News
13 April, 2024
Gym goes from struggle to greatness
HIVE Progressive Fitness has been awarded Queensland’s Best Boutique Group Fitness Facility for 2024 at the Australian Enterprise Awards 2024 —an amazing achievement for the small business, which had a hard, yet rewarding four years.
Aft er selling their poultry business, 48-year-old Katrina Crews, from New Zealand, moved to Elimbah with her husband Dave in January 2020.
That day, she also bought the gym she loves: HIVE Progressive Fitness.
Kat says she had no experience in the industry or managing anything, let alone a gym.
“I was just a person that went to the gym, that loved the community that I worked at, and didn’t want to see it disband,” she said.
“So, I bought it and just kind of fell into the deep end.”
But learning how to manage a gym was not Kat’s only obstacle.
In March 2020, COVID hit, and it was during the pandemic that Kat realised she was unwell.
“I felt really stiff and I wasn’t able to walk properly.
I noticed that it was really difficult to keep my eyes open; I was losing concentration.
I was finding difficulty being able to speak; I couldn’t say whole words sometimes or form sentences.”
A year later, Kat was diagnosed with Sjogren’s Syndrome and Fibromyalgia.
“Prior to becoming ill, I felt like I was limitless and I could do anything, then all of a sudden I wasn’t able to do any of it, and that was really really hard to try and process as an active person”, she said.
Despite the challenge of not having her body do what she wants it to, Katrina says her family, friends, staff and clients are a blessing, being very supportive and understanding, especially her husband Dave.
“He helps plug the gaps where I can’t be at my best, and I’ve learnt to accept that my best is whatever that best is on the day.”
Despite her illness, Kat calls it a “blessing in a lot of ways”, as she has learned to be more understanding of the struggles and limitations her clients might have.
“Prior to getting sick, I never understood that people couldn’t do something; I just thought they wouldn’t do something, where now I completely understand that people can’t, and it’s made me a much better trainer.
“It’s taught me these skills I’ve never had before, and without it, I wouldn’t be the kind of person that I am today.”
Winning the Queensland award has served as a reminder that all their hard work has paid off , calling it “a very cool validation” “It reminds me we’re on the right path and we’re doing the right things”, she said.
Congratulations, Kat!
