Teresa Tibbs, 56, of Roswell lost 47 pounds

Pounds lost: 47 pounds

Height: 5 feet 8 inches

Age: 56 years

How long she's kept it off: "I started my weight-loss journey in March 2017," Tibbs said. "I reached my goal weight in October 2017."

Personal life: "I live in Roswell, Ga., with my husband, Andrew, and our four cats … who are all rescues from Angels Among Us, where I volunteer and foster cats. Andrew and I just celebrated our 38th wedding anniversary on Nov. 10. I have one son, a daughter-in-law and two grandchildren who currently live in Ireland and one son in Asheville, N.C. I used to work as an administrative assistant."

Turning point: "I went through severe depression when I left my job and turned to food," she said. "I knew I was putting on weight, and that made me even more depressed. I went to counseling to deal with the depression, and once I started feeling better, I knew I had to do something about the weight. I've tried several things in the past to lose weight and they seemed to work at the time, but this time was different — the weight was not coming off. I joined Weight Watchers in March 2017. I find that their plan is easy to follow and gives me the flexibility I need."

Diet plan: A typical day starts with banana and toast. Lunch is a sandwich, and dinner is often chicken with vegetables and rice.

Exercise routine: "This is my favorite part," Tibbs said. "Once I got myself together, I decided I needed to socialize or do some sort of group activity. This was out of my comfort zone and difficult for me because all the people I have seen at the gym are a size two and I just didn't know where to start on my own." On Facebook, she found Boot Camp in the Park LLC. "There were people who actually looked like me. … I started out two days a week for the first six-week session, then I moved up to three days per week for the next few sessions and then to four days a week. … I never thought I would ever like to exercise, but now I do."

Biggest challenge: "My biggest challenge was going out of my comfort zone for both boot camp and then Weight Watchers," she said.

How life has changed: "My life has changed in many ways," Tibbs said. "First of all, I feel better. My knees used to hurt when I exercised, but now they are fine. I eat better. I have found I like way more vegetables than I thought. I can do things now at boot camp that I physically couldn't do before because of the weight. I'm a happier person. I like how I look and how I feel. I did a 10-mile bike ride a few weeks ago and hiked up to a waterfall in Asheville, N.C. There is no way I would have been able to do that before."

Share Your Success: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, a daytime 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.