Beauty and Strength

written by Shannon Ellis

Has there ever been a time when you wanted to make a change? Have you ever wanted to reinvent yourself? Whitney Linder wanted to make a healthy change in her lifestyle. She challenged herself to step out of her comfort zone and do something she never dreamed she would do . . . be a competitive bodybuilder.

Whitney waits for me at Fuzzy’s Taco in Moore. As she looks at the menu, I notice that she is the exact replica of the student she was years ago except now she is a little more glamorous and stands there filled with confidence. Her hair is long and luscious, but worn with an air of casualness. Although dressed in workout clothes sporting the name “The Strength Factory,” she doesn’t look casual. She looks determined, and her beauty is undeniable (cue the One Direction song - “You Don’t Know You're Beautiful.”)  Her bodybuilding figure is stunning, and every patron of the restaurant has noticed her. While we sit down to wait on our orders, Whitney recounts her journey to competitive bodybuilding.

The sojourn began in Whitney’s childhood. “My mom was not in the best health while I was growing up.” 

Her mother suffered from adult onset diabetes and lost her eyesight due to diabetic complications during Whitney’s junior year of high school.  Later, her mom came close to losing her foot due to neuropathy, or numbness in her foot, while Whitney was a sophomore at Southern Nazarene University.  

In college, even though she was a student athlete playing softball, Whitney’s college lifestyle was full of late nights and fast food. Faced with her mother’s health problems  and a less-than-healthy college life, Whitney found herself heavier than she had ever been before. 

Realizing she wanted to make a lifestyle change, Whitney made more concerted efforts to eat healthier and to incorporate a workout routine. Then she asked herself what her biggest fear was. For her mom, it was going to a gym, but for Whitney “It was stepping on the stage in a bikini.”  She acknowledged, “I am very modest.” 

In 2015, Whitney confronted and conquered her biggest fear and competed in her first bodybuilding contest. Since then, she has competed five times!  After her wedding in April, she is planning to compete in her sixth competition in either August or September of 2022.

But how did Whitney take the plunge into the world of competitive bodybuilding?  It is not easy and the bodybuilding process itself is an obstacle. It requires a lot of work and discipline including a strict, protein rich diet.

She pokes at her grilled shrimp salad with her fork to emphasize her point. “I couldn’t even eat this.” 

It seems like an overwhelming process, but  Whitney set small goals and wrote them down on a calendar. When each objective was accomplished, Whitney pushed herself to achieve the next goal. The development of becoming a bodybuilder was gratifying for Whitney.

“It’s not the glitz or the glam. It’s the process to get there. That is the most rewarding part. The process.” she emphasizes. 

With her competitive spirit, Whitney placed second in her most recent competition. “I’m not happy with that, but the process of getting there is still awesome.”

It’s easy to say what your goals are, but to write them down is a great first step. “In the gym we have a board with a square for each person, and they can write their goals in their box. It is so cool to see the vast differences.”

For a beginner, Whitney recommends taking small steps. Begin by setting a goal and be specific. For instance, set a goal to lose a certain amount of weight or gain a certain amount of muscle mass by a specific deadline. Once the first goal is achieved, move to the second goal, and the next goal until your ultimate goal is met.

In order to help people achieve their goals, and maintain working out and being at the gym, Whitney and her fiance Tyler Blaze turned their dedication to a career and bought their gym, The Strength Factory, in 2020.  This was just in time for all gyms to be closed due to the Covid-19 outbreak. Whitney and Tyler did not feel it was right to continue to charge their patrons a gym membership fee when they were not allowed to come in, so they did not charge them. The gym managed to stay afloat during this time. The Strength Factory offers cardio fitness, personal training, a weight loss program, competitive training, powerlifting team, and more. 

In addition to being the strength and conditioning coach for the Southern Nazarene University’s softball team, Whitney is also a personal trainer at The Strength Factory and encourages each of her gym patrons. 

For more information on the Strength Factory, follow them on Instagram or Facebook. If you are interested in bodybuilding, contact Whitney at the Strength Factory.