About Me

I am 30-something Detroit-based gal and a huge proponent of ladies strength training. I started this blog to keep track of my workouts, my diet, and anything else interesting that came around along the way, and it has since molded into a place where I can reflect on the emotional side of working out, plus also try to motivate and encourage others to find the confidence and strength that comes with being empowered by weightlifting.

Up until 2011, I had zero athletic ability other than walking from the couch to the fridge. As a genetically blessed “skinny girl”, I never even considered anything about health and fitness, as I was skinny and ate what I wanted, so what did it matter. My life was Chinese food, pasta, pizza, and wine.

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In 2011, I started to follow my boyfriend of the time to the gym as an excuse to spend more time with him. I’d walk on the treadmill and struggle to press 15# on the machines. When we broke up (for the first time), I committed to training for a 5k, as I wanted to prove something. It took me almost six months to be able to train to run three miles. In the end, we rekindled our relationship and he ran the race with me and I was never prouder of myself and that 36:14 finish.

run for the detroit zoo 5k jennifer hudy

Not much longer after that, my now-ex, had sent me an article on a girl who was “skinny fat.” I had never heard the term and didn’t understand what he was trying to imply, but then I was intrigued by the girl in the article and how by GAINING weight (muscle) she actually looks better. I was intrigued, so started doing some lifting on my own at a globo gym, following New Rules of Lifting for Women, and hiring a personal trainer for a few sessions.

That summer, after becoming addicted to lifting for the prior few months, I saw the Crossfit Games on TV (thinking, there is a sport for fitness?!) and was obsessed with the girls. A Groupon deal opened up for a local box that fall, and full of a million emotions, I signed up. I nearly died every workout during my onramp; I couldn’t row 500m without stopping, I had to do push-ups on a bench, and banded pull-ups. I could hardly overhead squat a barbell and everything I thought I knew from the prior six months of working out, was proven wrong. I was torn on continuing to Crossfit as it was expensive, and would take up a lot of time and money. But I committed to it, and would attend 2-3x a week as my body allowed.

Thank goodness I'm not trying to pick up any men at the gym..

In January, 2013, I became single once again and Crossfit became my new love. I upped my workouts to 5x a week, signed up for Crossfit Endurance classes. I committed to paleo for a while, completely cleaned up my diet. I competed in the Open after only 4 months, I did my first Warrior Dash, trained and finished a half marathon. I discovered Oly lifting and did my first Oly meet, and most recently, stepped on stage in a bodybuilding competition!

crossfit gaining weight progress pictures

I am still far from the athlete that I want to be and my numbers may not be as big as some other girls’, but I give it 100% almost every single day and now cannot imagine a life without lifting.

pause back squat 130

On the blog, I love to spotlight other lifting ladies, as well as try to encourage other women to put their trust in the barbell. It has done so much for me; there is something so empowering about lifting weights that helps to completely change you as a person inside and out.

crossfit 80s style 80s fitness

Some top posts you may enjoy while you are here are:

If you have any questions for me, I am an open book! I will try to respond to emails within 24 hours. Thank you for visiting, and hope you enjoy my journey to being happy, healthy and lifting heavy!

Keep up with me on Facebook and Instagram and be sure to let me know how you found me!

{ 30 comments… read them below or add one }

HumanJHawkins August 16, 2012 at 4:23 pm

Nice. I got here after reading one of your recent blog posts…. Below the post it indicates there are 2 comments, but it does not show them, and there is no link to add another one.

Good blog though, and good goals. Cheers.

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~jenniferlynn August 16, 2012 at 6:05 pm

Thanks for the comment. Yes, it’s odd how the comment box shows up 🙁 If you click on the post title, you can scroll to the bottom and it would be available, but for some reason it’s not in the post feed!

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projectwhitespace
Twitter: bethanyjolee
September 1, 2012 at 11:35 am

I can do 0 pull ups. I’m impressed that you can do two. 🙂

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~jenniferlynn September 1, 2012 at 12:51 pm

It’s SOOO hard… but I’m so happy I can finally do one.. well, two. lol. It takes a ton of practice and focus.. you’ll get there!!

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K.E.P.T. You Fit October 5, 2012 at 6:17 pm

Nice to meet you! I just moved to Michigan and found your blog!

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~jenniferlynn October 6, 2012 at 6:52 pm

Thanks for the visit! 🙂

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Rx Fitness Lady January 6, 2013 at 2:30 am

Hi Jennifer! No need to gasp, you look great! I’m 31:) I saw you on twitter this a.m. SITStah, great post! I teach BODYPUMP now but did lots of sport related weight training in college for basketball. Glad I tuned in to sharefest today. I love your blog layout, button, the little lifter graphic thingy, lol. I’m new to blogging & I was told not pay for this thesis theme I was dying for, yet I come across another awesome layout:) Rethinking that decision. Good to have found you. Hope to connect. Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

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~jenniferlynn January 9, 2013 at 3:22 pm

Thanks for the compliment! 🙂 Hope you enjoy the blogging world; I love it so far! So much to learn, but I think it’s great to start slow and build up from there! Let me know if you have any questions!

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Gerald Smith
Twitter: TopLondonPT
February 26, 2013 at 5:33 am

Hi Jennifer

I love your blog. I am a blogger myself and I am big on women strength training to lose weight. It is great to find a woman who both lives it and spreads the word to other women. I’m so glad I found your blog.
Gerald Smith recently posted..best exercises to lose weight for womenMy Profile

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Amy July 28, 2014 at 10:51 pm

Just found your blog, horay! Love it already!

My question for you is….
I am tiny, 5’5 and 114lbs, but lift very heavy weights. I am definitely toned but not as muscular as I would like. I assume it’s because I don’t eat enough. I am trying to eat 1800 everyday, but sometimes only reach 1600 or 1700. Is upping my calories the secret to muscle gain?
Gosh, for so long I worked on loosing weight, so the thought of trying to gain seems crazy. Any advice you have would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!!

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~jenniferlynn July 28, 2014 at 11:14 pm

Most likely, yes! You definitely need to eat to grow, prioritizing protein 🙂

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Farrah August 8, 2014 at 1:15 pm

Hello! 😀 I found your blog through the critique Rita did for your blog (it looks awesome! :), and I’m so glad I did! (Hooray for another lady lifter!) I totally feel ya on the running a half-marathon as a non-runner (I somehow got the grand idea to do the same thing several years ago, hahaha.)

I don’t know if you do these, but I wanted to nominate you for the Inspiring Blogger award! More info on said nomination can be found on my blog! :] I hope you have a great weekend!
Farrah recently posted..inspiring blogger awardMy Profile

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Tracy October 25, 2014 at 6:05 pm

You recently posted a video of your bench press on FB. I just wanted to say, I tried your setup and LOVED how it felt.

Thank you

Tracy

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~jenniferlynn October 25, 2014 at 6:06 pm

I had a session with a powerlifting coach the week before so it was new to me, too!

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Mitch Rost, PT November 28, 2014 at 7:01 pm

Dear Jennifer,

I recently launched a new fundraising effort on Kickstarter.com for a product I invented called the STABALLIZER. The product is geared at strengthening the stabilizing muscles of the body. I’m looking for any help I can get spreading the word about my project so I can get funded and move into production. If you like what you see, would please help share my project for the sake of innovation. Thank you for your time and any help you can provide would be greatly appreciated.

Sincerely,

Mitch Rost, MSPT
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1012417874/staballizer-the-exercise-ball-that-does-it-all

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Sergio Mendoza March 12, 2015 at 2:17 pm

Hi,

We came across your blog and love your passion for fitness and healthy living! Our company, 6 Pack Fitness, is the industry leading creator of meal management bags and fitness travel gear, and we’re looking to partner with the best of the best in the blog world to help spread the health and wellness message.

We have several business and promotional programs to offer fitness influencers and advocates, including a digital affiliate partnership program offering commission on all referral sales generated through your site, and social/email/giveaway promotions to help spread the word and share awesome content.

We work with many different influencers and athletes in many different ways, and we would love the opportunity to connect with you in the near future to discuss a possible partnership.

Possible to set up a phone call with our team for next week to explore some ideas?

Thank you for your time! We look forward to hearing back from you!

Best,
Sergio Mendoza
Digital Marketing Coordinator
6 Pack Fitness
sergio@sixpackbags.com
http://www.sixpackbags.com

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~jenniferlynn April 7, 2016 at 10:53 am

Hey hey.. you can email me at Jennifer@winetoweightlifting.com

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natasha April 7, 2015 at 4:33 pm

I loved your story and could really relate, I am just starting up with being a personal trainer and trying to inspire other people my website and blog is new and just starting I love to get your feed back on it
natasha recently posted..#WODSwap: April 2015!My Profile

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Dumbelles October 25, 2015 at 2:09 am

What a fantastic transformation you have had! And absolutely love your blog!
Like you, our campaign focuses on giving women the education and motivation to lift weights to live a fitter, healthier life.
For more from us please check out https://wearedumbelles.wordpress.com

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Chiara January 15, 2016 at 4:35 am

SUBJECT: Webfluential – influencer marketing campaign for fitness bloggers

Hi Jennifer,

We run a global influencer marketing platform and came across your blog recently while searching for fitness bloggers. We’re busy putting together a shortlist of personalities and publishers that can assist in a leading fitness brand, in the USA.

We manage a network of 3900 influencers, reaching a collective audience of 85m people. Our platform offers brands the ability to discover your profile and contract you to work with them. We even manage your payment and reporting. Our global client brands include Barclays, Vodafone, Intel, Nokia and Warner Music.

If you’re interested in signing up, linking your channels and putting in pricing, I’d love to include you in the campaign proposal.

You can follow this link to sign up: https://webfluential.com/users/register

Thanks very much,

Chiara Di Rago
Influencer Assistant

http://www.webfluential.com

Suite 39, 5th Floor, Katherine and West
114 West Street, Sandton

Twitter: @chiaradirago
Landline: +27 11 326 5484

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Pam Dierks February 2, 2016 at 1:33 pm

Our farm Dierks Farms is located in Southern Illinois. We are a 100% grass fed beef farm. Our farm has been in operation since 1881 as a beef farm and will begin marketing our grass fed beef online beginning this spring. We are currently being featured on Kickstarter:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/2007481258/dierks-farms-grass-fed-beef-and-produce

I would explore the possibility of writing a guest blog on your website featuring the benefits of grass fed beef for a healthy lifestyle. Is that possible?

Our farm has been certified by the American Grassfed Association and also certified by the Illinois Products division of the State of Illinois. We are also featured on eatwild.com and localharvest.org. You can also view our website at http://www.americasgrassfedbeef.com.

Thank you for your time today. I look forward to hearing back from you.

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Mike Smith March 8, 2016 at 4:03 am

Hello,

I was wondering if you have any sponsored posts options available on winetoweightlifting.com

If yes, can you please get back to me with the prices and the details for the same.

Do let me know

Mike

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~jenniferlynn April 7, 2016 at 10:43 am

Hey Mike- you can email me at Jennifer@winetoweightlifting.com!

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Deb December 4, 2016 at 9:41 am

Hi! I love this blog! Just came across it and had to comment. I started the Crossfit journey at the ripe old age of 47 and it’s been AMAZING! Everything you said is true, all the way down to crying over the WODs! Nice to meet you and thrilled for what you’re writing. It’s awesome. 🙂

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Rae February 15, 2017 at 5:13 pm

Hey 🙂 I just stumbled across your blog by chance and spent the past hour reading old posts. I know you haven’t posted in a bit, but I just wanted to say how inspiring your blog is. Fitness for me has also been a very up-and-down, emotional journey where I’m constantly rewriting my goals and figuring out what it is I want out of all of it. I’ll definitely be reading through more of your posts this weekend 🙂 I just wanted to say hi and that I’m loving what you stand for, empowering women to feel more comfortable with the barbell, lifting in general, and particularly your gaining weight on crossfit article!

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David Jordan July 10, 2017 at 10:45 am

Hi!

Just wanted to I love the site. I think your recipes are also great – definitely going to have to try the lemon garlic chicken! I’m forever eating it plain as I have no ideas what I can use besides some fatty sauces!

Anyway, I’m currently leading content for a number of brands and I think your audience would enjoy some of my material. I design info-graphics to motivate and inspire people to set goals and do whatever they can to achieve them. Happy to share my designs for free.

This is my latest infographic: https://www.caragogo.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/reclaim-your-self-esteem-caragogo@3x-50.jpg

Let me know if you’d like me to send my future designs.

Regards,
David

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Nicole May 27, 2018 at 10:26 am

I’m new to crossfit this week.
I stumbled across this on Pinterest when I was looking up crossfit lingo.
From one Detroit girl to another… thank you for this!

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~jenniferlynn June 21, 2018 at 10:28 am

AW yayy Nicole!! Welcome!! 😀

Are you on instagram or FB? Would love to connect!!

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Dean February 28, 2020 at 2:27 pm

Hi-I see you on Instagram but there are no posts

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~jenniferlynn December 31, 2020 at 11:57 am

MY instagram got hacked! 🙁 I’m at instagram.com/jenniferhudy now!

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