It is always wonderful to be able to catch up with our students…
Recently, we had a chat with Katie Serone and listening to her amazing story of resilience and positive thinking, we thought to invite Katie to share her philosophy with others.
It is such a pleasure to be able to share her answers to our questions here….
What initially drew you into the industry?
Wow, this was 28 years ago!
When I was 15 years of age, I had a real love and passion for fitness, especially group fitness.
It was very different back then, mainly consisting of freestyle classes. A lot of work went into choreographing your own sessions to the music.
Then came Les Mills classes and I never looked back.
I am trained in 8 Les Mills programs:
- BODYATTACK
- BODYCOMBAT
- BODYPUMP
- LES MILLS CORE
- LES MILLS GRIT SERIES
- RPM
- SPRINT
- BODYJAM
My initial qualifications 28 years ago consisted of my cert 3 in fitness.
I have spent the last 28 years instructing and coaching group fitness classes and connecting with 1000’s of people from all walks of life.
The only break in my fitness career was through each of my 4 pregnancies and only for a short time. I am a very proud single mum with 4 amazing children.
Do you have a fitness and life philosophy?
Let go of the things you can’t control….
Your hardest times often lead to the greatest moments of your life, and I firmly believe that the GREATER the STORM, the BRIGHTER the RAINBOW…
Stay present in the moment as that is the only thing that is real.
Everybody has a story. The one, only and most important STORY you need to focus on and tell, is “YOURS”.
Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it – you can turn your vulnerability into strength….
If there is anything I can offer by way of advice – it is this….
In sharing my vulnerability, my story and my experience I would say ..”NEVER GIVE UP – YOU GOT THIS”.
Life will continually throw curve balls and contrast. How you handle yourself through these times is a true testament to who you really are and what you are capable of.
Inner strength and motivation don’t come from what you can do, it comes from overcoming the things you didn’t think you could do… the challenges, hardships, and dark times.
So, have faith, stay present and take one day at a time.
What are you most enjoying about studying the course?
As hard as it has been for me, in my effort to complete this course, I still am enjoying broadening my understanding, knowledge and experience in the CERT 4 component.
This inevitably, opens new doors and opportunities and allows me to continue to inspire and share my love, passion, and experience in fitness to make a difference in people’s lives.
What advice would you offer to other students?
Failure is success – Failure is not a permanent experience – you must rise above it and choose to be better than you were a moment ago.
Changing and growing is what makes you win. I have spent the last 4 years trying to complete this course. I have endured and faced one hardship after another.
At the beginning of my course, I underwent 2 vocal fold operations (operations on the vocal cords) – which put me out for months and months with recovery, rehab, and speech therapy.
Then, came the crazy times of the pandemic – Covid closing gyms everywhere and continually facing lock downs and interruptions.
Following this, in 2021 my family and I had a big health scare with my father suffering a major stroke. He was hospitalised and in rehab for months to recover.
Through the year my dad’s health issues continued and he had to undergo open heart surgery.
As you can imagine, this was a very emotional and stressful time for my family and me.
In the same year as my father’s health issues and with things being so uncertain, I became a single mum of 4 children.
To add to all this, the family home we had been living in for 12 years was to be sold and we had to move out.
It took 8 months, and after enduring not 1 but 2 massive moves, trying to work, be a mum, run a functional home and help my children meet sports and school commitments, the kids and I all went down badly with COVID, I became so unwell and unfortunately ended up in hospital to recover.
So here I am, in MAY 2022, with only 2 units to complete in my Certificate IV in Fitness.
With all of my being, I am determined to complete it…..
Thanks for sharing your fitness journey with us Katie, we wish you all the very best for the future and look forward to issuing your Certificate IV in Fitness!
Meet more motivated Fitness Institute Students HERE!
