Kay “Chief” Battle is bringing her energy and expertise as a transformation coach and personal trainer in Hillsboro, Oregon. Kay packs a punch with her unique style of fitness, tailoring each workout to her audience and fitness trainees. She is an NASM and ISSA certified personal trainer, a certified mindset coach, and a certified nutritionist. Join Kay and other Sequoia residents on February 10th for a special home workout! Learn more about Kay with our exclusive Q&A below:
1. How did you get started in your career?
I got started in my current career field when I was still serving Active Duty in the Army. I actually have a transformation story of my own that led me to having a career in health and fitness. Long story short fitness saved my life. When I was at the lowest point in my life mentally where I lacked self love, confidence, a sense of direction, and the will to try and figure out how to pick myself up alone, I took the step to find a mentor. That was hands down the best decision I've ever made. My mentor had gone through similar experiences in the past as I was going through and was able to teach me invaluable lessons and guide me on the way to my goals at the time that I had for myself. Fitness helped boost my confidence, change my body, and feel strong during that time. Developing a different mindset happened along the way and getting help that year completely changed my life. I loved the new me so much and I knew that there had to be other people that were feeling frustrated and depressed in their lives but had goals that they really wanted to achieve. I started out by offering one person my help and I instantly fell in love with it. It made me feel fulfilled and that's when I knew I had found not just a career but my purpose. I created the Chief Battle Fitness community in order to inspire and empower everyone to be their best self but I focus my training on women and mothers. I believe that mothers are SUPERHEROES hands down starting with my own. There isn’t a more important job in this world if you ask me and that’s why my goal is to uplift, transform, and teach as many of them as possible how to love themselves, reach their goals (both fitness and life), and put themselves first. So many people, especially women, don’t even know what it feels like to look in the mirror and love the person staring back or how to be strong through the battle’s that life can (and will) throw at us. I’m here to show them how.
2. What are your greatest accomplishments as a fitness coach?
My greatest accomplishments as a fitness coach include:
- Obtaining two certifications
- Completing two degrees
- Starting a fitness business
- Opening a gym facility
- 300+ Transformations/Lives Changed
- Working with professional athletes (MMA, NSL, NBA)
- Getting my mother and sisters to live a healthier lifestyle
- Leading Hundreds of Sequoia Residents in an amazing virtual training experience!
3. What keeps you inspired and motivated to help your clients in their fitness journey?
That's easy, them! Believe it or not my clients inspire me. I get up everyday and just walk in my purpose. It isn’t a challenge for me to stay motivated to want to help my clients day in and day out because it's what I love to do. On top of that, if you see the work that CBF clients put in behind the scenes… I think it would inspire anybody. They work hard for their goals everyday while maintaining businesses, families, jobs, kids, etc. I literally train superheroes and it pushes me everyday to be the best version of myself too. The better they become the better I have to be for them and that keeps me learning, growing, and motivated everyday.
4.What is your favorite exercise to do outside of your classes?
Outside of my own training sessions I love lifting heavy and boxing. Most of my own training that I do almost always involves lifting weights and then going into some form of high intensity combat training. I am currently training to compete in MMA so I am super excited about the goals I have for myself this year as well.
5. Can you give any advice for anyone starting out their fitness journey and how to stick with it?
I could write a book about how to start your fitness journey and stick with it ( I probably will in the future lol) because there are so many answers to that question. Everyone is different but there are a few things that no matter what I recommend you do and a few things that I recommend you don’t do.
DO: START NOW- where you are, with what you have. TAKE ACTION towards your goals.
DON'T: WAIT- that “perfect time” you’ve been waiting on to start doesn’t exist. It’s probably just fear of the unknown or fear of failure causing you to subconsciously make excuses.
DO: GET HELP- trust me… it will save you a lot of frustration and countless amounts of time. To this very day I myself still have mentors and fitness coaches that help me reach my goals. I practice what I preach and invest in myself and my goals in life, period my #1 way of achieving what I have today in my business and fitness goals. Don’t be cheap, understand that your health and fitness is an investment, not an expense. I always say “ You can pay now to keep yourself healthy by choice, or you can pay later by force because you have to (doctor bills, medications, etc)”.
DON'T: DO IT ALONE- I’m sure you’ve tried it that way up until this point. In order to stay on track you need accountability and community.
DO: HAVE A PLAN- Remember this “ A goal without a plan is just a wish” you will need a blueprint that works for YOU when it comes to your goals. How will you get there? Well you already have the first 3 steps of your plan above from the DOs I have given but you will need a clear training/workout and nutrition strategy that is specific to your goals.
DONT: Depend on Google or Youtube to be your trainer- I know, I know, they have all of the answers right? Absolutely not, they have great workouts and advice for a general audience but its not specific to the individual. If you are a beginner or even if you are stuck/plateaued mid journey then you will become overwhelmed with the amount of information that is out there. Most clients that I have come to me feeling like they have tried EVERYTHING and are frustrated by it. You don’t need to try everything just the ONE thing that works for you, your lifestyle, your body, and your goals.
If you are wanting to start your fitness journey but don’t know where to begin or have started but feel stuck or lost recently please go to my website or any of my social media pages and I would love to schedule a strategy call with you to see how one of my programs/blueprints may be able to help.
6. A lot of people struggle with their mindset, especially after the tumultuous year we just had. As a mindset coach, what do you recommend to help stay level-headed and in a good frame of mind?
Last year was a hard battle for me personally, the hardest year of my life to date actually since I lost my dad due to the virus. One thing that I can tell you is that a lot of prayer got me through that. Outside of spiritually there are a few key things that I recommend to help stay in a positive state of mind when you are facing challenges in life.
When you are struggling with your mindset or going through hardships one of the worst things you can do is stop doing the things that make you feel good everyday. Some people start going through hard times and then stop showing up to the gym, doing their workouts at home, or start eating junk foods regularly. All of those things literally will cause you to feel even worse than you already do. Hold on to the things that make you feel good, as a matter of fact, do them even more, be intentional. You have to literally try and focus on the positive things around you and bring more of that to you. I also believe that meditation is very important when it comes to mindset because it helps to reduce stress and that makes it easier for you to stay calm and positive during challenging times. It definitely takes a little practice but quieting your mind is more important than you think.
Checkout my podcast “The Battle of Life” where I talk about mindset, fitness, and lifestyle. I recommend tuning in weekly to inspire your week and give you habits to implement throughout the week.
Learn more about Kay “Chief” Battle on Instagram or visit your resident portal to RSVP for her Sequoia exclusive fitness class.