An engaged couple who went to the gym together lost an insane amount of weight. Between the two of them, they lost 600 pounds. Ronnie Brower and Andrea Masella met each other at Mission Gym in Syracuse, New York. Little did the gym fanatics know that their constant workout sessions would change their lives forever. They were inspired by each other’s fitness and weight loss journeys.
“I was just really inspired by him and I thought he was super cute,” Masella told the Associated Press .
“We started talking at the gym and I hate to sound cliché but it was love at first sight.”
Masella, 24, and Brower, 32, lost a combined weight of 578 lbs. The couple walked down the aisle on Saturday, May 13, reports ABC News .
Brower was convinced to hit the gym after a friend told him to work out with a personal trainer to drop the pounds. Masella noticed Brower two years after he started dropping the weight. He lost 100 lbs. after 100 days, once he worked with trainer Nick Murphy and stopped taking drugs or alcohol. He also started doing basic exercises such as lifting his arms up and down.
He reached rock bottom when he was just 28-years-old and could barely leave his home. That was until his doctor gave him a message that woke him up.
“I was depressed, addicted to pills and alcohol, eating 10 double cheeseburgers or two large pizzas at a time,” Brower said.
“My turning point was, my doctor told me if I kept on like this, I’d be dead before I was 30.”
Brower now works as a school bus driver and loading dock worker. He knew he had to stay active and healthy for both of his jobs. Meanwhile, Masella is a hairdresser who wanted to lose weight after she went to the beach in a poorly fitting bathing suit that made her feel awful. She weighed 250 lbs. at just 5 feet 4, but was able to go down to 130.
Brower also went on a low-carb diet, worked out for three hours a day, and stopped eating pizza and cheeseburgers. He documented his massive weight loss on Facebook, and two years later caught the eye of a woman, who is now his future wife. Brower had no clue that his weight loss journey would lead him to his love.
She was clearly inspired by his story. She wanted to lose 120 lbs. from her weight of 250 lbs. the couple went on a series of dates that included basketball and ping-pong. They were clicked on their decision to lose weight and change their lives. But, Brower was on the brink of death. Masella stood by him as he underwent a series to remove the excess skin.
“Both of us had used food as a coping mechanism; I would just eat my feelings,” Masella said. “We’ve gone through a lot of counseling to come to terms with that and change.”
The couple married in East Syracuse on noon on Saturday at Abundant Life Christian Center in their hometown of Syracuse, New York. They also plan to honeymoon in Mexico – where Masella will wear a bathing suit.
“People come to me all the time, asking for weight-loss advice,” Brower said.
“I just tell them there’s hope out there. If you want it bad enough and put your mind to it, anybody can do it.”
Brower has moved out of his parents’ home and into his own place. He will now have to look forward to married life with Masella by his side. The Syracuse couple also made an appearance on ABC’s Good Morning America in a brief segment that aired last week.
[Featured Image by Vladyslav Starozhylov /Shutterstock.com]