this is such a powerful story and I am sure that there are a lot of bigger people who had to live with body shame all their lives. good for your friend to turn it into a positive! And while it is true that more weight on the body is maybe not the ideal of healthy - dieting and the up and down that usually comes with that is way worse. And the negative body image so many of us have (actually, people of all sizes) is probably the most unhealthy of it all.
I am glad that you are her friend - and why would anyone care? I guess what I am trying to say that people who judge who we are friends with are not friend material to begin with ...