Meet Wendy Garcia | Founder of StronHER & Women’s Wellness Coach

We had the good fortune of connecting with Wendy Garcia and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Wendy, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Honestly? It wasn’t this big strategic plan. It was survival and then it was purpose. I spent so many years living in a version of myself that wasn’t really me by people-pleasing, having no boundaries, always in survival mode, giving everything to everyone but myself. At some point in all of that, I got tired. Not lazy tired or even body tired, but soul tired.

The wellness space saved my life but it also frustrated me, because so much of it was surface level. Here’s your workout. Here’s your meal plan. Bye! I’d watch women get results for a little while and then fall apart when life got hard, and I knew it wasn’t a discipline problem. It was a disconnection problem.
So StronHER wasn’t just me starting a business. It was me saying… I see what’s missing, I’ve lived it, and I’m not okay with leaving it out anymore; body, mind, and soul. All three. At the same time. Because you can’t out-workout a mind that still doesn’t believe you deserve it.

I’m a first-gen, eldest daughter. No one in my family had done this. I just knew that if I didn’t bet on myself, nobody else was going to and the women I’m here to serve are just like me. They deserve more than a plan. They deserve someone who actually gets them. That was the whole thought process. It really was just, this has to exist, and I have to be the one to build it.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
My career didn’t start with a business plan. It started with a breakdown.
I spent years in survival mode as the eldest daughter, the first-gen kid who was supposed to hold everything together for everyone else. I was people-pleasing my way through life, had no real boundaries, and had completely lost touch with who I actually was underneath all of it. Fitness was the first thing that gave me my body back but it took a lot more work to get my self back.

That’s what sets StronHER apart. I’m not just a fitness coach. I work with women on body, mind, and soul… all three, at the same time, because I’ve lived what happens when you only fix one layer. You can have the perfect workout plan and still self-sabotage. You can know exactly what to eat and still use food to cope. The missing piece is almost never the information. It’s the identity underneath it.

What am I most proud of? Honestly, that I built this from nothing. No family member who had done it before, no roadmap. I moved from Arizona to the Bay Area in 2024 and just kept going. I launched my flagship group coaching container, Return to Her, earlier this year and watched women show up for themselves in ways that brought me to tears. That will never get old.
Was it easy? Absolutely not. There were months I questioned everything. Months where revenue was low and doubt was loud. I had to learn how to stop running my business from fear and start running it from identity, which is literally what I teach my clients, so you’d think it would come naturally. It doesn’t. You have to practice it every single day.

The biggest lesson I’ve learned is that the strategy only works when the mindset is right. You can have the best offer in the world and still shrink when it’s time to sell it. Healing my relationship with visibility, with money, with worthiness… that’s been the real work behind the business.

What do I want the world to know? That StronHER isn’t a fitness brand. It’s a coming home. It’s for the woman who has done everything “right” and still feels like something is missing. It’s for the eldest daughter who is exhausted from being strong for everyone else and is finally ready to be strong for herself. That woman is my person & I built this entire thing for her, because I was her.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Okay, if my best friend is coming to the Bay, we are NOT staying inside. The Bay Area was made for people who love to move and be outside and honestly, living here has completely changed how I experience wellness. Here’s how I’d do it:
Day 1 — Welcome to the Bay
We’re starting with a hike at Redwood Regional Park in Oakland. The redwoods literally make you feel like a different person. After, we’re getting food at Cholita Linda in Oakland, the tostadas are unreal. That night we’re walking the Oakland Estuary waterfront and just catching up over wine somewhere lowkey.
Day 2 — San Francisco Day
We’re taking BART into the city and walking the Embarcadero all the way to the Ferry Building for breakfast. Then we’re crossing the Golden Gate Bridge on foot which is a non-negotiable. It’s a workout AND a view. Finish the day in Sausalito watching the water.
Day 3 — Tilden & Reset
Tilden Regional Park in Berkeley for a long trail walk, then we’re finding a cute coffee spot in Rockridge and doing a little shopping on College Ave. Low effort, high vibe.
Day 4 — Muir Woods
This one is spiritual. Muir Woods will stop you in your tracks. Its ancient redwoods, complete quiet, pure magic. We’d follow it up with lunch in Mill Valley and just decompress.
Day 5 — Oakland Explore
Lake Merritt morning walk, it’s my go-to reset spot. Then brunch somewhere in the Fruitvale neighborhood because the food and culture there is everything. Afternoon at Joaquin Miller Park if we still have energy.
Day 6 — Mount Diablo
This hike is no joke but the panoramic views from the top are absolutely worth every step. We’d pack snacks, make a day of it, and feel completely accomplished.
Day 7 — Slow Morning Send-Off
Farmers market, a long walk, good coffee, and a meal somewhere that feels like a celebration. We’d end it grateful, tired in the best way, and already planning the next trip.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Oh, this one’s easy for me because I genuinely would not be where I am without my people.
First, I have to shout out Cristal Jacobo from She Is Made for More and Nicole Santos – these two women have been in my corner this past year in the most real way. Cristal is my strategy coach, and she has helped me see my business clearly when I couldn’t see past my own fear. Nicole helps me understand the mindset behind the business I’m trying to build because building something from scratch as a first-gen woman? The inner work is just as real as the outer work. Having both of them has been everything.

Then there’s my self-care team because honestly, you can’t pour from empty, and I’ve learned that the hard way. Claudia is my gyno chiropractor, Jesenia is my curandera andthey keep me grounded in a way that goes deeper than I can even put into words. They take care of the vessel so I can keep showing up for my clients and my mission. It really does take a village and I’m so grateful mine is full of women who get it.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_wendyfit/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@thisisntaboutyourbody

Image Credits
sarahnicolecreative