This nurse lost 55kg all thanks to this common diet - and she looks incredible!

Publish Date
Thursday, 11 May 2017, 2:58PM

Bailey Ryan has always been a self-confessed 'fat' kid.

But two years ago, after she started working 12-hour night shifts and went through a difficult breakup, Bailey really started to pile on the pounds.

The 24-year-old admits "I started shutting myself into my apartment on my days off, I avoided friends and had delivery and take out restaurants on speed dial I was tired from working long hours and upset at my failed relationship and was binge eating to make myself feel better.

"I knew that I was unhealthy but more than anything, I was unhappy."

Working as a nurse, Bailey was motivated to lose weight because she felt like a hypocrite when caring for her patients.

So instead of feasting on fast food takeaways every night, Bailey decided to try a paleo diet, where she avoided processed foods, dairy and grains.

By eating paleo Bailey lost a dramatic 55kg, going from 132kg to 79kg!

I've been recycling the same 5-10 pounds for what seems like forever (I'm being slightly dramatic) but after a bit it starts to take an emotional toll. Even though there's NOTHING wrong with it and it's in fact a normal part of the process. It's frustrating and annoying but it's teaching me lessons that will be helpful down the road about balance, what works and what doesn't. Things I'll need to learn at some point anyway to sustain this for a lifetime. It's also teaching me to remember that I've lost 120 pounds and I can still be proud of that without putting myself down for it not being more. So, my point being, even though there's no numerical progress, there's a whole shit ton of mental growth and learning to understand my body better going on. Which is STILL progress, just not the kind we're used to seeing. So if you feel stuck, like I have, try shifting your perspective and think about all the lessons this stall or continuous cycle of small gains and losses is teaching you. What can you take from this to make you better? When we start using things we perceive as faults or failures to our advantage.. That's where the real progress, growth and self-awareness comes from. Be patient and hang in there. You're doin' just fine :)

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I'm reposting this photo for this because a) I've been up for a gazillion hours at this point and don't have anything relevant to use to share this and b) I'm too excited and in too good of a mood to wait until I DO have some relevant picture sooo.. Oh well. My boss came in early this morning before I left work & told me that my PTO for my skin removal surgery was approved. It's been a super long process starting back in September with insurance. When I had basically written this off for myself when it was denied (and then denied again), you guys all swung in like the massive gift to my life that you are and made it possible through the gofundme that @working_on_my_fitness set up. THEN I had to figure out when I can reasonably take all the time off of work/school/life & have that all approved while also doing it over a time my surgeon has an opening and at a time I know for sure I'll be able to come up with the rest of the money. It has to be paid for two weeks prior so it was a balancing act of submitting my PTO request, knowing when I'd have the hours saved up to be able to take it, when I wouldn't have to be on campus, when I'd be able to pay for it and when the surgeon could do it. But the light at the end of the tunnel came into view this morning. I still have to come up with money and pay for it but I'm doing everything I can, not leaving the house to save every penny and working my ass off to do it and I'm SO SO SO excited it's going to be a reality. A huge part of that reality is because of you. I'm so beyond thankful. I can't tell you how grateful I am to everyone who's donated and continues to. You have no idea how much it helps & how much it means to me. It's not until May after the semester but that's fine with me because I know it's actually happening now & it's a lot closer than it seems! The earliest the surgeon could do was April anyway! Again, just a huge thank you to all of you. A lot of you have been around since the beginning & supported me as you watched all of this unfold at the same time I did. I love you more than you know and I couldn't be luckier to have you guys with me through this next part, too. Off to bed! See you in the A.M. ;)

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It's been a while since I've done an actual #facetofacefriday. When I was 300lbs, I was certain that even when I lost weight my face shape would just be round. It's been cool to discover my cheekbones.. And eyebrows ;) But in all seriousness, I've never felt better. I say that a lot but each day it keeps getting more true. Some days when I feel like I'm not doing "enough" - losing weight fast enough, working enough overtime, working out enough, reaching out to people I love enough - I know that all of my days now are better, more mindful, more productive, full of more love than they ever were or could be before. Because now I have more to give. I have the energy to do it. I'm confident in who I am. I invest in myself whereas before I never did. So even on the bad days, my investment and discovery of myself are enough to make me realize how much I truly have done and take comfort in the fact that I AM doing "enough". Each day I'm more in love with the life I chose to change, and then build to be what ~I~ want. And I wish you all that very same feeling.

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"It hurts me now to think of how I felt about myself and how I treated myself before I lost weight.

"I was working at the hospital by this time and to get into work I had to walk two blocks from the parking ramp to the hospital building. I would be out of breath by the time I got there. Then I'd work all night caring for patients that were often there due to lifestyle choices.

"I realised that if I didn't change something, I'd be headed for a life destined for difficult medical complications too.

"I also felt like such a hypocrite and a bad example. I didn't want to be advocating a healthier lifestyle to patients but not living like it myself."

It's just crazy to me that my next goal jeans are size 6.. Even in 7th grade I was women's size 12. When you're 300 pounds things like this seem sooooo unattainable, so far into the future and frankly just not even realistic. But yet, here I am. If there's one thing I want for you it's to persistently and animately refuse to doubt yourself. Even when the hill to climb is higher than the hope you have. Refusing to give up on yourself is what will build your habits and turn them into dedication and consistency. And then you'll be on the other side wondering what took you so long to start in the first place. Not everyday will be easy but even my struggles and failures and bad days now are better than any I had even a year ago when I was so unhealthy. It's all worth it.

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I wanted to punch myself when I the first thing I saw in this dress picture was how my loose skin made my stomach look. "God I wish that big huge pooch of loose skin wasn't there." That is seriously NOT the first thing I should see. I KNOW I should see how far I've come.. I should look in the mirror and see all of the achievements, all of the experiences and all of the LIFE my new health has brought me. I should see how confident I look in this picture, how good about myself I truly do feel on the daily. We're our own worst critics though and I know that someday (SOON AF because of YOU guys and your crazy generosity with the gofundme).. This extra skin that reminds me of my past will be gone for good. So why dwell on it now? Why not still celebrate myself and my victories? So that's what I decided to do immediately after having those first thoughts. I decided to be so, so proud. I decided to carry myself as a walking testament to how powerful changing your life makes you and not spend one more second that day feeling sorry for myself for what I did to my body. And really, what I'm doing FOR my body now speaks more about who I am than what I did to it before. Health is wealth and all that jazz. Or something like that ;) Happy #transformationtuesday !!

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While Bailey began to lose weight just by changing her diet, she now loves kayaking, hiking, rock climbing and has even run a half marathon!

Now unrecognisable, she said: "Losing weight has changed my life in more ways than I can count.

"Everything is different. It's changed my goals, my relationships, my hobbies and my perspective."

Hi #transformationtuesday and HEEEEY to all the new faces here! There's lots of you guys so I thought I'd introduce myself here quick for those of you who may not know me! I started off last March at 293 pounds. I was exhausted, in pain, burnt out and just had a lack of excitement about living my life. Like this picture on the left shows, I just looked so SICK. I had been overweight my entire life and I was just so, so tired. I used my days off from work sitting on the couch "recovering" from work. I had no energy and it was a chore every time I had to do anything productive. I ate out, ate fast food consistently. When I did cook, it was insanely unhealthy convenience foods from boxes in my pantry or boxes in the freezer. I came to the decision to change my life with zero knowledge of nutrition and zero level of physical fitness. Since that first month that I found Whole30, I've been living that paleo life and making conscious choices to affect change in every aspect of my person. I've since found this passion for life and living mine- more enjoyment and happiness than I've ever experienced. I've worked through binge eating and found what food freedom means to me. I've discovered that my days are better with physical activity in them and have recently finished a half marathon. I've developed a love of using food to fuel my body and a love of cooking all that goodness up into easy, do-able recipes. All of this is stuff you'll see here. I'm SO excited to have you with me in this! I work 12 hour overnights, am in school, in a relationship and have birthdays and holidays just like you do. We're all busy. But I stopped being too busy to choose myself. If anything, I hope you show you that you ARE capable of changing and you ARE capable of being your happiest self. I'm so blown away by and thankful for the continuous love and support you all give to me and if there's something I can do to give a little of that back, I want to. Please stop by and introduce yourself sometime!

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If you've been following me for a while, you'll know that I don't post pictures like this often. In fact, this is only the third comparison with these pictures. However, as uncomfortable as I am with it, I'm more proud. My body isn't perfect, but I'm working towards accepting it every day. I've worked hard for this body and I will continue to. This body is my home and it deserves to be respected and cared for. The second I started doing that, the changes came. A comment one of you left on a recent picture has been resonating with me for days. It was about how these arms and this body cares for patients in their darkest moments, this body goes for bike rides, this body has traveled to almost every state in the US, this body gives and receives love every. single. day. It was the reminder I needed to gain some perspective on all that my body is.. Besides just a body. Caring for it and loving it because of those things gives seeing this comparison photo just that much more meaning. I'm starting to WANT this body because of all that I am, all it has done and all it will do.. instead of feel stuck or left with it. Stats for y'all cause I know you'll ask: 107 lbs down naturally Started April 2015 Whole30/Paleo, yo

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”I would tell someone to start slowly, it can be overwhelming to make a lot of huge changes in one day. You're more likely to give up if you're taking on too much at once.

"Also, remember to run your own race. Don't compare your progress with anyone else's and don't listen to anyone who says you can't do this.

"As long as you're making an effort, you'll also be making progress."

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