Meet Katy Davidson | Personal Trainer

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

Hi Katy, how do you think about risk?
I’ve never thought of myself as a big risk-taker. Having generalized anxiety and clinical depression has often kept me from making decisions at all, let alone risky ones.

There were obvious financial risks when starting my own business – from figuring out which continuing education course is going to bring the greatest value for my clients, to software and applications that might make it easier to do my job (as long as they work like I want them to). I found myself being nickle-and-dimed to death without any guarantee of a return on my efforts. That can make even the most confident person hesitate.

The biggest risk for me, though, was the emotional one. It’s scary to pour myself into a project that I am passionate about and then have this looming fear of rejection or failure. No one (probably) goes into this knowing everything or feeling like they have a strong grip on what exactly they need to do to be successful. Second-guessing myself became my norm for a while, as I was so unsure of what direction I wanted to take things.

I always knew I wanted to help people, but one question kept me from beginning this journey earlier. “Why would anyone want to learn from me?” The fact was, for a long time I wasn’t ready to risk putting myself out there. So instead, I spent years feeling lost, meandering around jobs that didn’t fit me or give me the satisfaction of really making a difference in someone’s life.

One day it clicked. I realized that my anxiety was actually something to use instead of letting it paralyze me. Everything changed. I thought, if I’m not willing to share my story, my experience, what’s the point of having one? The support I needed most when I started lifting is exactly the thing I now offer others. My entire goal in training people is to help them through their own anxieties of working out and feeling healthy, to create confidence at the gym in order for them to build sustainable habits. Smashing goals is just a really cool side quest we get to complete along the way.

Last year, after multiple pep talks from my husband and a healthy dose of confidence-boosting from my best friends, I jumped feet first into building a personal training business. Do I have all of the business side of things figured out yet? Definitely not – I’m learning that part as I go. The confidence I have in creating workout programs for clients takes me a long way though, and so far the reward has been much greater than any risk I’ve taken.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
When I first started working out, I had no idea what I was doing, and that caused a lot of anxiety. So much, in fact, that I would sometimes drive to the gym and just sit in my car and cry because I felt so stupid not knowing what to do when I got inside. After some time, I worked with a trainer and it helped make me feel a little more comfortable and kept me going to the gym long after he stopped training me.

That wasn’t enough though, I never saw results I wanted because I didn’t know the How or Why of lifting weights. Again, I was just lost.

I’d thought about it for years – I wanted to help other people fall in love with going to the gym and feeling like a stronger, better version of themselves. I got my personal training certification and found my niche in the industry. With an abundance of information out there, I want to help cut through all the noise and give clients not only a great program to follow, but insight to why it’s set up the way it is and other helpful tools along the way.

What I offer is knowledge. I’m always seeking more, and sharing it with clients whenever I can. I get to learn all of the ins and outs of fitness, and then package it up into clear, easy-to-understand bites of information while we train. That knowledge is key to their (and my) success.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
For me, having a support system has been invaluable, there’s no way I would have started a business without these people cheering me on. My husband and son are a constant source of love and encouragement for me.

I’ve also found this incredible group of women that has completely changed the way I see myself. Oftentimes, they are quite literally the kind voice in my head that gives me the courage to do big things.

Website: https://www.yourfriendkaty.com/

Instagram: @yourfriendkaty

Image Credits
Most photos by Ilya Kushnir