After two failed marriages the only man I need is my son, says X Factor star Katie Waissel
WHEN Katie Waissel returned to the UK with just four suitcases and her newborn son, she was desperate for a fresh start.
A single mum to Hudson, now two, she was leaving behind two failed marriages and a recent break-up with her son’s father in America. But Katie, 34, is no stranger to starting over.
From hotly tipped 2010 X Factor hopeful to one of the show’s most ridiculed contestants ever, she went on to build a new life teaching exercise classes in LA.
Now she’s back — overcoming heartbreak and a suspected bout of Covid — to relaunch herself as a fitness guru after a remarkable body transformation that saw her shed 2st and hone a six-pack that would put J-Lo to shame.
“I was really apprehensive coming back,” she says. “I didn’t think people thought that I would be credible in the fitness industry.
“It’s difficult because you get branded. I’ll never be able to shake off the tag of ‘That girl on X Factor’. I found it holds you back massively, but I have a passion for fitness so it really pushed me to carry on.
“It’s taken a move to and from America, a rebrand and re-set — but I’m now happy with life.
“Getting fit for me has been life-changing and now I want to help others, too.”
It’s been a rollercoaster ride for Katie, who is a certified Personal Trainer and has spent the last two years studying pre and post-natal personal training.
TEARS AND FEUDS
Her spell on The X Factor was marred by tears, tantrums, death threats and rumours of feuds with mentor Cheryl Tweedy and fellow contestants Matt Cardle and Cher Lloyd.
And her personal life has been no easier. She first met Hudson’s father Andy Speer, a 36-year-old fitness instructor, in 2016, but their relationship broke down towards the end of her pregnancy.
She says: “The baby wasn’t planned but it was a beautiful moment. However, I think the bigger I got, reality kicked in for Andy, so he left me when I was eight months pregnant.
“I guess his anxieties got the better of him.
“It was really tough for me, but I had to get over feeling that way for Hudson.
“Andy has a life in New York and he is busy. He hasn’t allowed himself to be involved, so rather than trying to fit a square peg in a round hole, I wanted to avoid any potential disappointment for Hudson.
“Now we only speak when necessary, but I always say to Andy that my door is open to him.
“But I just had to take myself out of the situation mentally and instead of being angry, I empathise.”
It was another blow for Katie, whose first marriage to US model Brad Alphonso ended after two months in 2012 amid allegations of domestic abuse. She says: “I was 24 when Brad and I married. We were inseparable. We shared an Airbnb in LA, then decided to get married. Our relationship was amazing — we had so much fun.”
But it wasn’t long before the cracks started to show.
Katie, who lives in Hertfordshire, says: “Cities like LA, where people go to try to find themselves, can sometimes become too overwhelming and you can get swept up. Brad found himself in a sad state, and external influences didn’t help.
“Things got violent and scary soon after we got married. It wasn’t a safe environment so I came home and filed for divorce.”
Katie’s second marriage, to US radio host Brian Moote, in 2015 lasted a year.
She has previously opened up about spiraling into depression, drinking too much and gaining weight after he allegedly cheated on her.
She says: “It was this whirlwind of a relationship, but it wasn’t meant to be. I’ve been through so much rejection, I just wanted to be loved — but we were not on the same path.”
After she moved back to the UK in October 2018, Katie was determined to reclaim her post-baby body. And it was while working out, she came up with the idea for The Shed, an online health, fitness and wellness space, which launched this week.
She says: “I wanted to become fit enough to be able to carry Hudson in one hand, hold heavy shopping bags in the other, walk up to the front door, drop my keys, squat down, pick up the keys with my pinky finger and open the door — and now I can!
“My aim was to become a supermum, and in that time I developed a business to train other mums to give them the same strength.
“I love it so much. I turned my outhouse into a gym and got my qualifications to start personal training. I started studying, with my book in my right hand while breastfeeding Hudson. And now it’s all coming together.”
Even a bout of suspected Covid in March hasn’t stopped her. She says: “Lockdown was one of the worst experiences of my life. Hudson and I were both really ill.
“I even wrote my will. But the motivation of Hudson kept me going to get better.”
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Katie’s future is now looking bright, but she’s in no rush to fall in love again. “Hudson is my only love now,” she says. “Not because I am bitter or stubborn or not open to meeting someone new. I just want to make sure that I am in a good place before I get into a relationship.
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“Goals change, things change, life changes, but I just stop, breathe and figure out what the blessing is in this.”
- Visit to book on to Katie’s live fitness classes.
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