Starting at 288 Pounds, Angela Dropped Over 120 Pounds and Is Now a Size 8

Angela said that in the past, she was an emotional eater, and she also ate when she was bored. She ate whatever she wanted in big amounts. "I couldn't even run a mile in high school without stopping. I hated exercise and loved junk food," she said.

At age 23 after a bad breakup, she decided to make a change and tried to lose weight, but was yo-yo dieting for years and just kept putting on weight. Nothing would stick.

After having a baby, Angela quickly learned that she needed to be in shape to keep up with her child, and she decided to make a big change. At age 27 and her heaviest weight of 288 pounds, Angela took about two years to lose 123 pounds.

Angela lost the weight eating a low-carb, high-protein diet and cut out sugar and refined carbs. At first, she didn't count calories and just focused on eating mainly protein and veggies with a little complex carbs.

Then she started tracking eating about 1,800 calories a day with a macro breakdown of about 30 percent carbs, 60 percent protein, and 10 percent fat. Angela felt like this was sustainable for her and said she allows herself a cheat meal about once every two weeks.

Here's an example of what Angela eats in a day:

Breakfast: eggs or a low-sugar yogurt
Lunch and dinner: meat or fish and lots of veggies
Snacks: peanut butter, Atkins treats, cheese and lunch meats, and fresh veggies

Angela goes to the gym at least four times a week and mostly runs and lifts weights. "I follow a rule of never skipping more than one day in a row," she said.

"My boyfriend signed me up for the Tough Mudder without letting me know, and I fell in love with it!," Angela said. Training for the event, which was this past November, involved working out five days a week and doing a combination of running and weightlifting.

On top of that, Angela is constantly looking for new ways to test her limits — when she's not chasing her 2-year-old around! This was Angela's first time completing an obstacle course event, and she said that the camaraderie and bragging rights were a big driver, as was the sense of accomplishing it together and completing all the obstacles.

Angela shared some of her nonscale victories:

Angela said she stays motivated to keep going with her healthy lifestyle by signing up for obstacle races, seeing the changes her body has gone through, and fitting into straight-size clothes. She also cites her son as a major motivation.

"Don't give up; it really is a struggle every day, but the end result is so worth it." She added, "Learning to love myself has been the biggest reward!"

"I still love all the food, but I have learned how to integrate the cravings into my lifestyle and way of eating and working out," she said. Find what works for you, and get help and support if you need it.