Growing up in Louisiana, Hennig\u2019s journey to Hollywood stardom is a tale of great highs and tragic lows. As a youngster, she sadly her lost brother Brad, due to a car accident caused by a drunk driver. Mercifully, her love of dance, first taking classes in the River Parishes, would provide a welcome distraction from her grief, and would eventually be the catalyst for shaping her life as an actor. \u201cI spent 5 to 6 hours after school, pretty much every day, with my dance family,\u201d recalls Hennig. \u201cIt has helped me with so many things in my life. I love feeling good in my body and, in fact, I approach most of my characters by starting out physically. What is their physical world? Because of my dance background, it\u2019s made it a fun way to get into these characters.\u201d Many TV viewers will know Hennig for the character \u2018Stephanie Johnson\u2019 in Days of Our Lives, where she appeared in 470 episodes or in the Teen Wolf series<\/a> and movie (2014-2023) among other projects, but as \u2018Ava Winters\u2019 in the Netflix hit, \u201cObliterated,\u201d the beauty finally felt strong and confident enough to lay herself bare in some seriously steamy and revealing scenes.<\/p>\n As a dancer, Shelley Hennig competed in regional and national competitions on the Star Systems circuit in groups and as a solo performer doing tap, jazz, and ballet. \u201cI think my style was more like the Broadway, (Bob) Fosse style,\u201d she reflects, commenting that as she began to grow taller, she found herself having to adjust to her longer limbs. \u201c\u2026 when I was eleven or twelve, my legs grew longer than my actual torso and it was an adjustment in that new body, and I just remember limbs being everywhere, and me having to learn how to control that.\u201d At the suggestion of her dance teacher, Smantha Sidwell, Hennig entered the competition to be named \u2018Miss Teen Louisiana\u2019 as a means of finding a challenge that would keep her busy in the wake of her family tragedy. \u201cMy dance teacher just always saw something in me,\u201d says the star. \u201cShe just thought I should do something larger than myself, and I kind of just went with it, and the next thing you know, I\u2019m \u2018Miss Teen Louisiana\u2019 and then I won \u2018Miss Teen USA.\u2019\u201d The prizes for winning Miss Teen USA back in 2004 included a modelling contract with Trump Modelling Management and an acting scholarship with the New York Conservatory for Dramatic Arts. As \u2018Miss Teen USA,\u2019 Hennig travelled the world representing the Miss Universe Organization, but her new life away from home presented it\u2019s own mental challenges around finding an identity.<\/p>\n \u201cIt just was constant imposter syndrome,\u201d says Hennig of getting to grips with her role as Miss Teen USA. \u201cAnd, not that I didn\u2019t believe that I should be there, I didn\u2019t have an opinion on that one way or the other. You know, you\u2019re young and you just kind of, or at least for me, I just went with it. I was malleable and just adapted.\u201d Despite the obvious insecurities that being a teen pin-up might bring, Hennig is able to look back fondly on those formative years with pride. \u201cI did a USO tour,\u201d she recalls, beaming. \u201cI got to visit with the troops.\u201d Fast-forward to Obliterated, and Hennig plays a fictional CIA agent who is saving us from imminent disaster. \u201cMy friends back home from Louisiana are watching the show, and they are just kind of reminding me of so many things that I have gotten to experience, and it really all started with Miss Teen USA. Looking back, I don\u2019t love the responsibility that I felt at such a young age, when you are just figuring (life) out. I felt imposter syndrome, like why are kids looking up to me? But I made some great friends, I do hope I made an impact.\u201d<\/p>\n In acting, Shelley Hennig certainly made an impact on Days of Our Lives, and was nominated for an Emmy twice as Outstanding Younger Actress in a Drama Series. In 2016, she won a Teen Choice Award as best Female Choice Summer TV Star. In life, Hennig has also made a positive impact by working with nonprofit organizations, mentoring and speaking on the consequences of drug and alcohol abuse. And now she is making an impact on TV once again, as the kick ass, no nonsense agent out to save Las Vegas. For this role, her most physically challenging one yet, she would complement her love of dance by lifting weights, because this actor was eager to gain around ten pounds of muscle in order to look like she could handle herself on-screen.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was my third project in a row,\u201d explains the actor of launching herself straight into Obliterated. \u201c\u2026 and I\u2019m like, wow, I\u2019m playing a field agent, a CIA field agent. I have no time to prepare physically, but luckily I had a little more meat on my bones at the time, and then when I got to Albuquerque I got a trainer, his name is Simon (Otero), and we just added more intense weight training and, I\u2019d never done that and, I don\u2019t know, I felt jacked,\u201d she says of the results. \u201cAnd I felt probably the strongest I\u2019ve ever felt in my life and it felt really good. It was different for me, and it certainly took a second to get used to that new body, but looking at the series, I\u2019ve had the privilege of watching the whole thing at this point, and I\u2019m just to glad that I was able to adapt, be malleable, and go with it, and not try and go \u2018oh this is like, you know, a female lead of a Netflix series, I gotta be thin? I don\u2019t know\u2026 Says who!? Like, what is the role? Who are you playing?\u201d Undergoing tactical training and carrying heavy weaponry for long shoots, Hennig understood the role of Ava Winters, looking beyond the beyond beauty and getting to the heart of the character.<\/p>\n![\"Promotional](\"https:\/\/www.muscleandfitness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/Promotional-Poster-of-Shelley-Hennig-in-Netflix-Obliterated.jpg?w=200&quality=86&strip=all\")
Shelley Hennig Banished Imposter Syndrome By Making An Impact<\/h3>\n
![\"Shelley](\"https:\/\/www.muscleandfitness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/Shelley-Hennig-and-Nick-Zano-playing-their-roles-in-Netflixs-Obliterated.jpg?w=200&quality=86&strip=all\")
Shelley Hennig Felt \u2018Jacked\u2019 For Obliterated<\/h3>\n