A local woman's desire to live a healthier lifestyle is paying off. More than a decade ago, Aimee Smith decided to make some changes: eat better and exercise more. She also had gastric bypass surgery and today she's lost almost 230 pounds. But she's not done just yet.

Aimee Smith just won't stop. She's been pushing herself for years trying to look, feel, and live better.

“Aimee is special,” said her coach Kitty Cole.

This is how Aimee looked most of her life.

“Very overweight,” she explained “I was bullied all the time at school. When I graduated high school I was 300 pounds. I think it was a lot of emotional eating,”

But one day in 2000, Aimee knew she needed to make a change.

“I finally woke up and got on the scale I was over 400 pounds. I was 427 pounds,” said Aimee. “I knew I was going to die,”

That was her wake up call. Aimee got off the couch and started moving.

“And then I started walking 30 minutes a day and then I started running it,”

The weight was coming off but Aimee wanted more. in 2009, she had gastric bypass surgery.

what it does it gets your stomach down into the size of a fist

Today, not only is she still losing weight but she's also becoming a competitive athlete.

“I don't listen to the 'I cant do it or I'm too old or I'm too heavy,” said Cole.

Aimee came to Cole of SBR Coaching in Verona for some direction.

“She's taught me how to swim, we learned about whole foods and that's how I started eating healthier,” said Aimee.

Kitty says the formula is simple.

“Change your food, you'll change your life,”

“I eat really clean, whole foods,” said Aimee. “Fruits and vegetables are key, going to the grocery store is somewhat of a chore because we spend a lot of time there.

Today, Aimee weighs about 200 pounds. And she's still pushing because her journey isn't over just yet.

“I wanna see what I can do you know, I don't know where this whole roller coaster ends that's my whole attitude,”

Aimee is currently training for her first marathon which will be held on May 4th in Kenosha.