This woman lost 140lbs – and is trying on a bikini for the very first time

After a break-up left her heartbroken, Josie decided it was time to change. The 29-year-old from Los Angeles had always been overweight and was 300lbs in January 2018. 

In an effort to show her ex what he was missing Josie hit the gym and followed a strict diet. However, as the pounds started dropping off, Josie learnt more about her self-worth. 

She told Truly (opens in new tab): “My weight loss journey started as a revenge body to get back at my ex, but along the way, I realised it was not about him, it was about me. And I found myself along the way.” 

Josie managed to lose an incredible 140lbs since January 2018. Her confidence has grown and she has realised how beautiful she is. 

Josie said: “As I started losing all this weight, I started getting this confidence. Now that I was losing weight and stuff, I started to fit into clothes that I had never worn before, so I started feeling myself.” 

Today, Josie is truly embracing her new body by wearing a bikini for the first time ever. Josie said: “I think it's going to be a huge milestone for me because I am almost 30 years old and I've never ever worn a two piece, that's wild.”

Our takeaway? The first thing Josie did was enlist a personal trainer, who showed her how to exercise and diet for maximum effectiveness. A study published in the Journal of Sports Science & Medicine (opens in new tab) found "one-on-one personal training is an effective method for changing attitudes and thereby increasing the amount of physical activity."

Emphasis on changing attitudes. Seeking expert advice and accountability begins at home, and in order to change attitudes, we've got to unlearn our old habits and adhere to new ones. Most experts, for example, will preach portion control as a way to control our appetites and normalise our relationship with food. Our portion size guide can get you started. 

Josie was also shown exercising with the best kettlebell, practicing resistance training. Kettlebells, along with our best adjustable dumbbells and best resistance bands, are a great way to build up muscle and burn fat simultaneously, and are a staple tool of HIIT classes. This positively affects your body composition, revving up your metabolism to encourage more sustainable weight loss.