Dan and Wendy epitomize what a relationship should aspire to be. However, they were unaware of their true nature as a couple until they shared an anniversary photo.

The two were already quite well-known on the internet thanks to their occupations, but they were completely unprepared for the response they received when they posted this photo. Although it took them some time to process the responses from their followers, they were ultimately quite appreciative to learn what everyone had to say.

Taking Care of Yourself to Take Care of Each Other

Dan and Wendy have been in a relationship for ten years. They both support fitness and good health. The two firmly think that you should act in a way that benefits your mind, body, and soul. Additionally, by caring for themselves, they have developed their ability to care for one another as a partnership.

However, the two of them saw something that they had never noticed before after recently sharing a photo of their 10-year anniversary.

Wendy’s Path to Health and Wellness

Wendy and Dan weren’t super famous all the time. They actually got together long before social networking became popular. However, even before they met, they were always concerned about their health and well-being.

In reality, Wendy pursued a Master’s in Public Administration with a concentration on health cases. After realizing that diets and weight reduction fads are merely temporary solutions that don’t last as a way of life, she made the decision to follow this route.

It was important for her to find something that made her feel good on both the outside and the inside.

Dan’s Path to Health and Wellness

While Wendy was off studying her Master’s degree, Dan was on his own path to figuring out the best health and wellness regime for himself.

It all started in college when he joined the basketball team. From there he spent years as an athlete, learning all the ins and outs of health and fitness first hand.

After discovering that this was his passion, he studied for a Bachelor’s degree in Exercise Science. He loved how good it felt to be happy with his lifestyle. Which later inspired him to help people reach their fitness and weight loss goals in the healthiest way possible.

2006: A Time When Facebook Was Just Developing

The two found passion in the same subject, but on their own paths. How did they end up meeting though?

Basically, back in 2006, the two met on Facebook during college when the platform was geared more towards meeting people, specifically guys meeting girls.

One night Dan was sitting in front of the computer, going through friends of friends and trying to find girls that looked interested to him.

Messaging Wendy for the First Time

Upon skimming through some friends of friends on his Facebook adventure, he spotted Wendy. He thought she looked so beautiful and fun, and decided to send a message to her via Facebook.

As soon as she saw the message, her immediate thoughts were, “I don’t know you, I did not trust the internet, people from the internet… but he was still cute.”

As Dan and Wendy explained on their video STORY TIME: HOW WE MET, back then, meeting people on the internet was still quite taboo, especially in the early years of Facebook. So, she decided to confide in her friend, Daphne.

But what Daphne had to say about Dan was something she never would have expected.

“D” is for Determined

When Wendy shared with her friend Daphne that some guy named “Dan Hennessey” messaged her on Facebook, Daphne couldn’t believe who he was once she saw his pictures.

It looks like the same evening he had also messaged Daphne – whoops! So, at that point, Wendy thought for sure she won’t be responding to his message.

But to Dan, “D” is for determined. He ended up messaging her again a few weeks later. And after doing a little bit of Facebook stalking, Wendy decided he seemed like a normal person since he was connected with several of her high school friends.

“If She Did Say Yes, We Would Have Created One”

The two started talking and seemed to really hit it off. But it was finally time for them to make the ultimate transition of “online” to “in person”. So what did Dan decide to do?

As one of the basketball players on his college team, he thought it would be a great way for them to meet at a party at his building.

“There was no party,” Dan revealed in their YouTube video years later, “but if she did say yes, we would have created one.”

And that is exactly what happened. Wendy said yes to the invitation and Dan got to party-planning.

The First Moment They Met

So, who said chivalry is dead? Dan was planning a whole entire party for a girl he never even met in real life. Not just that, but he made sure to prepare all of his friends on the situation between him and Wendy.

“Everybody knew what the deal was. And who was coming. I’m sure [the girls] did the same thing.”

Wendy brought along a couple of her friends as back-up, and was pleasantly surprised when she got to the party. As she waited for someone to open the door upon their arrival, Wendy was greeted with a joyous smile from Dan.

Their eyes locked and she felt a huge weight lifted off of her shoulders knowing that he was something special.

“I’m Gonna Make You Say You Love Me”

The first moment that they met was quite magical, actually. Dan’s immediate thoughts were, “she looked way better than her pictures.” Which truly meant something since back then there were no such things as filters. Dan was amazed by Wendy’s true beauty just as equally as she was amazed by his amazing smile.

The two were talking and dancing the night away, even after the party had died down and ended.

Towards the very end of the night, when it was just the two of them, they danced to the song “Ain’t No Way” by Chris Brown. And he sang the lyrics “I’m gonna make you say you love me.”

And little did she know that she actually would say those three words a few months later!

Putting Their Bond on the Back Burner

When it comes to dating and serious relationships, timing is everything. Despite the fact that Wendy had a great time with Dan at his party, she still was fresh out of a long-term relationship.

Thankfully, though, both Dan and Wendy’s friends got along great, too. So, the two of them would hang out all the time, even if she wasn’t into the idea of dating Dan at the time.

It wasn’t until one special text message that the small back burn fire would light up the entire kitchen.

Happy Birthday Dan!

Keeping in touch with friends in college can sometimes be a bit tricky. Whether it’s from the stress of midterm exams or just meeting new people consistently while you’re partying on the weekends, keeping a tight bond throughout the year can be hit or miss.

Wendy and Dan’s friend circles were intertwined, though, so they actually got to see a lot of each other and started to become close friends over the next six months.

However, during Spring semester, Wendy and Dan didn’t end up talking much for a few weeks. But as soon as Wendy had realized that it was Dan’s birthday, she immediately sent a cheerful “Happy Birthday” message to him.

A Dinner That Changed Everything

He instantly replied and suggested that they should hang out. Wendy agreed that it needed to happen, and they decided to meet for dinner.

Throughout the past few months of their friendship hid an underlying train of romantic tension soaring between them. And this dinner turned out to be a lot more than just a friendly catch-up.

Dan, being the ambitious risk-taker that he is, went ahead and officially “asked Wendy out” during this dinner.

From a Flaming Romance to a Dimmed Light

Wendy and Dan spent the next seven years of their lives together. And while they were completely smitten and head over heels for each other, it wasn’t always all sunshine and rainbows.

They met when they were teenagers, barely through their freshmen year in college. They learned, grew up, and developed into adults together. Through thick and thin they were by each other’s side, whether it be helping each other out with the stress of college or job hunting afterwards.

But the bad times started to outweigh the good times come their mid-20s, and a big shift in their relationship was brewing up.

Growing Together, But Apart

A connection with someone should be effortless, but there are times when your relationship is going to take some extra work. Hard work, even.

“When you’re 18, 19, 20 in that area, and you meet somebody? I feel in my personal experience, you change so much from age 20 to 25, and every year along the way,” explained Dan in a video on Wendy’s YouTube channel. And even if you grow with someone, it’s still easy to get lost as an individual.

Becoming the Best Versions of Themselves, Apart

When Wendy broke up with Dan, she wasn’t sure if they would ever be in each other’s lives again. At first Dan desperately tried to get back together with her, but clearly that didn’t work. She didn’t break up with him because she no longer loved him. In fact, it was quite the opposite. She loved and cherished him so much that she wanted him to be happy and grow and be the best version of himself, even if it meant without her.

So after the break-up, Dan and Wendy were on their own journey in life to discovering who they really were as individuals.

It wasn’t until about a year later, that their lives naturally intertwined again.

Like Vines, They Intertwined

And as hard as it was to separate from each other, and to go through all the heartache and pain of a heart-break from almost a decade long committed relationship, they realized something important once their paths crossed again.

As Dan had shared, your twenties are such a transitional period, especially the early years. But now that they both had a little bit more “real world” experience outside of college, and took the time to find out who they were and be comfortable with it, everything else started to fall into place.

Feel Good to Look Good

One of the main mantras that are hummed in the back of your mind when you’re in practice of a healthy lifestyle, is that when you feel good, you’ll look good.

Their relationship has taught them that for good things to happen, you need to be open for them to happen. But more importantly, you need to be ready to fall down before you finally make it to the top.

Dan’s advice on a healthy, happy lifestyle, especially when it comes to dating is, “Meet people. Take risks. And definitely have to be willing to come with some dead ends once in a while.”

Learning the Secret to Their Success

Both Wendy and Dan understand that health and wellness are important parts of being a physical human being and are extremely passionate about it. But sometimes health and wellness also refer to your mind and your soul. Both of them had their “break” to focus and heal their souls, hearts, and minds.

It wasn’t until they had gotten back together that they realized that, “We really found who we were through that process of not having each other.” And together they learned the secret to their success as a couple.

The Ultimate Power Couple

While their break happened between 2014-2015, their separation was one of the best things that could ever happened to them. They realized that their time apart helped them come back stronger individually, allowing them to be the ultimate power couple that the world of social media has got their eyes on.

So now that we know how their story in real life bloomed, blossomed, grew, and intertwined, how exactly did they become one of the most loved couples on the internet?

Starting Up a Start-Up

Back in 2017, the two love birds, now with re-energized love and spirit for life, decided to start up their own method to reshape the fitness industry.

As millennials who grew up with the development of technology and social media, they truly learned how to use it as a tool and excel their mission together – making health and happiness accessible to anyone by doing what is true for you.

Wendy’s degree and experience in Vlogging health tips via social media combined with Dan’s knowledge, training, degree, and experience with fitness and nutrition proved to be an incredibly mixture for their start-up.

But that wasn’t the only thing that they used as inspiration.

True4You Fitness

Their background and passion for fitness might be one of the base tiers for their start-up, but it’s not the only inspiration or topic they focus on.

They titled their start-up “True4You Fitness”, focusing on being true to yourself and reaching your goals on your path.

They took their experience of being apart and growing as individuals and being satisfied with themselves and threw it in the mix of their fitness and wellness idea.

How romantic and mature! Couple goals, right?

Inspirational Role Models for the World

If they seem to be so successful on social media, why did one particular picture leave them with such an unexpected reaction from their audience?

Although they have been spending their lives helping and coaching others, posting this picture was more than just a reminder of what a difference ten years can make.

They realized that everything about their love story, from the way that they met to the reasons for breaking up to organically finding each other again, has brought them to become the strong people they are now. Perhaps, the reason why they look so young is because they are physically and mentally in a healthier place in their life.

Where Are They Now?

A couple years after the empowered couple got back together, their start-up idea and new attitude towards how to live their lives have exploded. They are now working to help people reach their goals of living a healthy and happy life whether it’s through fitness goals or relationship guidance.

The social media world also looks up to them as a relationship to aspire to, and have truly connected to how incredibly authentic, passionate, and caring their love for one another is.