Our latest Local Love is a very special kind of person, she’s a confident and understanding do-er who believes that everybody can achieve greatness, she’s also the founder of Body Kinect; creating tailor-made programs that invite and encourage people to be the best version of themselves. Her greatness radiates through her work…We’re so thrilled to share Kathryn’s story, her mission and what she believes is the best way to begin self-healing. 

 

Tell us a little about Body Kinect…

My background is in performing arts so I grew up singing and dancing and started teaching dance when I was 18. I began Body Kinect about seven years ago as a personal training and fitness business and loved using dance as a way to help people who usually hated the idea of exercise to get moving. I was asked to take a dance fitness class for a Women’s group whose participants were living with enduring mental illness. It was so much fun and so fabulous to see the clients walk away with so much more than a good workout. From there it snowballed and now Body Kinect specialises in providing health and wellness programs for people with mental illness. We educate clients on the importance of using exercise, healthy cooking and eating, and positive mindset techniques, to support good mental health and empower them to regain control of their lives.

You’re a qualified PT and Wellness coach. What originally drew you to the Health and Wellness industry?

To start with I know I can’t sit at a desk five days a week, it makes me miserable! My dance training gave me a love of movement and made me understand from an early age the importance of using movement to feel good. I developed a real interest in nutrition when I was forced to take stock of some of my own digestive issues and it quickly became clear to me that we can drastically improve our health, both physical and mental, by first looking at what we eat.

When I’m talking all things health and wellness (and seriously once you get me started its hard to shut me up!) it doesn’t feel like work. That’s something I’m very grateful for!

Your mission as a Wellness Coach…

To guide people living with mental illness to live a life driven by possibility, positivity, and purpose.

People living with mental illness have much higher rates of lifestyle illnesses such as Type II Diabetes and High Blood Pressure. Understandably, much focus and effort is put on managing their mental health, and as a result, they often lack the practical skills and knowledge to prevent very preventable diseases. Body Kinect’s role is to meet clients on their level and support them to make positive health change for the long term.

What do you believe keeps people from achieving overall health & wellness?

Sadly, a lack of self-worth. When we love something we take care of it. A car, a pet, our children. But we really struggle to look after ourselves. We need to put ourselves first and remember that we are our best asset.

What do you love most about what you do?

Witnessing clients becoming more confident and interested in their own health and the effect this has on their whole mood and personality. There’s nothing better than seeing a huge smile on your clients face because they successfully kicked their soft drink addiction to their curb and as a result their GP has reduced their diabetes medication.

Your programs are tailored to individual clients, not a one-size-fits-all. Can you share with us the foundation of your programs? What types of activities are included?

Our healthy eating program begins with teaching clients to understand their mindset and the effect that this has on their lifestyle choices. We then look at what makes up a healthy diet and what small changes they can begin to make right away to begin improving their health. We teach them how to cook simple, delicious meals on a budget and then help them to discover ways that they can move to feel good and improve their mood. Throughout we are always tailoring our classes to address the individual needs of the client and they complete their own health journals throughout the program to track their own progress.

Balance means…

After a yin yoga class and spending quality time with my husband over a delicious meal. Often one that he has cooked. He’s a much better cook than me!

There is a shift towards a more conscious way of living, What changes have you noticed?

Absolutely agree and it’s great! I think it’s happened out on necessity. As a population, our health was suffering and people weren’t getting the answers they needed from the usual sources so they started to seek the information themselves. As a result more positive health messages are all around us. Social media has obviously played a huge role in this but we are beginning to see more of a focus on preventative health and integrative practices.

Is social media is the key to getting a healthy message out there? 

It has certainly increased awareness of health and I think it has role to play. It’s a tricky one though because we’ve ended up with many ‘experts’ and often a distorted view of what healthy really means. I think people need to always remember that health is an individual thing and you have to find what works for you.

We share a common ground in wanting to make information around Holistic Living and Wellness accessible and relevant to the community, what drew you to focus on Mental Illness?

As I said earlier, I really fell into it by accident, but once involved I saw that this was a demographic that was often missing the education and support that empowered them to make positive health change for the long term. I realised that the work that Body Kinect does can make a huge difference to someones life so it was really a no-brainer to keep going and reach as many people as we can!

Dear 16-year-old self…

Relax….you’ll be fine. Don’t bother making a ten-year plan, you won’t stick to it anyway! oh and stop overplucking your eyebrows!

My greatest inspiration…

Yikes…that’s a big one. Many people inspire me for different reasons. I’m very fortunate to be surrounded by very strong woman who have taught me the importance of self-belief, hard work and laughter. My mum, ballet teacher and close girlfriends have all played a big role in shaping the person I am.

If someone wants to begin self-healing and transform their lives, what advice would you give them?

There’s no such thing as failure, it’s just a little detour that you can learn from. If we remove fear from the equation there are so many things that we can accomplish. And often what we’re scared of is not that scary if we confront it head on. We’re very good at making things seem way scarier than they need to be!

image from @the_lane

5 Instagram accounts can’t get enough of…

1. Strong Inside Out- An awesome kick ass girl who is very open and honest about her experience with mental illness

2. Miinot Gelato – gelati….that is all!

3. The Lane – Even though I planned our wedding nearly two years ago I still love looking at divine wedding dresses and dreamy bouquets.

4. Thrifty Wholesome – this gorgeous food blogger is currently writing a recipe book specifically for our clients. Her posts will make you drool!

5. Body Kinect – I’m all over that one!

Body Kinect in 5 years…

We’re well on our way to creating a team of highly skilled and passionate educators to continue our work throughout all areas of Victoria and even Australia. The ideas are endless, it can get hard to stay on track.

 

 

W: www.bodykinect.com.au

I: @bodykinect

F: @bodykinect

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