounds during this time, which made finding a dress that would fit near impossible. According to a few of Lexi’s Instagram posts, she felt that there was absolutely nothing charming about wedding dress shopping as her large weight became a massive factor. One of her posts stated, “Nobody knew how to make me feel like a bride and not my size. Thank god I was strong enough to know my worth.”

The Big Day

Lexi was fortunate enough to eventually get her hands on a dress that she felt was just right for her wedding. However, the couple had a long road ahead, especially if they intended to lead a happy healthy life together as a married couple. The couples joyous occasion raised questions as to whether or not they would have children. While these questions are quite usual for any newly married couple, Lexi would be endangering herself and her child in the event that did get pregnant. Despite the concern, Lexi’s weight would challenge other dreams she had as a newlywed.

What Other’s Take For Granted

Even though the most shattering reality of the fact that having a child may not be possible, the couple soon realized that even smaller hopes would become challenging as things such as traveling were not entirely easy. While Lexi had her heart set on the experience of visiting the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Orlando, she would be too large to be able to enjoy any of the rides at the Universal Studios theme park and she was also much too large to sit in an airplane seat.

The Life Of The Married Couple

After the couple was married for over a year, their lifestyle remained the same as they continued to spend any free time binge-watching TV and enjoying unhealthy food. However, soon things would change. Lexi felt as though her life was out of control as her unhealthy lifestyle habits had seemed to consume her married life. While she knew something needed to change, she was not sure where she should even begin. Despite the daunting road that lay ahead, she remained hopeful that her life could improve. She may have been waiting for a monumental moment to set the path for her, although, the change she so hoped for would be only an ordinary event that would spark the path towards a better life.

A Serious Resolution For The New Year

On New Years Day in 2016, Lexi made the decision to change her life for the best as the issue of her weight affecting her quality of life became a regular concern. This was the moment she hoped would change her life for good. Luckily, Lexi was not alone in her ambitions to better her life as Danny was as supportive as ever. Even though he was not entirely up for the plan, in the beginning, all he needed was a bit of convincing to be as motivated as his positive wife.

A Change For The Better

“At first the idea didn’t sound great because it was always good going home, sitting down, eating and not having to worry about anything,” Danny explained his minor lack of interest in Lexi’s New Year’s resolution. However, he was soon on the same page as Lexi and made the decision to change his life forever too. “It’s a new year and something to work toward while helping Lexi out as well,” Danny said. He just needed to realize for himself that the change would be beneficial for himself and for the love of his life.

Friends Make A Bet

When Danny and Lexi’s friends heard of their amazing resolution, some thought they would lend an encouraging hand by making a deal. The couple agreed that they would work out every week at least 5 times for 30 minutes and that they would completely cut out sodas and unhealthy processed foods for one month. The couple was determined to keep to the deal and they were sure that they had the self-control that was required to throw out their unhealthy habits.

Giving Up The Habits

“We were fed up with the life that we were living and all the things that we weren’t able to do together as a couple,” Lexi stated as she was determined to take up the challenge she had been waiting for her whole life. Finally, she would be able to do all the things she was never able to. Lexi explained that she and Danny “also feared if we didn’t get our health under control, we would never be able to start a family.” The couple knew they had become so comfortable with their lifestyle and she knew she needed to make the big decision.

Working Out

The couple became members at the local gym near their home in Terre Haute in Indiana. Even though Lexi stuck to the deal of working out at least 5 times a week, the task was challenging for several reasons. As the couple did not have a personal trainer to guide them, they did face several challenges. However, they were both sincerely determined to make a change. Discovering the right work out routine may were difficult as her extreme weight resulted in persistent joint pain.

Finding Suitable Ground

While the couple had found the most ideal gym, it was not exactly easy to settle on the right one. Understandably, Lexi was not entirely comfortable with her body image and was concerned with what others at the gym may think of her. Regardless, Danny and Lexi managed to settle on the most suitable gym that was not too crowded. Lexi explained how the gym they settled on made her feel comfortable enough to focus on her goals. “I started going there when I got a free trial and — since it was never really crowded, my machine faced the wall (so I didn’t feel like everyone was watching me), and I found a machine called the CrossRamp that didn’t hurt my joints at 485 pounds — I fell in love with it.”

Taking On Healthier Habits

Essentially, the matter of heading out to the gym each day was only one challenge aspect of the couple's decision as they would also need to adapt to healthier eating habits. There would be no more restaurant meals. Danny and Lexi found the perfect solution to eat healthier by cooking together. The couple’s incredible support for one another made cooking together a great choice. In addition to the choice of cooking meals, the couple also took on the challenge of avoiding cooking unhealthy foods such as frozen pizza as they were focused on consuming healthy foods rather than processed meals.

More Than Just A Diet

Danny and Lexi chose to view the new lifestyle as so much more than the ordinary diet. According to Lexi, a diet is temporary, while the couple intended to adapt to a healthier lifestyle rather than just a moment of restricting their eating habits. “I started taking the foods I loved and making healthier versions so I no longer felt like I had to give up something or deprive [myself],” Lexi said. She was persistent that their choice would be a new way of life and did what she could to ensure the new habits would stick.

The Benefit Of Support

Most of us are aware of how difficult it can be to adapt to a healthier lifestyle, more so when you don’t have any form of strong support. Lexi found herself fortunate enough to rely on the endless loving support that Danny provided. Having someone to go through the struggle of going to the gym each day and avoiding unhealthy food is a lot easier when you have the support of someone that is right there with you. The couple found each other an inspiration to stick to their decision. However, something amazing was about to happen.

A Matter Of Time

Danny and Lexi continued to stick to their agreement by going to the gym and eating healthy. It wasn’t long before the hard work started to pay off and Lexi opted to take part in classes at the gym. In doing so, she was able to meet people who soon became encouraging friends that only added to her incredible support system. Lexi explained how much she enjoyed the Pulse class at the gym. “I love dancing to my favorite music and not feeling like it’s a workout. We can do a song full of squats and even though my legs are burning, it’s so much fun that I don’t even notice,” Lexi said.

Results Start Showing

Lexi soon started noticing that her efforts were paying off as she started losing weight and feeling better about herself. She said: “if people were going to stare at me because of my weight, I was going to give them a reason to stare by being the hardest worker in the room.” In the first month on her journey towards a healthier life, Lexi lost roughly 20 pounds. As time went on it became more difficult to lose weight, although, she continued going to the gym and cooking healthy meals with her husband. It was not long before her healthy habits became a healthy lifestyle.

Danny’s Results

Danny was not just supporting Lexi as he too was heading off to the gym each day and enjoying healthy food. While he was right by Lexi’s side each day, it wasn’t long before he also starting seeing great results. While the couple proved they had the self-control and determination it took to keep on the path towards a healthier and happier life together, Danny was able to lose roughly 100 pounds by the end of the first year.

Amazing Transformation

Just 18 months after Lexi made an important decision, she has managed to completely transform herself. Her ability to size down to a total of 312 pounds was purely through her efforts of going to the gym each day and making healthy eating choices. In May 2018, Lexi was finally able to start enjoying her life. When Lexi decided to visit one of the restaurants that she and Danny often used to enjoy indulging at, she realized just how much weight she had managed to lose in the short time as her stomach no longer rested on the table. Suddenly, Lexi had more than enough room to sit comfortably and she gained an amazing sense of pride for her incredible achievements.

“Fat Girl Fed Up”

In the fall of 2016, Lexi decided to log her progress on an Instagram account named “Fat Girl FedUp” and it wasn’t long at all before she had an impressive following of fans encouraging her along the way! While Lexi currently has well over 750,000 followers, she makes a note of posting before and after pictures that are simply a pure inspiration to anyone considering the challenge of starting a healthier lifestyle.

Admirable Fame

The couples truly inspiring story eventually made its rounds on the internet as people from around the world were stunned and impressed with the determination and success of Danny and Lexi’s resolution to change their lives together. The couple made appearances of TV shows and even made appearances on a popular episode of Rachel Ray! However, Danny and Lexi did not let fame get the best of them as they essentially found the experience truly humbling. In fact, the couple is thankful for all the incredible attention as they managed to use it as motivation to continue on their journey.

A Happier Life

In total, Danny and Lexi together managed to lose over 400 pounds and they both gained newfound happiness. They decided to visit the beach where Danny had proposed to Lexi and celebrated their success together. Just a few years prior when Danny asked Lexi to marry him, Lexi weighed nearly 500 pounds and was barely able to enjoy a short walk on the beach. Now they were both able to run along the beach without much difficulty. “We returned to that beach and ran down that beach!” Lexi said.

Visiting Orlando

Since Lexi was now able to fit in a plane seat, the happily married couple were finally able to visit Orlando together. Lexi had always dreamed of visiting the Universal Studios theme park, and now it was finally a reality! Happier than ever before, the couple has never felt closer. It just so happened that Danny and Lexi truly were a match made in heaven!

No More Restrictions

At a much healthier weight, Lexi admits that she has never felt better as she is no longer restricted by her weight. She is finally comfortable in her own skin. “I am grateful for every single day and I am enjoying the journey,” Lexi exclaimed. “Every day is a non-scale victory and a reminder of how far I’ve come. Like, I loved myself even at 485 pounds, but just to be able to wake up and do whatever I want to do and go wherever I want to go,” Lexi explains how the weight loss has truly transformed her life.

Inspirational Advice

While Lexi’s has reached her weight loss goals with Danny, the couple determine to continue on their journey. Lexi’s Instagram account is packed with inspirational messages to encourage others to reach their goals. “Start small — small changes add up to big results — and focus on each day, not how far you have to go,” just one of several tips posted on Lexi’s Instagram to inspire others.

Encouraging Others

Danny and Lexi have also started a YouTube channel together in hopes of encouraging others who dream of changing their lifestyle. The channel consists of helpful advice and inspirational messages from the couple that is intended to inform others of effective methods of healthy eating and routine exercise. Lexi’s weight loss journey was beneficial in so many ways. Just one of her many rewards was an invitation to the 2018 Screen Actors Guild Awards. She explained how she discovered just how strong she really was to have made it so far on her journey.

A New Loe For Life

“Going into 2018 I have nothing but a newfound happiness for this life I am living. I no longer am a prisoner in my own body and instead of just existing in my own life, I’m finally alive,” Lexi explained how losing so much weight truly changed her life. “I saved my own life, and for that, there are no words — only gratitude,” Lexi said. They were both able to transform their lives with determination to better themselves.

Special Honor

Lexi Reed’s inspirational journey earned her a special honor that was given to her by Loreal Paris as well as TNT Drama as one of the most inspiring women. The couple flew to Hollywood and were provided accommodation at a luxury hotel. Danny and Lexi use the time away to enjoy the trip, although, they made sure to maintain their fitness regime!

Meal Advice

Lexi’s advice for healthy eating includes meal prep at the start of each week and opting for healthy recipes that are also great tasting. She has shared several great tips for eating healthy on her Instagram account. “I know Holidays are hard guys but practice portion control, healthier swaps, balance, planning,” she posted on Memorial Day in 2018 to encourage others not to fall to indulging over holidays as many often do.

Keeping Up The Hard Work

Just one of the many ways that Danny and Lexi are able to keep up their hard work is by incorporating their healthy eating habits into all their activities. Rather than indulging in hamburgers while camping, they make sure to prepare healthier meals. Such meals include high-protein choices such as steak and avocado to provide enough energy for activities such as hiking. Lexi explained in a post that “holidays, weekends, or even being out of your routine doesn’t mean we cant still reach our goals and eat delicious food!”

Fitness Advice

The success of the choice to live healthier was the result of the couple's persistence to maintain going to the gym and making sure social activities do not deter their new healthy habits. Lexi recently shared a photo of her and Danny visiting the gym before their date. “Somedays we don’t know how we’re gonna do it, but every day we get it done!” Lexi posted and further explained how they make time for a quick cardio workout before going out on a date.

The Encouragement Of Enough Support

Lexi and Danny are gifted with support from a community that is both online as well as offline, which is just one of the many important reasons they found it possible to stay on track with their goals. The abundance of support and motivational messages keep the couple focused on the choice to remain healthy and happy. Some of the many comments of Lexi’s “Fat Girl Fed Up” social media pages show several stories of followers who have made the choice to be healthy thanks to Lexi’s success!

Fitness Friendships

The encouraging influence of having plenty of friends that are actively involved in fitness also helped Lexi to reach her weight loss goals and remain on track with her new lifestyle. Danny is so much more than Lexi’s husband as he is also her gym partner and her best friend. “When I started my journey I normally was more of a loner and lost people I was close to due to my new lifestyle and hobbies,” Lexi’s Facebook post explains the importance of encouraging friends.

One Day To Relax

Danny and Lexi are aware that they can’t spend every waking hour at the gym and reward themselves with a day of rest. This photo of the happy couple with their golden retrievers, Oliver and Olivia, shows just one of many days spent relaxing and having fun together. A day of rest is crucial to staying on track with a healthy lifestyle and Lexi has posted on her social media about how much she looks forward to the rewarding days she spends relaxing with their dogs.

Riding Dirt Bikes

“From 765lbs to riding dirt bikes,” Lexi Reed wrote in an amazing post that explains just how far she has truly come on her inspirational journey. Danny and Lexi encourage others to make sure they allow themselves fun activities to stay focused as a reward for all the hard work.

Danny’s Inspirational Advice

Danny Reed also chose to open an Instagram account called “Discovering Danny” with the great intentions of inspiring others as Lexi has. He posts incredibly inspirational messages on this account and includes all the exciting adventures that he and Lexi enjoy on their journey. In addition to this, Danny also posts about his personal goals, such as the experience of getting a new tattoo recently.

YouTube Sensation

The couple is also active YouTube stars and regularly post videos for their many fans to enjoy and follow their inspiring progress. In one of their many videos, they documented Lexi’s honor at the SAG Awards Documenting their experience in Hollywood allowed their many fans to get a feel of their lives and it exposed just how excited Lexi was that she was about to meet so many celebrity personalities. The video showed how truly humble the couple were throughout the amazing experience.

The Today Show

The couples large following of fans eventually grabbed the attention of the media and Danny and Lexi appeared live on The Today Show for an interview to showcase their amazing journey. Danny and Lexi traveled to New York to be interviewed and explained how they maintained their ambition to be healthier and happier. The fact that the couple managed to lose so much weight without the help of a gastric bypass story is simply incredibly inspiring.

The Question Of A Family

Lexi’s dreams of having children with her husband was, conclusively, one of the most important reasons she knew she needed to make a change. While she was previously unable to have children as a result of her weight, she would now be able to have a baby without concerning health risks for her or her unborn child. In an interview with Life & Style magazine, Lexi explained that she plans to start a family with her husband in 5 years. The couple hopes to continue inspiring others along their journey.

More Inspirational Couples

Danny and Lexi are not alone in their incredible choice to change their lives together as a couple as another inspirational couple, Lauren and Justin, made the inspiring choice as a result of serious medical problems that were caused by their extreme weight. Justin weighed a total of 592 pounds and he was too large to go onto an imaging machine while suffering severe kidney infection. The concerning issue of his weight became clear. Lauren, weighing 341 pounds at her heaviest, chose to stand by her husband on the path to a healthier life. In 2012, Lauren and Justin turned their lives around together by signing up for a medical school program in their area. They also participated in fitness routines, even with simple challenges such as walking. When the couple started to see results, they joined a gym together. in October 2013, the couple lost a combined total of 583 pounds and they are happier and healthier as a result.

Kalean & Danny Patton

At age 26, Danny Patton weighed a shocking 395 pounds. When he realized that he was barely able to make it up to his apartment on the third floor, he realized he needed to lead a healthier life. Danny and his girlfriend, Kalean, started their weight loss journey together. The couple started by cooking healthier meals and avoiding fast food. They then joined a gym together and through simple weight list exercises and cardio they managed to lose weight successfully. The couple is now engaged and while Danny managed to lose an impressive total of 200 pounds, Kalean was able to shed 93 pounds!

Jo Hughes & Dave Swingewood

Jo Hughes and Dave Swingewood found themselves confined by their weight as they indulged in unhealthy fast food and even though they have a beautiful baby daughter together, they were not contempt with their unhealthy lifestyle. Jo weighed a total of 281 pounds when she realized she needed to change for the better and Dave weighed a total of 207 pounds. Jo was determined to lose weight and decided to sell her car to push herself to walk instead. While she also started cooking healthy meals, her actions influenced Dave, who also started to benefit from the choices by losing weight.

Johnathon Van Buskirk & Lisa Berg

Both Johnathon and Lisa have both struggled with their weight since childhood and at age 24, Johnathon weighed a staggering 420 pounds. However, he managed to shed 75 pounds when he met Lisa Berg and the weight loss encouraged her to follow Jonathon’s example. While Lisa falsely believed, as many do, that she would not be able to lose weight as her family members were all overweight. Regardless, the couple started their journey by adapting to small healthy habits such as riding bikes together. All their determination paid off and the couple managed to lose a combined total of 330 pounds. Lisa and Jonathon are now determined to raise funds to have the excess skin removed.

Angela & Willie Gillis

Angela and Willie Gillis are yet another inspirational couple that has proved two years of dedication can completely transform your life. The Texas couple started their weight loss journey in 2011 after Angela was able to conclude that the only aspect of her life that she was not happy with was her weight. Her husband joined her as he realized that he was simply tired of being overweight. While Willie has been finding ways of losing weight for years, he was finally ready to take on the challenge and the couple started dedicating their time and efforts regularly to working out at the gym. When Angela and Willie started on their journey, Willie weighed 492 pounds and Angela weights 338 pounds. Just two years later, Willie lost 300 pounds and Angela lost 200 pounds to finally fit into clothing that is a size 0.