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Walking off the weight: Grandma loses 100 pounds and keeps it off

Simply put, she's a regular woman from Irving who transformed herself and as a result, is touching countless lives.

It's 4:30 a.m...the time Greta Ross gets her workout going six days a week.

She's not a trainer. She has no certifications or fancy letters behind her name. At age 61, Ross finally found her happy place.

Simply put, she's a regular woman from Irving who transformed herself and as a result, is touching countless lives.

"I used to weigh 237 pounds," Ross said. "I had acid reflux so bad that I couldn't even lay down and sleep.

That was six years ago. Doctors told Ross if she didn't make drastic lifestyle changes, she wouldn't be around much longer.

"That scared me because I didn't want to leave my daughter and grandchildren behind," Ross said. "I knew I had to do something. Doing nothing wasn't an option."

Doctors wanted to put Ross on medication, but she refused.

"I had bad habits," Ross admitted. "I wasn't sleeping properly. I wasn't eating properly. I knew I had to do something. So I started walking."

Walking was one of the only active movements that Ross could comfortably do at the time.

"It just became a routine," Ross recalled. "We would get up every morning and just walk. Next thing I know, the weight just started coming off.

One foot in front of the other. It wasn't always easy -- the discipline to stick to a serious routine. But, within a year, that old fashioned approach would lead Ross to a 100 pound loss! No surgery, no pills, no dieting and she's kept the weight off for five years.

"I didn't stop. I just kept going and going and going," Ross said, describing her journey to wellness. "When I saw the transformation of my body, then my mind... my confidence level went through the roof. It was just incredible."

More incredible? Fitness has become a family affair for Ross. First, hooking her daughter.

"I just want to do it," said Fayedra Hawkins, 32. "I want to be there for my children and [eventually] my grandchildren."

Then, Hawkin's son, Ross' teenage grandson joined the gym.

"I told him some grandmothers play bingo," Ross warned. "But, this grandmother goes to the gym."

Now, Ross' inspirational posts about nutrition and wellness on Facebook and Instagram are catching the attention of strangers.

"Next thing you know, I got people reaching out to me from all over the place," Ross said.

A message of motivation that she hopes will one day reach the masses.

"I just tell my real story so that way people will know you can do this," Ross said. "Is it a journey? Yes. Is it a process? Yes. Does it take time? Absolutely. But you have to be willing to say I am worth that. My family is worth that."

Ross and Hawkins are in the process of developing a series of Wellness Workshops with 30-60- and 90-day programs for regular people who just need a little extra motivation when it comes to getting healthy and staying on track.

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