Woman sitting on a wooden deck outside a green and white fabric structure, smiling, wearing a navy shirt and jeans, surrounded by greenery.

About Cathy Ingram

I'm 48 years old, mum to Billy, Mabli and stepmum to Maisy. I grew up on a hill farm in Mid Wales, not too far from my now partner in crime, Barrie.

Nearly 15 years ago, while working in a large hospital pharmacy in Melbourne, a few conversations with a work colleague led me to join a gym called RBT (Results Based Training) I'd always loved walking, particularly in the hills, and enjoyed a little running, but I'd never done any strength training.

It was here, with the encouragement and guidance of an amazing trainer, that I experienced first-hand the difference strength training could make to both my body and mind. I well and truly caught the strength training bug and soon found myself feeling a bit 'off' whenever I couldn't train!

Woman assisting a person with physical therapy by holding their arms while lying on a bench with a workout sticker, in a gym or therapy center.

A couple of years later, I moved to London for a new job and was recommended Ultimate Performance (UP) in Mayfair, where I had another fantastic training experience.

I soon discovered I was pregnant, but with the support of my trainers, I was able to continue strength training. Much to the despair of my work colleagues, I also carried on cycling the three or so miles to and from work! I felt safer on my bike than being squashed onto a busy Tube, and I felt amazing throughout my pregnancy.

Towards the beginning of my final trimester, when my growing bump was quite literally getting in the way, I decided to stop strength training and walk everywhere instead.

I moved back to Wales in 2014, and before long, that familiar feeling of missing my training returned. Thankfully, I discovered Force Strength & Conditioning just outside Cardiff and was once again blown away by the support and guidance I received. I returned to strength training around six months postpartum and loved having that time just for me.

We moved to Brecon in 2016, and my second child was born at the end of 2017.

It was during my second maternity leave that I began to notice a gap in exercise opportunities for women, particularly mums like me.

There was a weekly group at the local hospital led by a physiotherapist, which was great, but as my baby grew older, I wanted something more.

I was also experiencing pelvic floor issues, so I started travelling to Cardiff, with my youngest in tow, to see a women's Personal Trainer. Although the support was valuable, the travelling simply wasn't sustainable.

Feeling frustrated by the lack of local options, I spent many hours breastfeeding, reading and researching women's exercise and health. Eventually, I decided to take the plunge and begin training to become a Personal Trainer myself.

Two women in a gym, one is exercising on a step platform while the other is sitting and observing. The woman exercising is wearing a blue tank top and black shorts, appears to be doing a knee lift exercise. The woman sitting is in a maroon t-shirt with the name 'Cathy Vingran' on it and black leggings. Gym equipment like dumbbells, a rolled-up mat, and weights are visible in the background.

I qualified as a Level 3 Personal Trainer alongside Nutrition and weight management in early 2021, and All Women Health & Fitness was born.

My vision was to help women at every stage of life discover the benefits of strength training — not only to feel stronger, healthier and more confident now, but to build and maintain strength that will support their health and independence in the years ahead.

After trialling my ideas with three local entrepreneurial mums, I launched Strong Woman, a 12-week programme designed for women who had little or no previous strength training experience, just like me all those years ago.

The aim was to provide the guidance, encouragement and structure to help women build strength, establish lasting exercise habits and understand how to fuel themselves well. Above all, I wanted women to experience for themselves just how good being stronger could feel.

Since then, I've continued developing my qualifications and experience to support women with different needs and at different stages of life. I'm qualified in pre and postnatal exercise and Exercise Referral, enabling me to work with women managing certain long-term health conditions, including diabetes, high blood pressure and arthritis, where appropriate, and more recently exercise for Parkinson’s.

I'm also currently studying Burrell Education's 3rd Age Woman Menopause Transition course and Dr Stacy Sims' Menopause 2.0, continuing to develop my knowledge of women's health, training and nutrition through the menopause transition and beyond.