Jen Selter In Strapless Bikini Shows Off 'The Best Parts' Of Herself

Model Jen Selter loves delighting her 13.6 million Instagram followers with a candid look at her life and fitness journey.

The social media influencer now models for the fast fashion brand Fashion Nova, but still makes time to share recipes and fun fitness content with her fans!

Jen recently promoted the fast fashion brand Fashion Nova and their Margo Underwire 2-piece bikini as she stood beside the water, showing off her toned figure and glowing tan. Her long hair was pulled back out of her face as she looked away from the camera, gazing at the horizon through her sunglasses.

“Sometimes you find the best parts of yourself when you go off the grid,” she wrote in the caption. “No service in the middle of nowhere yesterday. Exploring, embracing nature, unplugging, and reconnecting.”

Believe it or not, Instagram is only 14 years old. It was released on October 6, 2010. Jen joined the following year and became one of the platform’s first fitness influencers. She shared her workouts and the food she ate, and although some people made fun of her, she kept going.

She posted every single day, even if no one commented, and made sure to show her “real” life – not just highlights of her progress. She was picky with brand deals, only promoting products she actually used and liked, in order to build a genuine relationship with her audience.

In the caption of her post, Jen reflected on her early years, when she worked in a gym in order to make ends meet. “I started with nothing but a phone and the drive to show up—even when no one was watching,” she began. “No brand deals. No audience. Just passion and consistency. From Pinterest, to Tumblr, to Instagram… I was all in.”

“After high school, I was living on a family friend’s basement couch,” she explained. “My parents had sold the house I grew up in, my sister was away at college, and I decided to take a leap year to figure things out—because I truly didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life. I always had a passion for photography and videography, which is how it all started.”

Although many fans assume that she worked as a personal trainer at a gym, she explained that she actually worked at the front desk and took on odd jobs like babysitting in order to make ends meet.

“I worked the front desk at a gym and babysat to save up so I could eventually afford rent and move to NYC,” she told her followers. “All of my friends were in college at the time, but I was on a different confused path—but I was determined to make it work. While working at the gym, I became really motivated and inspired, and that’s when I started my own fitness journey.”

Her early posts may not have reached a lot of people, but as she wrote, “I started posting every day, searching for motivation (until I decided to become my own.. ) Back then, all the fitness content you see online now didn’t exist, which is crazy to think about.”

“Social media was so new—no courses, no ChatGPT, no AI tools or editing apps,” she explained. “I had to teach myself everything: content, brand deals, building a community. It felt like school, and I learned so much.”

Jen revealed that she kept her gym job until she had about 500,000 followers. “Once brand deals started coming in, it became hard to juggle both worlds,” she revealed. “One thing I never did was give up, and that leap year ended up being the best decision I’ve ever made.”

“So if you’re starting from scratch, just know... Nothing happens overnight. Keep a steady job, protect your peace, and post from passion, not pressure. Stay real. Stay consistent. And believe that your story is worth sharing, because it is,” she continued.

Jen wrapped up her post, writing, “I always said, if I’m motivating even one person, I’m doing something right. And it’s true. You never know who you’re inspiring… so don’t give up. Keep going!”