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Meet Katie Richards of Kale and Kegels in North Scottsdale

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Katie Richards.

Katie, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I am a blessed wife, a mom of two girls, and a serial entrepreneur with over 12 years of experience in the health, fitness, and nutrition industry. I am a graduate of Northern Illinois University and hold three certifications from the National Academy of Sports Medicine including: Certified Personal Trainer, Fitness Nutrition Specialist, and Weight Loss Specialist. I have always been an entrepreneur, starting three businesses in my early twenties and recently selling my natural supplement company in 2017 after 7 years to focus on being a mom.

I was born and raised in a suburb outside of Chicago, the youngest of four children. I have lived in Arizona for the past 17 years and currently reside in Scottsdale with my husband Grahame and our two daughters. Out of my love to help others live a healthier life through proper eating, exercise, and nutritional supplementation, I started Kale and Kegels, specializing in professional health and wellness consulting. In addition, I published my first book in May 2018, Kale and Kegels: Helping women experience a healthier, happier motherhood. This book is a great read and resource for anyone thinking about starting a family, for women who are currently pregnant, and for new moms. It is available at Amazon.com!

I absolutely love being a mom and am very passionate about living a healthy lifestyle. With both our girls, I loved being pregnant and am so grateful for being able to experience two healthy pregnancies, deliveries, and recoveries. With Kale and Kegels, I am combining my love for motherhood with my knowledge of health and fitness to help women have a healthier, happier maternity experience and improve their overall quality of life. I attribute my two amazing pregnancy experiences to my healthy lifestyle and am excited to help get you on the right track.

Has it been a smooth road?
Life doesn’t come without challenges both in your personal life and business life. But, instead of focusing on the struggles, I focus my energy on the positive and how to move forward, do better than I did yesterday. It is not a matter of “if” you are going to have challenges and obstacles, it is just a matter of when. And they just keep coming! Being an entrepreneur is really a rollercoaster lifestyle but the passion and drive I get from innovating and helping people is worth all the challenges that come with it. One of the biggest obstacles through any of the businesses I started is the mind, it is such a powerful thing. Sometimes you just have to tell your mind to zip it and keep going even when the mind will create its own stories as to why you can or cannot do something. When you are truly doing what you love and running your own company, it is not a 9-5, it is 24/7. You have to be able to adapt, roll up your sleeves, eliminate excuses, work hard, stay focused, continue to re-invent yourself, stay motivated, and hold yourself accountable, always. How’s that for a challenge?

With my latest business venture, Kale and Kegels, I have taken what I have learned from my past business successes and failures and am doing things a little different this time. Yes, it can be challenging to balance a new business with a two-year-old and six-month-old at home but I am up for the challenge because I really missed the mental stimulation and social interaction of running a business that I have always known. Of course, it helps that I have a rockstar husband who is very hands-on and nothing but supportive of all my goals and business ventures. However, the whole reason I sold my natural supplement company back in November 2017 was to focus on being a mom. So, when I do run my business and work on writing, marketing, and consulting, it is during the hours when the girls nap and sleep. Luckily, both girls sleep 12 hours a night and while the 6-month-old takes 2 naps a day, she and her sister both take a 2.5-3 hour nap midday. This is huge! It allows me to get so much accomplished during the hours they are sleeping so we can all be together as a family when they are awake. That’s my happy place!

I really believe a person’s outlook on life plays a big part in what happens when they are faced with challenges. I have been fortunate enough to have had some great mentors along the way, people that made me step outside my comfort zone as uncomfortable as it is at times, in order to grow both personally and professionally. I look back on the first business I started and think about what I thought my struggles were at the time, what seemed so monumental looks pretty trivial looking back at it. I think about how many times I tried something new, hit a roadblock, tried something else and hit a roadblock again. In every industry, in every new business venture, there are challenges and failures. It is just part of business and being an entrepreneur. However, if you have a vision, believe in yourself and what you are doing, and truly keep going through the good times and bad, you will overcome any obstacle that comes your way. It is easy to just quit when times get tough but those that have great success just keep going.

So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Kale and Kegels story. Tell us more about the business.
At Kale and Kegels, I specialize in professional health and wellness consulting. Although a lot of my work is to help women dial in on proper eating, exercise, and nutrition during the three cycles of motherhood, I have worked with men and women of all ages to help them improve their overall quality of life by transitioning to a healthy lifestyle. Whether a client is local or on the other side of the world, I offer remote consulting that is personalized and results driven. This is not a “one program fits all” platform. We dive deep into your lifestyle from what you eat all day, everyday, to your exercise habits, supplement routine, and the obstacles getting in the way of you reaching your health and fitness goals. Healthy living is not always easy, but it is worth it. What separates Kale and Kegels from other health and wellness businesses is who is behind the company, me, and my mission which is to give you the tools and knowledge you need to live a healthier, happier life.

Although I have been a health and fitness professional for over 12 years helping hundreds of people achieve better health, I am most proud of publishing my first book in May 2018 titled, Kale and Kegels: Helping women experience a healthier, happier motherhood. In just two days, it reached Amazon’s Top 50 Best Sellers List for Pregnancy & Childbirth. One reader said, “I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Some healthy parenting books are unrealistic and don’t take into account just how hard the transition to parenting can be on our mind and body. Katie is thoughtful and gentle with her reader and provides a lot of great advice without sounding sanctimonious. This is a book I would recommend to all new moms. It’s small but packed full of good information and insight” (egarmon).

Healthy living is not a one size fits all. What works for one person might not work for someone else, there are so many variables to take into account. Too often, people try to change so much all at once and they end up overwhelmed and frustrated. So much of having success with healthy living is mental. To truly experience change, you have to change your mindset and do something different than you have done in the past. Small steps add up to big changes. With effort, everyone is capable of change. Often times, you are your biggest obstacle. It’s time to get out of your own way and start living a healthier you!

How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
Kale and Kegels really combines multiple industries: pregnancy/maternity and health/fitness/wellness. With about 4 million births in the US each year (CDC.gov), there in an increased demand for personalized guidance and education for women regarding the positive impact a healthy lifestyle has on the three cycles of motherhood (healthy body, healthy baby, healthy mama). We also live in a world where health is on the decline and obesity rates are increasing at epidemic proportions, 39.8% of adults in the US are obese (CDC.gov). We are seeing a rise in lifestyle related diseases and I believe with the right education about proper eating, exercise, and supplementation, we can see illness turn into wellness.

Yes, the internet is great because it gives us endless health and fitness information at our fingertips, often times for free, but that is also the downside to the internet. It is too much and people are bombarded by information that is changing by the second leaving them completely overwhelmed and unsure where to even begin. Without our health, what do we really have? The answer is… nothing! I believe people want to change, they want to live healthier lives, eat better, exercise more, and take supplements to help their body function properly. But, there is almost too much information out there and so many conflicting articles and sources that people don’t know if they are doing something to improve their health or worsen it. One day you start eating asparagus after reading a health article on the benefits of it and the next day you see an article about why you should throw away all the asparagus in your house. Wait… what? The world is changing, the food industry is changing, the supplement industry is changing… people are demanding healthier options. As a health and fitness professional, I am excited to use my knowledge and experience to help people move their lives in a healthier direction.

Pricing:

  • Book: Kale and Kegels: Helping women experience a healthier, happier motherhood – $14.95 (Amazon.com)
  • 1 Session – K&K Health and Wellness Consulting – $150
  • 3 Sessions – K&K Health and Wellness Consulting – $420 ($140/Session)
  • 6 Sessions – K&K Health and Wellness Consulting – $780 ($130/Session)
  • 12 Sessions – K&K Health and Wellness Consulting – $1,440 ($120/Session)

Contact Info:

  Image Credit:
Nichole Fioramonti Photography

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