Canadian woman earns her way into ‘People’ magazine by losing 100 pounds

(Instagram/fitfaithtransformation)

Gillian Faith is one of five women who appear in the July 25, 2016 cover story of People, “How I Lost 100 Lbs!” She also happens to be Canadian.

Being part of one of the world’s most popular magazines—which reaches 53 million consumers every week—has been a whirlwind adventure for the 41-year-old Kamloops mother of three.

“When I got the email I started screaming,” says Faith (whose hometown in the mag is listed as “British Columbia”).

“It’s been surreal.”

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People discovered Faith through her Instagram account, where she speaks openly about her struggles with excess weight, poor body image, and food addiction.

Faith used to go to three different Dairy Queens to get the same thing—Skor Blizzards with extra fudge and extra Skor—so that the staff working the drive-through wouldn’t recognize her. She would spray her car with air freshener afterward so that no one would catch on to her secret snacks.

After the birth of her first child in 2000, Faith weighed 220 pounds and wore size 44 men’s pants. It was after a difficult third pregnancy in 2005 and a divorce that she started to change her habits.

“When I realized I’d be raising my kids alone, I learned about nutrition and the glycemic index,” says Faith, who has a background in social work and who now also works as a motivational speaker.

Initially, she took dieting too far, going on to develop anorexia nervosa and bulimia. She tried Weight Watchers and Jenny Craig, losing weight only to regain it time and time again.

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It was when she discovered bodybuilding that things really turned around. She found that the activity helped her conquer her fears. In 2013, she was named “BC’s Strongest Woman” after competing in the BC Strongest Man Competition.

Within two weeks of contacting her, People flew Faith to the Hamptons, where she and the other women featured in the story did a beachfront photo shoot and were chauffeured everywhere. Since the magazine came out, she’s been deluged with messages from people who are desperate to lose weight.

(photo: People)

Faith says that between her professional and family life, she’s continually seeking a balance and prioritizes taking care of herself, physically and mentally. Advocating a holistic approach to wellness, she exercises regularly, frequently taking part in fitness and bodybuilding competitions, and eats six times a day.

“I eat what I call real food,” she says. “I make my own food. I don’t eat processed, canned, boxed, or packaged food….I eat sweet potatoes, rice, white potatoes if I want to, steak, ground turkey, chili—real food. I know what’s in it. It doesn’t have high-fructose corn syrup, it doesn’t contain GMOs.”

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“I don’t drink coffee, cream, pop, wine, or any sugar products. I go to sleep really early,” she adds. “My overall health—mental health, heart health, cardio health, gut health, depression, anxiety, how I function as an athlete—everything has improved. I’m a healthy, strong woman.”

She says that diet and exercise alone are not enough, however. Rather, those seeking to lose weight and improve their health have to dig deeper.

“You have to know what your ‘why’ is,” Faith says. “If the only reason you’re losing weight is because you want to see the number on the scale change, you’re not going to see anything long-term. For me, my why was my kids had to have a better mom than what I was giving them, and I had to have a better Gillian than what I was giving myself. You have to do what I call finding the root cause.”

Getting to that place isn’t easy, she says.

“Most people don’t want to do the mental, spiritual, and emotional work; they just want to do the physical work,” she says. “Then they don’t understand why it’s not working. You have to understand what the reason is behind why you eat. You have to peel the Band-Aids off.”

“It will take work and it will hurt and it will take time, but if you want to make it last and see the success long-term, you have to get to the root,” she says. “Then the tree will bloom.”

Do you have an impressive weight loss story you want to share? Let us know by tweeting to @YahooStyleCA.