Mother loses more than 45 kilos after she discovered her husband was cheating

Betsy Ayala had struggled with her weight her whole life, weighing between 90 and 95 kgs throughout her 20s.

After giving birth to her daughter in June 2013, Ayala, now 34, had reached 118 kgs. Even though her weight had reached a new high, Ayala wasn’t too concerned about her physical appearance at the time, as she began struggling with postpartum depression and anxiety.

“My brother suggested that I try to eat better to feel better,” the Houston, Texas-based mom tells PEOPLE. “I had a newborn, and I didn’t have the will to cook, so I learned about Herbalife shakes and I gave it a shot. Slowly I started to feel better and I started losing weight even though that wasn’t my intention — my intention was to feel better overall through good nutrition.”

Ayala had lost 13.6kgs lbs. when she discovered that her husband — whom she had been dating since she was 17 — was cheating on her.

“At that point, my whole world fell apart,” she says. “For a couple of months we were trying to figure out if we could make this work, and it ended up not working out. At that moment, I thought, ‘This is not going to define who I am. I don’t want to be the way I have been all these years.’ That drove me to make a permanent change in my life.”

Transformation Tuesday !!!! 3 years and 103 lbs later it's crazy to look back and see all that has changed in my life. In the left pic I was unknowingly on the brink of the most difficult time of my life. At the time I couldn't understand how my life would unfold and what it all meant but if there's one thing I know for sure is I'M NO QUITTER 👊🏼 I know there are amazing things ahead as well as tough ones because that is life. What I also know is that I've survived all the tough times up until now and the future will be no different. The only way you figure that out is by facing life and fighting through life to be the best you for yourself, your kids etc. I pray that if you haven't up until this point been successful at conquering those battles, this is your year of success and resilience. There is no greater feeling than standing on top of the mountain after the hardest climb of your life! 💪🏼💪🏼💪🏼💪🏼 -------------------------------------------- Consumers who use Herbalife Formula 1 twice per day as part of a healthy lifestyle can generally expect to lose around 0.5 to 1 pound per week. Participants in a 12-week, single-blind, study used Formula 1 twice per day (once as a meal and once as a snack) with a reduced calorie diet and a goal of 30 minutes of exercise per day. Participants followed either a high protein diet or a standard protein diet. Participants in both groups lost about 8.5 pounds.

Ayala wanted to move on with her life in a healthy way to not only feel better about herself, but to be a good example for her daughter.

“I wanted her to be proud of me and have an example of a strong mom that perseveres despite whatever happens, and have a happy life,” she says. “That moment was when I decided that I wasn’t going to be the same person I was before.”

So in early 2014, Ayala began making positive changes. She started working out despite never being active before and cleaned up her diet.

Now Ayala is down 47kgs, and is committed to her healthy lifestyle, which includes a clean diet free of soda, junk food and processed food — with the exception of a cheat meal once a week — and six days of exercise every week.

“At the beginning it was hard, but it’s honestly not as hard as you think it is,” says Ayala of making major lifestyle changes while balancing being a mother. “Once you feel good and you make that change and you see how amazing it feels to feel good, it just becomes part of your life. For me, it’s second nature. I don’t question going to the gym — it’s part of what I do. And even eating right, it’s not, ‘Oh I have to eat healthy today.’ It’s part of my life now. I enjoy it.”

“I gave up certain things in my life that weren’t positive for myself, and replaced them with things like going to the gym,” she continues.

Happy Transformation Tuesday!!!!! So this is how I gained 100 lbs ... Every week it was a birthday party or a function at work or a stressful day or thanksgiving or Christmas or my mom made my favorite food and so on and so on. So every week I would tell myself I'm starting on Monday and then I would and something would "happen" and I quit so I would say next Monday and I would eat everything under the sun because it was the last week of cheating and then it would happen all over again 😕 MY ADVICE: If you want to win this battle you are going to have to deal with all those situations and make a choice. I still enjoy the holidays and special occasions but now in moderation and I'm prepared for them. If you are waiting for New Years to make this "change" your will to change won't be any different January 1st than it is today. DO IT NOW 💪🏼💪🏼💪🏼 ------------------------------------------------ Consumers who use Herbalife Formula 1 twice per day as part of a healthy lifestyle can generally expect to lose around 0.5 to 1 pound per week. Participants in a 12-week, single-blind, study used Formula 1 twice per day (once as a meal and once as a snack) with a reduced calorie diet and a goal of 30 minutes of exercise per day. Participants followed either a high protein diet or a standard protein diet. Participants in both groups lost about 8.5 pounds.

Happy #TransformationTuesday !!!!! The left picture is the day my brother got married... I remember I hated going to events or fancy occasions because I used to get anxiety about what I was going to wear. I could only fit in to plus sizes and everything seemed like it was made for people twice my age 😞 I would never wear dresses or anything cute and honestly there were things I missed out on because I would make excuses not to go. Even wearing knee high boots wasn't a option because they wouldn't zip up my calf. I think for anyone who hasn't been in that position it's hard to comprehend what it feels like and all the thoughts that go through your head on a daily and wondering if this is really how you're going to live the rest of your life. Grateful that the right opportunities and people were put in my life at exactly the right time to change everything and live my life on my terms. 👑🐝💋❤️ ------------------------------------------------ "Stressing and complaining will change nothing, take action make a change and never look back" ------------------------------------------------ Consumers who use Herbalife Formula 1 twice per day as part of a healthy lifestyle can generally expect to lose around 0.5 to 1 pound per week. Participants in a 12-week, single-blind, study used Formula 1 twice per day (once as a meal and once as a snack) with a reduced calorie diet and a goal of 30 minutes of exercise per day. Participants followed either a high protein diet or a standard protein diet. Participants in both groups lost about 8.5 pounds.

Ayala, who now works as an Herbalife wellness coach, says the best part of losing weight has been obtaining a more positive outlook on life.

“When you feel good and you’re good with yourself both mentally and physically, it changes your perspective on life,” she says. “When I go to the gym, I push myself to do things I couldn’t do before. It shifts your mindset — you become fearless because this one thing you thought you never could accomplish, now you’re able to do.”

Another rewarding aspect is being able to help others through her job as a wellness coach.

“Through my results, I’m able to help other people do the same thing,” says Ayala. “People come to me and say I’m inspiring, and I can’t even describe how rewarding that is for me.”

This article originally appeared on PEOPLE.