Lindsey: Layla Was Purposely Pushing Joe's Buttons
The #WorkOut trainer on her craziest client, her almost career ending injury, and Joe and Layla's blow up.
Bravotv.com: What is your craziest client story?
Lindsey Clayton: I have the best clients ever. Most of them are like family to me and I spend a lot of time in their homes so I see everything. One of my favorite/most hilarious client moments was in East Hampton in the summer. My client's entire family was visiting and she and I were set to do an hour long workout that included urban rebounding and dance cardio. Their entire family came outside where we were training, sat and ate waffles and bacon as we jumped on trampolines literally two feet in front of them. Talk about temptation! Side note: we didn’t cave on the waffles and totally nailed our workout!
Bravotv.com: Tell us about your knee injury and how this can affect your career. Do you feel like Courtney says, “a warrior without armor”?
LC: The most dreaded sound an athlete can here is a “pop” in their knee. It’s the telltale sign (that and falling to the ground in pain) that their ligament has ruptured and their ACL has torn. As a dancer, an athlete, an avid runner, a weight lifter, and a top trainer in New York City, tearing my ACL was an absolute nightmare. It was devastating for me physically but proved to be an even greater challenge mentally. A complete ACL tear requires surgery and six to 10 months of intense physical rehab. Things that you take for granted like walking, going up and down stairs, sitting, bending you knee (the list goes on) were virtually impossible and took MONTHS for me to regain my strength. As Courtneysaid, “a warrior without armor” is exactly what I felt like. I tried to put on a brave face but it was a challenge to stay positive when it felt like getting back to my athletic state was so far away. The one thing my ACL tear did teach me was we get one body in this life and we need to protect it, nourish it, strengthen it and treat it like gold. Towards the end of my recovery, I felt fortunate that I had the knowledge and experience to help other athletes going through the same injury. It was tough, but the experience made me stronger, smarter and very brave.
Bravotv.com: What do you think of Joe and Layla’s blow-up?
LC: Unless you press my buttons I’m a lover, not a fighter. I try to see the good in everyone and I truly do believe we should all have each other’s backs and be supportive of each other. The fitness industry is extremely competitive and tough but we don’t need to have such a hard edge with each other. The tone in which we communicate says a lot about the end result of a conversation. I think Layla was purposely pushing Joe’s buttons to get a rise out of him and wasn’t actually interested in listening to his answers, which is why ended up in a fight.
