Journalism student Brianna Blank lost big to earn something bigger.

She didn’t like the way she felt at all, and during winter break of 2012, she saw a number she never wanted to see. “I was 306 pounds. I was shocked. I knew I had to do something,” she said. And at that point, she grabbed life by the horns, changed her eating habits, started to exercise, and lost an astounding 150 pounds in exchange for the rewards of a healthier lifestyle.

As she finished up her journalism studies this year, Brianna applied her lifestyle changes to her final journalism project as a tool to help with her goal – creating a talk show around healthy eating and exercise, and sharing her struggles and accomplishments with her weight goal. And, she hopes to air the segments on the URI campus TV network and on YouTube to help others trying to lose weight.

“What you put into your body is so important. You only get one body. You should treat it the best you can,” she says.

Of her new self, she says, “I feel amazing. There are times I look in the mirror and say, ‘Wow, I actually did it.’ If I can lose 150 pounds, anything is possible.’’

It’s passion like hers that keep students at URI motivated in all aspects of their lives. Now that she’s graduated, she has big ideas for her future as well. She’s moving to New York to tell her story of success to a broader audience and help others create their own healthy change.

This story was written by Sylvia Bogusz, a Communication Studies and Italian double major interning in the URI Department of Marketing and Communications.