Need a little inspiration to stick to your new year's resolution about getting healthy this year? Look no further than these two amazing teens who lost half their body weight! "Thirty percent of adolescents in this country are overweight," explains People senior editor Galina Espinoza, whose magazine features incredible weight loss stories. "We felt like we needed to not only call attention to the problem, but to also offer solutions." Read their stories below!

Max's Story
"I used to eat all the time," admits Max, who weighed 280 pounds by age 15. "Food took over my life." From double breakfasts and lunches to cookies, candy and pizza, Max estimates that he consumed 5,000 calories a day on a regular basis. Max tried many times to get his weight under control, but each time he would lose a few pounds, he would put more back on. But as he began his sophomore year of high school, Max says something finally clicked. "After coming home from a weight loss camp, I continued following the same regimen," he explains. "Smaller portions and exercising became a part of my daily life." A year and a half later, Max lost 130 pounds and gained back his confidence. "I don't have to worry about people making fun of me," shares the 16-year-old. "I never thought it would happen."

Max is taking the negative experiences of his overweight childhood along with his knowledge and passion for healthy living to help others. "I'm not part of a nutrition where we actually taste the food that goes into our cafeteria," he explains. "There's nothing fried, we actually have no frier. And I'm in the process of starting my own organization, People Helping Overweight America, to help overweight kids because I know how hard it is."

Berenice's Story
The first signs of Berenice's weight issue appeared when she was 2 and her mother could not hold her any longer. "We ate a lot of unhealthy food in my family," recalls the 17-year-old, who had such trouble finding clothes to fit that she had to fashion her 8th grade graduation dress out of a giant piece of material. Like Max, Berenice's turning point was when she hit 280 pounds at age 15. "I said, 'This is so wrong - I need to do something about it.'" Berenice joined a gym and now works out five times a week, lifting weights and toning. Coupled with a change in her eating habits, Berenice lost 132 pounds in two years. "I never thought that I would lose half of myself!" beams the thinner teen.

Rachael asks Berenice what she enjoys doing the most in her new healthier body. "Shopping!" she declares. "Finally I fit into the size I'm supposed to fit into ... I'm also doing things I never would have done before, like learning how to ride a bike, because I used to be so afraid of just being embarrassed."

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