An honest and inspirational story of dreaming big, winning big, and losing big, by one of today's most-beautiful voices and brightest Hollywood stars
Jennifer Hudson felt like she'd finally arrived when she appeared on the American Idol stage. After all, it was the most-watched show on television, viewed by millions who would now get to hear her voice. Jennifer felt like all of her hard work finally was going to pay off, and that all of those years of seeing doors closed to her, often because of her size, were over. But during one of her first red-carpet appearance as an American Idol contestant, she was asked, 'How does it feel to be a 'big girl' in Hollywood?' Jennifer Hudson could hardly believe her ears.
Growing up, it never occurred to Jennifer that her weight could become an issue. She had curves in all the right places and assets that women all over the world often have to pay for to get. Plus, she was the skinny one in her family! The Hudsons shared everything-a love of God, of family, of music, and of delicious food. They often gathered around a table laden with home-cooked meals, lovingly prepared by her mother and grandmother.
Exciting, inspirational, and honest, I Got This is Jennifer's journey from a girl growing up on Chicago's South Side to performing on the American Idol stage, where she heard not one but numerous remarks about her look not being right for stardom. When Jennifer was cast in the role of a lifetime as the central character in Dreamgirls, she was asked to put on twenty pounds to fill the role of Effie White. Only she, Jennifer thought, would be asked to gain weight for a role by Hollywood, the town that views anything over a size ten as plus size.
Tired of always trying to look the part, whatever that meant, and the mother to a son for whom Jennifer wanted to set a good example, she decided to get healthy. She would lose the weight, once and for all-not for a role, not for a record label, but for herself. Teaming up with Weight Watchers and using their PointsPlus® program, Jennifer learned how to think about food differently, think about exercise differently, and in the process, changed her life for the better. Once the big girl with the big voice, Jennifer Hudson is one of our brightest stars and an inspiration to her family and the millions of Americans she has inspired to become members of Weight Watchers. In I Got This, she'll show you how she embraced Weight Watchers as a realistic, healthy way of life and help anyone who has even suffered from a weight problem to do the same.