Haley Smith took shedding for the wedding to a new level. When the 24-year-old exchanged vows with her high school sweetheart, Matt Smith, on October 8, she was 110 pounds lighter than she was when he popped the question in July 2015.
The 5-foot-10 blonde, who at her heaviest weighed 277 pounds and wore size 22 pants, tells Us Weekly that seeing her proposal photos was the catalyst for her to make a change. “I didn’t even recognize myself,” says Smith. “I had no idea I had let myself go so much. I couldn’t believe Matt would want to be with someone like me. I was so ashamed.” The postgraduate psychology student from Amarillo, Texas, even refused to share the pictures on social media.
“My weight held me back from so many things,” Smith says. “I avoided intramural sports with my friends, I skipped family vacations, and I was just a hermit in my apartment for most of the time.”
Smith knew she couldn’t feel the same way about her wedding shots. Which is why she vowed to change her life. “I made slow adjustments over the course of the year, starting with not eating after 8 p.m. and only ordering takeout twice a week,” Smith tells Us Weekly. “I started jogging three times a week at just 30-second intervals for about a half hour, and then I added strength training.” Fifteen months later, Smith works out every day for an hour and has a 5K under her belt. Her exercise buddy: Matt, who has lost 30 pounds!
When Smith, a self-described emotional eater, gets the urge to binge eat, she tries to distract herself. “I’ve done everything from chugging a bottle of water to deciding to go for a run or just logging in my fitness journal,” she says. “The important thing is recognizing when I’m eating just because I want to or because I want to fuel myself.”
All of Smith’s hard work paid off on October 8 when she walked down the aisle in a strapless, mermaid-fit Maggie Sottero gown. Raves Smith: “It was my dream dress!”
Smith posts regular fitness updates on her Instagram.