STUNNER Hayley Reynolds lost eight stone, bagged the man of her dreams and got engaged.
But then his searingly honest confession left her stunned.
Fiance Daniel Brice confessed that he wouldn’t have gone out with her when she weighed nearly 15 stone because he didn’t fancy her when she was .
But now the couple are blissfully happy after a romantic proposal in also left her reeling.
Hayley said: “The proposal was incredible.
“I had no idea he was going to get down on one knee and surprise me.
“We were at the Trevi Foundation and he’d arranged for a photographer to capture that special moment.
“I was looking at the fountain and then I turned around, and Daniel was on one knee asking me to marry him.
“I said yes straight away!”
The couple have known each other for about ten years, around their home town of .
Hayley always thought Daniel was attractive, but she struggled on nights out as she didn’t feel confident at nearly 15 stone.
She said: “My friends would be all dressed up, and I’d have to wear a baggy black dress to try and cover myself up as much as possible.
“None of the guys fancied me, and one even called me a whale one evening, which really knocked my confidence.
“I had to tell my friends I was going home, as I was so upset.
“I didn’t have the confidence back then to face up to him about what he’d called me.
“It was easier just to quietly go home.”
Hayley, now 30, a mortgage processor, first started struggling with her weight when she got a job after leaving school.
She said: “I was never overweight at school, but then when I started earning wages, I would spend a lot on junk food.
“I had a partner at the time, and he told me that I was putting on weight.
“I put on four stone in a short period of time.
“I told him I was fine, and felt perfectly healthy.
“But he was very into his health and fitness so he ended up leaving me when I started putting more and more weight on.”
“I loved eating junk food, like KFC and crisps.
“For breakfast I’d have a sausage roll, then snack on Monster Munch crisps, Coke and flapjack.
“Then for lunch I’d have a KFC and then spaghetti bolognaise for dinner, but whilst I was waiting for it to cook, I’d snack on cereal and toast.
“I just had food on the brain all the time.”
But when she started getting negative comments from people whilst she was on nights out with her friends, Hayley decided she needed to take action.
She also found that she was falling over a lot, because she was top heavy, like a weeble.
She said: “I was getting very embarrassed about my weight.
“People would call me names, and I’d get very out of breath just even walking about.
“I struggled with falling over a lot, because of the weight I was carrying on my upper body.
“I’d wear little heels, and I wouldn’t be able to balance properly on them as I was top heavy.
“So I was always falling over and grazing my knees constantly.
“Every day I’d get up with the good intentions of eating more healthily, but then by 12 noon I’d started bingeing on chocolate, so then I thought I may aswell write the day off at that point.”
It was after the guy called her a whale that Hayley was spurred into action.
She started research gastric surgery on the internet and decided to book a at a clinic in Turkey.
She said: “I made the decision to do it, and told my family I was flying off to Turkey in a week’s time, in October 2021.
“The surgery went well and I flew home about five days later.
“I just had to sip liquids at first, then pureed foods, and then I gradually introduced bits of solid food slowly.”
The weight started to fall off her, and now she weighs a much slimmer 6 stone 10 – having lost a staggering eight stone.
She said: “I completely had to overhaul what I was eating, and I went to a fitness coach too, who educated me all about food.
“Now I have a protein shake in the morning, three eggs and a wrap mid morning, chicken and rice for lunch, and then 5 per cent burgers for dinner.
“I try to eat five small meals a day.’
And now that she’s slimmer, she managed to bag the man of her dreams in Daniel.
She added: “I’ve always had a bit of a crush on him.
“He told me that he’d always found me a nice girl, but that he didn’t find me attractive.
“But when I started losing the weight, and I posted progress pictures on my instagram and he started liking them.
“When I put a photo up, he messaged me to say I looked amazing.
“And then he ended up asking me on a date and we’ve been together for six months now.
“I didn’t lose weight for him, but it did help me bag him in the end.”
It was three months into their relationship that Daniel made a confession that floored Hayley.
She said: “I said to him ‘I used to message you about ten years ago, do you not remember? He said that he didn’t remember and said ‘I wouldn’t have spoken to you back then. He added that he’d always found me a nice girl, but that he didn’t find me attractive.
“When he first said it, I was a bit like ‘wow thats brutal’ but then I totally got where he was coming from.
“I didn’t find myself attractive at that weight – so I can understand why he didn’t either. Some men like bigger women and some don’t, and it’s as simple as that.”
The pair are now looking to their future after a whirlwind engagement.
“I surprised him with a trip to Rome to celebrate his birthday,” Hayley said.
“But it was an even bigger surprise to me when he proposed to me.
“I was absolutely thrilled and said yes straight away.
“I’m so happy now Daniel, and we are looking forward to the rest of our lives together.”
Daniel, 36, a builder, said: “I’ve known Hayley for around ten years.
“I never looked at her in that kind of way.
“I then noticed her starting to lose weight and she got sexier week by week.
“I followed her journey on social media and developed a massive crush on her.
“She now looks incredible and I am extremely proud of how much she has achieved.
“It’s a pleasure and honour to call her my fiance and I can’t wait to marry her.”
