"Just a fat girl pretending to lift weights."

That's how Sian Ryan describes herself in her Instagram bio. It speaks less about how Sian looks and feels now than where she's come from. Two years ago, she was 19 stone and a size 26. She wanted to make a change, and decided to hit the gym. "At first I went to the 24-hour-gym at night so no one could see me. I needed something to get me out of the house," she told Cosmopolitan.

A post shared by Sian Ryan (@sianliftsweights) on Sep 13, 2017 at 11:40pm PDT

She tried running on a treadmill but didn't find it enjoyable and wasn't seeing any results. She decided to try weight-lifting and loved it. "Weight-lifting completely changed my whole thought process," she said. "I fell in love with it. The thought of getting stronger, more empowered and feeling better in myself was such a good feeling. "I started focusing less on the weight loss, even though it was happening. I was focusing more on getting stronger."

A post shared by Sian Ryan (@sianliftsweights) on Oct 20, 2017 at 11:23pm PDT

Sian also changed her diet, though not in the way you might think. Rather than cutting calories, she focused on her macros (macronutrients, i.e. carbohydrates, proteins and fats) which meant she could still eat things she enjoyed like pizza, just in moderation. She started cooking more of her own food rather than eating takeaways and subbed in healthier alternatives, like having turkey rashers instead of bacon. 'I actually lost more weight eating 2,000 calories than 1,000,' she said.

A post shared by Sian Ryan (@sianliftsweights) on Feb 10, 2017 at 9:59pm PST

To this day, Sian says that she wouldn't have lost weight if she hadn't given up cardio and tried something new. "If I hadn't found weightlifting I probably wouldn't have stuck at it to be honest. "I have been trying to lose weight for years. It was only when I found weightlifting that things changed."