She is a champion bodybuilder and businesswoman.
But Kate Austin has also suffered from bullying, which is why her new gym in Bridgend is as much about cultivating a positive body image and healthy mind as it is about physical fitness.
“People say things like I look like a man and will leave a comment like ‘yuck’ on my Facebook photos,” she said.
“At the time it hurts your feelings and in the past I have given them what for.
“But now I just block and delete them because you can’t argue with idiots. I just won’t tolerate it and I won’t put up with it.”
‘Come to my place if you’re not feeling yourself’
It is these experiences, as well as seeing other people of all shapes and sizes body shamed during her many years in gyms, that has led Kate, 33, to design her new business.
It’s called Ultimate Physique by Kate Austin and is on Bridgend Industrial Estate. Her aim is to help clients to feel good inside as well as out.
And she says it all starts with the small things, like how her staff treat customers.
“In the past, when people have not been feeling good about themselves, the last place they would’ve wanted to go is the gym where everyone looks good.
“But no matter how you feel, you always feel better after a workout with us at Ultimate.”
“I ensure our staff have time for people.
“I have told them to look out for people who are looking lost. You could walk into some gyms and no one will notice if you have had a bad day. Here we will.”
A new incentive
Kate, who is originally from Maesteg but now lives in Bridgend, has even been made a patron of anti-bullying charity Stand Against Bullying, along with Rob Howley, and is offering young people prepared to become ambassadors for the charity in their schools the incentive of membership at her new gym, which is believed to be the largest in Bridgend.
Powerful: Kate in action
A mindfulness and meditation coach is also holding sessions at the centre.
Situated in the old Harman Becker Automotive Systems factory on Bennett Street, the premises covers 83,000 sq ft and as well as the gym – which has a live DJ every evening – it will eventually house a healthy-eating cafe offering lessons in nutrition, a bar, a spa, 3G five-a-side pitches and even a roller derby rink.
She has also taken the lease on an additional 33,000 square unit behind the building.
“Bridgend really doesn’t need another gym, there’s a lot of them here already,” said Kate, who has worked in gyms since she was 16 and owned her first in Porthcawl aged 29.
“But everything we are bringing is something which Bridgend needs.”
‘I became addicted to bodybuilding’
After playing hockey and running in school, Kate looked for something to fill the sporting gap after she’d left.
“I started going to a local gym and it just so happens it was a proper little bodybuilder gym for guys. I had no intention of doing shows at the time. But when I started to change shape, I became addicted,” she said.
“I have never wanted to be like anyone else and when I started to stand out I liked it.
“But back when I started doing it, no girls were doing it and I used to get a lot of stick even though I am really girly and have tried to stay feminine with it. But now it’s come full circle and people want my advice, to be like me.”
She won the UK Bodybuilding and Fitness Federation Welsh Championships in 2010, claiming the Miss Wales title, and the following year chalked up what she considers to be her greatest achievement yet by becoming the overall winner of the 1st Annual Flex Lewis Classic Women’s Open in the US.
That’s run by Welsh bodybuilder and personal friend James ‘Flex’ Lewis, from Llanelli, now widely regarded as the world’s leading bodybuilder.
She is planning to compete again in June in the UKBFF Welsh Championship, but in the meantime will concentrate on building up her new enterprise with business partner Colin Bevan and continuing to take on the bullies.
“It’s very rare I get it now, but I do get it sometimes , like comments on Facebook, and it’s not nice.
“But I do get numerous kids from schools messaging me on Facebook saying that they are being bullied and I give them advice.”
Kate’s top five tips for cultivating a positive body image
• It’s all to do with how you think
Don’t let anyone tell you how you look is wrong. Everyone’s different and this should be celebrated. Where would I be if I’d listened to the bullies?
• Be realistic
The only reason the stars you see in magazines look like they do is because, no matter what they claim, they are smashing it every day in the gym and with their diets. They have all the right advice and also people to make sure they are following it, something most mere mortals do not.
• Thin doesn’t necessarily equal fit
When I was just weight training for competitions, I wasn’t actually fit. It’s only because I teach classes that I am now. Some of the women who weigh more than me are way fitter than I am – they’re amazing.
• Don’t be too competitive
People often give up on exercising, which will ultimately help them feel better about themselves, because they compare themselves in the gym to people who have been doing it for much longer and end up feeling like a failure when they are not.
• Junk food is bad for the mind as well as the body
If I’ve had a rubbish day I’ll buy a Chinese, chocolate and a bottle of wine and curl up on the sofa, but that can really make you feel worse, especially if you are down on yourself already. Get up and do something.
Courtesy of: Wales Online
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