Meet Taylor Montey | MA, LPC, CFL2

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

Hi Taylor, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?

I originally never intended to start my own business. Over time, I saw a need to serve others in a way that didn’t exist.

In my late teens/early twenties, I got really into CrossFit. What I noticed was that fitness transformed who I was as a person. It helped me build my confidence, step outside my comfort zone, find a community, accomplish goals, and increase my mood and motivation. I was able to accomplish things I never thought possible for myself. I found a career in the fire service, which I never would have imagined I would have been capable of, and I fell in love with it.

During this time, I began teaching CrossFit to underserved youth in my community through FYR (then Steve’s Club). I noticed that teens were more willing to open up after a workout. I also saw a workout as a way to create a bond with other first responders I worked with.

In 2015, I returned to school to get my Master’s in Counseling, intending to combine fitness with psychotherapy. Through my experience and research, it became clear that fitness was the antidote to many symptoms that first responders and our youth experience. Fitness is proven to help with trauma, anxiety, depression, building community, conquering fears, and building confidence. The mind-body connection is so powerful! I wanted to create a place where people could go to treat the whole person in one session.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?

Mindset Reps is a unique and innovative program that combines fitness, psychotherapy, and community to bring about change and healing.

Research has shown that exercise increases mood, builds confidence and self-efficacy, and conquers fears and negative beliefs. Group fitness classes help promote bonding through shared group experiences and create an opportunity for risk-taking in a safe environment.

There is a reason why so many counselors, doctors, and psychologists prescribe exercise for their patients. Exercise is proven to provide known benefits for physical and mental health, such as sleep, improved cardiac health, and reduced anxiety, depression, anger, and substance abuse. Our classes are designed and taught by counselors and fitness professionals. Our program aims to improve overall health in one place/time.

Our program specializes in reaching our community’s first responders, veterans and youth. We strive to serve every demographic and offer many athletes scholarships. The Mindset Reps Program has grown in the last year. We have added programs in local schools and host gyms in our community. The program has successfully reduced trauma and symptoms of trauma, including anxiety, depression, and substance use. We have also had the privilege of watching the athletes’ confidence in our community sore!

Some of the biggest lessons I have learned are persistence and the importance of a great team! I work as a firefighter, and many coaches also hold full-time careers in our community as first responders. Time has always been a barrier to how many programs we can run. We are excited to grow our curriculum, but we also want to ensure we continue delivering a high-quality experience.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.

Fort Collins is a great community offering activities for every age and level.

Our favorite activities include hiking Horsetooth Rock or Lory State Park, paddle-boarding on Horsetooth Reservoir, or fishing up the Poudre Canyon. We also have miles of amazing Mountain Biking Trails.

In the summer, grab a blanket to sit on the lawn for the Lagoon free concert series on Wednesday evenings or stroll downtown Fort Collins Thursday nights for more local music from local bands around town.

The Fort Collins downtown has various restaurants, boutiques, and retail options. We love to grab food at The Exchange, which offers a variety of food options in their plaza. The Exchange provides indoor and outdoor dining with plenty of places to sit, meet other people, and let the kids play! You can’t go wrong with any restaurants downtown but Walrus Ice Cream is a must!

You can’t visit Fort Collins without visiting some of our local breweries. We have some of the best beer in the nation! We are the home of New Belgium, Odells, and many other local breweries! Many Fort Collins breweries are within a five-mile radius of each other, making biking to the breweries extremely popular.

Fort Collins also has a variety of parks for the kids. City Park Pool is a great place to cool off!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?

I want to give my family, friends, mentors, and colleagues a personal shout-out. Their support has shaped me into the person I am today and given me the confidence, opportunity, and support to start and continue this journey.

Mindset Reps started with a vision, but none of it is executed without the help and support of our amazing Mindset Reps/FYR team, board members, coaches, counselors, and athletes. This business would continue to grow and serve more of our community with the work, time, and passion our FYR Mindset Reps Team regularly brings and pours into our youth and first responders! Thank you for creating such a fantastic community!

I would also like to give a shout-out to our partners and partner gyms. CrossFit 970, OTAC, Koda Ironview, our programs wouldn’t run without your support! Thank you to Forging Youth Resilience, First Responder Trauma Counselors, Health for Heroes, and Larimer County Behavioral Health for your continued support.

Website: www.mindsetreps.com

Instagram: @mindset.reps

Facebook: @mindsetreps

Youtube: @mindsetreps

Image Credits
Tyler Rossman @trossfilms