Quay Hurt Fuller, 59, of Milledgeville lost 97 pounds

In the photo on the left, taken in 2016, Quay Hurt Fuller weighed 195 pounds. In the photo on the right, taken in April, she weighed 125 pounds. (Before photo contributed by Quay Hurt Fuller. After photo contributed by Marvin Scott.)

In the photo on the left, taken in 2016, Quay Hurt Fuller weighed 195 pounds. In the photo on the right, taken in April, she weighed 125 pounds. (Before photo contributed by Quay Hurt Fuller. After photo contributed by Marvin Scott.)

SUCCESS STORY / Quay Hurt Fuller, 59: From 222 pounds to 125 pounds

Former weight: 222 pounds

Current weight: 125 pounds

Pounds lost: 97 pounds

Height: 5 feet 4 inches

Age: 59 years

How long she's kept it off: She began in August 2016 and reached her goal in February 2017.

Personal life: "I'm a RE/MAX Central Realty broker, from Milledgeville, Ga," Fuller said. "I have two daughters." She recently started the 90-day RE/MAX Central Fitness Challenge on Facebook to help others.

Turning point: "Realizing that I had been married 24 1/2 years and now dating (post-divorce) in 2016 … the turning point was realizing that an empty-nester dating these days in my late 50s needed to get it together — I had an urgency and an opportunity," Fuller said. "… My friend Marvin Scott, he offered to me, 'Do you want to get fit?' Not just lose weight, which I had done before." She decided: "I am going to take this opportunity to do what he says. … I went from a size 18 to a size 4 — I wasn't even 4 years old and wearing a size 4." Scott, a retired personal trainer, said to her: "You've got to change your relationship with food." "That is the first thing mentally I had to do," she said. "Then, I had to make exercise part of my daily life." Scott showed examples of inspirational women of color who achieved similar goals: Wendy Ida, and Ernestine Shepherd. "He had to first help me understand that I can do this," Fuller said. "You've got to believe it to see it."

Diet plan: She does not eat meat or dairy. Breakfast is granola with rice milk. She eats every three hours from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. "I basically eat salads all day after breakfast," she said.

Exercise routine: She does cardio and weight training daily. "When you do that resistance training, it sculpts that body, it gives you some muscle definition," Fuller said. "We're having problems as we get older because we give up and stop moving — you've got to move those muscles."

Biggest challenge: "My biggest challenge was getting my eating under control. …Walking through the gym door was also a huge challenge," she said. "I would drive by and think, 'I'm not going in there today.' I know that people are afraid to walk through that door because I was afraid. You think they are all looking at you, but they are not."

How life has changed: "It was a 180-degree change. … I made a major transformation — it has been a major life change. I am on zero medication. … I don't want to go back to the way I was. … It is unspeakable the happiness I have," Fuller said. "So many women at my age think it's over — it is not over. To feel the best that I have in my entire life, better than I did in my 20s and 30s, to be able to say that I can enter into my 60s like this — the future is absolutely incredible."


Share Your Success: Each week, Success Stories focuses on an individual’s unique weight loss journey. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution does not endorse any specific weight loss program but includes names and links for the benefit of readers who want further information. Have you lost weight successfully with a healthy lifestyle change? If you would like to share your story with our readers, please include your email address, phone number, and before and after photos (by mail or JPEG), and contact us at: Success Stories, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 223 Perimeter Center Parkway, Atlanta, GA, 30346-1301; or email Michelle C. Brooks, ajcsuccessstories@gmail.com.