June 27, 2025 • 10 mins
In this episode of Strength in Numbers, Katie gets real with an Instagram Q&A that covers everything from taking two months off training during cancer treatment to her unapologetic love for Tonal’s Power Build program (spoiler: they’re basically in a long-term relationship
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/p/C5536OnOTy_/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Hey, welcome back to Strength inNumbers.
I'm your host, Katie Tonaladdict Muscle Chaser Cancer
Warrior, and trying to be apersonal trainer who still
occasionally doubts whether shedeserves to be here.
So basically, your average gymgirl with a podcast Mike, and
way too many opinions about legday AKA Bulgarian split squats.
(00:21):
So today's episode is a q and astraight from my Instagram, and
y'all really said, let's getdeep.
We're talking about what it feltlike being forced to take time
off during my training, duringmy cancer treatment.
When am I bringing guests Yes,coaches onto this podcast and
how I'm handling impostersyndrome as I take a leap to
become a personal trainer in myforties.
(00:43):
So grab your protein shake.
I have mine or your pre-workout.
I don't know why you're havingit now,'cause it is
mid-afternoon or grab a snack.
Let's get into it.
All right.
What was it like being off fortraining for two months?
During my cancer treatment, itwas, it was really brutal.
(01:03):
Not just physically, butmentally.
I felt like I was losingmomentum, like the strength that
I had built was just gonna slipaway.
I think the scariest part was Iwas gonna see that old Katie in
the mirror, and nothing scaresme more than seeing that 120
pound girl, and it just.
I had that thought in my head,but you know what I learned?
(01:28):
You don't lose strength, youjust redefine it.
Strength became about healingduring this time about rest,
about listening to my body.
Even when my mind was like, youneed to do something.
You are gonna lose all thismuscle that you've worked so
hard for.
And those voices were real.
(01:49):
And when I came back on tonal.
You know what?
I wasn't at zero.
I came back with more grit thanever.
When will I start bringingguests on like AKA?
The tonal coaches soon.
Like mic check soon, like Iwould say fall, they're all
(02:10):
traveling right now, so I gottaget, you know, but I'm
definitely gonna have tonalmembers on in the process of
getting that scheduled up.
So I've, I've got your guyswishlist from talking to Joe a
Akeem, t Tim Woody, uh, coachAsh.
You know, I, I, I've, Tim, I'vegot all of them, like all
(02:33):
listed, and I, you know, youguys gave some questions on
like, things that you would liketo ask them because I know I
have some questions like I needto know.
Coach T's.
Uh, like a whole, like how doesshe plan the sunglasses with her
outfits?
Like her sunglasses, like howmany, how many sunglasses do you
(02:54):
have?
Coach T And then for Woody, Ineed to know about like bagels
and cooking.
And then Joe, we need to knowabout like the ketchup and the
hotdog ordeal.
We need to go dive deep intothat.
So I am going to get.
I'm going to ask all the coachesif they would like to come on
the podcast, I would love forthem to come on, but I'm just
gonna give some time whilethey're all tra traveling.
(03:18):
So their stories are, and youknow, hear about their stories
and their favorite lifts andalso, yes, I wanna ask them
like, what is their like dreadedmove.
We know Joe's is Frogger.
We know that it does brighten myday when he has to do that.
Alright, how does stepping intopersonal training.
While I am just really unsureabout what I'm doing, basically
(03:42):
imposter syndrome, it's like I'mwearing somebody else's shoes
sometimes, you know, I, I feellike I'm tripping over them with
the laces untied.
Some days I think, why am Idoing this?
Who am I?
But then I look at like, whereI've been.
I've, you know, I've survivedcancer.
(04:02):
I'm raising a daughter, afamily.
You know, I'm rebuilding, youknow, strength.
You know, I was a beginnercoming to Tonal so I know what
the possibilities are that I canhelp someone'cause I've been
there.
So, and I feel like that, likemy experience brings something
(04:22):
that I can help people withbecause of knowing what is
possible using a certainmachine.
That, that's, that's like alwayslike, what my goal is, is to
help you guys in the tonalcommunity see that it is
possible.
I don't, you know, I don't, Idon't need to be perfect.
I just want, I just need to bepassionate about it.
And that's what I remind myselfevery day, that it is, it is
(04:45):
just my passion.
I don't need to be thisperfection.
And if I help someone feelstronger or help someone flex a
little more in the mirror.
It's so worth, it's so worth medoubting myself that I made
somebody else feel that way,because that's always my goal.
Like I, I want, I wanna be thatimpression on somebody that like
(05:09):
how I made them feel.
All right.
Next question.
Favorite tonal program.
You guys, you guys know, sorry,we're gonna have.
A sip of the protein shake.
All right.
You guys know it's power buildalways and forever.
(05:31):
I have a serious long-termrelationship with this program.
I have yet to break up with it.
I will never break up with it.
It is the best chess program outthere.
Hands down.
That thing has sculpted morethan just my packs.
It has gotten me to do Pilopushups.
It has built like patience, it'sbuilt power, and a level of
respect for bench day.
(05:52):
I never thought I'd have, likeI, you guys know, I'm a huge,
huge goal setter for Bench andit is is the best program.
I ha like, I'm so connected tothat program because it was my
first program when, you know, Istarted signing when I started
on tonal.
And it's just, it's just meant alot to me.
(06:13):
And every single time I completeit, it just reminds me of how
far I've come.
And you know, I see when Joe,'cause that was Joe's really
first program on tonal, so it'slike three years of growth and
you know, I see where Joe's wasat then and where he is at now.
I mean, he's like twice thesize.
So Coach Joe knows what he'sdoing and I tr I trust him
(06:38):
wholeheartedly, even when I'mlaying there mid set wondering
if this is how I go out.
So what was, what is the biggestlesson I learned in strength
training?
What is, what is the biggestlesson strength training has
taught you?
Sorry, I'm reading the questionsfrom my phone that I don't need
to shrink myself to be strong.
(07:00):
I used to think strength meantsmaller.
You know, the people I used tolook at was, it's just all abs
and, you know, being, you know,thin as possible to see the
muscle underneath instead oflearning how to actually build
muscle.
Um, because we all have muscleunderneath.
It's just, you know, how smalldo you wanna get to see it or do
(07:22):
you want to.
Put on weight to help see themuscle, and I would, you know,
it's just been a whole learningcurve for me.
You know, I, I, I don't thinkstrength is meant to be small.
I think now strength meanslouder, bolder, and present.
It means sh it just means somuch more to me, it means like
(07:44):
showing up for yourself whenit's hard.
It means taking up space.
It means saying yes to theversion of you who isn't afraid
to stand.
And lift heavy shit because weall know we can all lift
heavier.
I even tell myself thatsometimes is that I can lift
heavier.
(08:06):
So, and then I also got somequestions about Abigail and her.
Lego obsession.
She's a Lego ninja.
We all know she's a Lego ninja.
Um, right now she's kind of on,let's see, when did she finish?
Was wicked.
She's like really big intoWicked, but now she's like
mostly excited about, uh, sharkWeek.
(08:27):
So Lego doesn't have any reallygood shark Lego sets.
I mean, she did the Jaws one,which was absolutely awful.
That was the worst Lego buildever.
Um, so yeah, she's kind of on ahiatus right now.
We kind of don't do a lot ofLegos between now like August
because we prep for Christmas,because I don't know if you guys
(08:47):
have teenagers, but as the kidsget older, it gets harder to buy
gifts for them.
So I just hold off on givingstuff to her right away and I
wait for, uh, Christmas.
so I really enjoyed, the q and aquestions that I got from you
guys, asking about, trainingand, stuff like that.
I am always available onInstagram, to help you guys.
(09:12):
I think that, you know, helpingsince I've been able to do what
I've done.
I wanna help others be able tofeel like they can do it too.
Like, what's the point of medoing this just for myself?
Like, that's just crazy to me.
You know, I know many people,um, you know, they kind of do
(09:33):
things and then like, are theyreally helping people with it?
And I don't want people to everlike, think that I am not
wanting to help people becausethat is, that is my goal is to,
to help you guys.
So I just wanna say thank you somuch for listening.
If you made it this far, I loveyou long time.
(09:54):
That is it for this episode.
And if you made it to the end,man, you're my kind of strong
people.
Whether you're rebuilding,questioning, or just lifting
through the hard days.
I see you.
This space is for everyone.
the ones who have fallen andgotten back up.
The ones who are still figuringout.
(10:15):
But still show up anyway.
And remember, if ImposterSyndrome tries to sneak in like
we talked about in the lastepisode, hit it with a super set
of confidence and a side ofSaaS.
So I'll catch you next time onstrengthened numbers.
And don't worry when the coachescome on, I promise to ask them
the hard hitting questions like,why does everything have to
(10:38):
burn?
I mean literally like what?
Why?
Sometimes, just why.
So I'll see you guys on the nextlittle quick chit chat.
Thank you so much for takingpart in this quick little q and
a and I will see you next time.
I.
Hey, welcome back to Strength inNumbers.
I'm your host, Katie Tonaladdict Muscle Chaser Cancer
Warrior, and trying to be apersonal trainer who still
occasionally doubts whether shedeserves to be here.
So basically, your average gymgirl with a podcast Mike, and
way too many opinions about legday AKA Bulgarian split squats.
(00:21):
So today's episode is a q and astraight from my Instagram, and
y'all really said, let's getdeep.
We're talking about what it feltlike being forced to take time
off during my training, duringmy cancer treatment.
When am I bringing guests Yes,coaches onto this podcast and
how I'm handling impostersyndrome as I take a leap to
become a personal trainer in myforties.
(00:43):
So grab your protein shake.
I have mine or your pre-workout.
I don't know why you're havingit now,'cause it is
mid-afternoon or grab a snack.
Let's get into it.
All right.
What was it like being off fortraining for two months?
During my cancer treatment, itwas, it was really brutal.
(01:03):
Not just physically, butmentally.
I felt like I was losingmomentum, like the strength that
I had built was just gonna slipaway.
I think the scariest part was Iwas gonna see that old Katie in
the mirror, and nothing scaresme more than seeing that 120
pound girl, and it just.
I had that thought in my head,but you know what I learned?
(01:28):
You don't lose strength, youjust redefine it.
Strength became about healingduring this time about rest,
about listening to my body.
Even when my mind was like, youneed to do something.
You are gonna lose all thismuscle that you've worked so
hard for.
And those voices were real.
(01:49):
And when I came back on tonal.
You know what?
I wasn't at zero.
I came back with more grit thanever.
When will I start bringingguests on like AKA?
The tonal coaches soon.
Like mic check soon, like Iwould say fall, they're all
(02:10):
traveling right now, so I gottaget, you know, but I'm
definitely gonna have tonalmembers on in the process of
getting that scheduled up.
So I've, I've got your guyswishlist from talking to Joe a
Akeem, t Tim Woody, uh, coachAsh.
You know, I, I, I've, Tim, I'vegot all of them, like all
(02:33):
listed, and I, you know, youguys gave some questions on
like, things that you would liketo ask them because I know I
have some questions like I needto know.
Coach T's.
Uh, like a whole, like how doesshe plan the sunglasses with her
outfits?
Like her sunglasses, like howmany, how many sunglasses do you
(02:54):
have?
Coach T And then for Woody, Ineed to know about like bagels
and cooking.
And then Joe, we need to knowabout like the ketchup and the
hotdog ordeal.
We need to go dive deep intothat.
So I am going to get.
I'm going to ask all the coachesif they would like to come on
the podcast, I would love forthem to come on, but I'm just
gonna give some time whilethey're all tra traveling.
(03:18):
So their stories are, and youknow, hear about their stories
and their favorite lifts andalso, yes, I wanna ask them
like, what is their like dreadedmove.
We know Joe's is Frogger.
We know that it does brighten myday when he has to do that.
Alright, how does stepping intopersonal training.
While I am just really unsureabout what I'm doing, basically
(03:42):
imposter syndrome, it's like I'mwearing somebody else's shoes
sometimes, you know, I, I feellike I'm tripping over them with
the laces untied.
Some days I think, why am Idoing this?
Who am I?
But then I look at like, whereI've been.
I've, you know, I've survivedcancer.
(04:02):
I'm raising a daughter, afamily.
You know, I'm rebuilding, youknow, strength.
You know, I was a beginnercoming to Tonal so I know what
the possibilities are that I canhelp someone'cause I've been
there.
So, and I feel like that, likemy experience brings something
(04:22):
that I can help people withbecause of knowing what is
possible using a certainmachine.
That, that's, that's like alwayslike, what my goal is, is to
help you guys in the tonalcommunity see that it is
possible.
I don't, you know, I don't, Idon't need to be perfect.
I just want, I just need to bepassionate about it.
And that's what I remind myselfevery day, that it is, it is
(04:45):
just my passion.
I don't need to be thisperfection.
And if I help someone feelstronger or help someone flex a
little more in the mirror.
It's so worth, it's so worth medoubting myself that I made
somebody else feel that way,because that's always my goal.
Like I, I want, I wanna be thatimpression on somebody that like
(05:09):
how I made them feel.
All right.
Next question.
Favorite tonal program.
You guys, you guys know, sorry,we're gonna have.
A sip of the protein shake.
All right.
You guys know it's power buildalways and forever.
(05:31):
I have a serious long-termrelationship with this program.
I have yet to break up with it.
I will never break up with it.
It is the best chess program outthere.
Hands down.
That thing has sculpted morethan just my packs.
It has gotten me to do Pilopushups.
It has built like patience, it'sbuilt power, and a level of
respect for bench day.
(05:52):
I never thought I'd have, likeI, you guys know, I'm a huge,
huge goal setter for Bench andit is is the best program.
I ha like, I'm so connected tothat program because it was my
first program when, you know, Istarted signing when I started
on tonal.
And it's just, it's just meant alot to me.
(06:13):
And every single time I completeit, it just reminds me of how
far I've come.
And you know, I see when Joe,'cause that was Joe's really
first program on tonal, so it'slike three years of growth and
you know, I see where Joe's wasat then and where he is at now.
I mean, he's like twice thesize.
So Coach Joe knows what he'sdoing and I tr I trust him
(06:38):
wholeheartedly, even when I'mlaying there mid set wondering
if this is how I go out.
So what was, what is the biggestlesson I learned in strength
training?
What is, what is the biggestlesson strength training has
taught you?
Sorry, I'm reading the questionsfrom my phone that I don't need
to shrink myself to be strong.
(07:00):
I used to think strength meantsmaller.
You know, the people I used tolook at was, it's just all abs
and, you know, being, you know,thin as possible to see the
muscle underneath instead oflearning how to actually build
muscle.
Um, because we all have muscleunderneath.
It's just, you know, how smalldo you wanna get to see it or do
(07:22):
you want to.
Put on weight to help see themuscle, and I would, you know,
it's just been a whole learningcurve for me.
You know, I, I, I don't thinkstrength is meant to be small.
I think now strength meanslouder, bolder, and present.
It means sh it just means somuch more to me, it means like
(07:44):
showing up for yourself whenit's hard.
It means taking up space.
It means saying yes to theversion of you who isn't afraid
to stand.
And lift heavy shit because weall know we can all lift
heavier.
I even tell myself thatsometimes is that I can lift
heavier.
(08:06):
So, and then I also got somequestions about Abigail and her.
Lego obsession.
She's a Lego ninja.
We all know she's a Lego ninja.
Um, right now she's kind of on,let's see, when did she finish?
Was wicked.
She's like really big intoWicked, but now she's like
mostly excited about, uh, sharkWeek.
(08:27):
So Lego doesn't have any reallygood shark Lego sets.
I mean, she did the Jaws one,which was absolutely awful.
That was the worst Lego buildever.
Um, so yeah, she's kind of on ahiatus right now.
We kind of don't do a lot ofLegos between now like August
because we prep for Christmas,because I don't know if you guys
(08:47):
have teenagers, but as the kidsget older, it gets harder to buy
gifts for them.
So I just hold off on givingstuff to her right away and I
wait for, uh, Christmas.
so I really enjoyed, the q and aquestions that I got from you
guys, asking about, trainingand, stuff like that.
I am always available onInstagram, to help you guys.
(09:12):
I think that, you know, helpingsince I've been able to do what
I've done.
I wanna help others be able tofeel like they can do it too.
Like, what's the point of medoing this just for myself?
Like, that's just crazy to me.
You know, I know many people,um, you know, they kind of do
(09:33):
things and then like, are theyreally helping people with it?
And I don't want people to everlike, think that I am not
wanting to help people becausethat is, that is my goal is to,
to help you guys.
So I just wanna say thank you somuch for listening.
If you made it this far, I loveyou long time.
(09:54):
That is it for this episode.
And if you made it to the end,man, you're my kind of strong
people.
Whether you're rebuilding,questioning, or just lifting
through the hard days.
I see you.
This space is for everyone.
the ones who have fallen andgotten back up.
The ones who are still figuringout.
(10:15):
But still show up anyway.
And remember, if ImposterSyndrome tries to sneak in like
we talked about in the lastepisode, hit it with a super set
of confidence and a side ofSaaS.
So I'll catch you next time onstrengthened numbers.
And don't worry when the coachescome on, I promise to ask them
the hard hitting questions like,why does everything have to
(10:38):
burn?
I mean literally like what?
Why?
Sometimes, just why.
So I'll see you guys on the nextlittle quick chit chat.
Thank you so much for takingpart in this quick little q and
a and I will see you next time.
I.
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