How These People Dropped Half Their Body Weight

New Year, new you... these people have inspiring weight loss stories.

Heather Patterson is a health coach from Georgia who used to weigh 257 pounds. She's now a svelte 130 pounds after dropping half her body weight.

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She told INSIDE EDITION: “I had horrible eating habits before. Loved dairy and I could eat a half a gallon of ice cream every few days, and did.”

Patterson said she knew she had to lose weight when she saw a photo of herself on her friend's Facebook page.

Now, instead of a gallon of ice cream every couple of days, I might have a cup of Greek yogurt,” she said.

Heather's story and others like her are featured in People magazine's “Half Their Size” issue, on newsstands now.

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Austin Shifflett is a good-looking student from Virginia who used to weigh in at 324 pounds.

“I stepped on the scale at my friend's house and I thought I would be around 250 pounds, the scale said 324 and I was like way too young to be this heavy,” he said.

He now weighs 158 pounds after shedding 166 pounds.

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