We had the good fortune of connecting with Tonya Iverson and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Tonya, do you have any interesting experiences or advice related to making friends as an adult?

Hi Tonya, do you have any interesting experiences or advice related to making friends as an adult?
The biggest lesson I’ve learned about forming friendships as an adult is to not be judgemental and have an open mind. I’m naturally an introvert, so making friends hasn’t always come easy to me. Because I was shy, I was often afraid to approach people for fear of them not liking me, being judged or simply not knowing what to say. So I would often keep to myself. But as I got older and experienced different highs  and lows in life, I learned that sometimes the people that I thought I should “shut out” were the ones who helped me the most. I learned that being vulnerable was not a weakness but a sign of true strength. I also learned that I have to smile more and be willing to approach people even if its very uncomfortable or awkward for me. When I started to do this, beautiful things happened. My circle is very small but its a circle of love, acceptance, appreciation and no judgments. The moral of the story: to have a friend you have to show yourself friendly.

What should our readers know about your business?
I founded Your Personal Best Fitness (YPB) in 2010 and became a certified personal trainer that same year. YPB specializes in training busy, working women and moms over 35, who want to lose 5 or more pounds, gain lean muscle and develop better eating habits. I do in person one-on-one, partner and group training. I also offer online personal training and nutrition guidance and meal plans. My services are not limited to just my local city. I train anywhere in the world. I am most proud that I have helped countless women ages 35 to 84 transform not only their physical bodies, but transform their minds and spirits. I am humbled and proud to hear my clients say to me: “I feel so much stronger”, “I feel empowered”, or “My kids told me how good I look in my clothes now!” I’m passionate about “digging deep” with my clients and getting to the root cause as to why they want to lose weight. I feel it is my duty to help them do the necessary mindset work before they begin work on the external body. Building my business and brand has not been easy. There have been many challenges along the way. The determining factor in whether or not a business succeeds or fails in my opinion, is continued hard work, dedication and failures. I’ve designed and marketed bootcamps where no one showed up. There have also been times where I didn’t have any clients to train. But because I have such a passion for health and fitness, I continued to push harder, talk to more people, ask for referrals, network, join specialty groups, market my business on social media and most importantly invest in myself and hire professional coaches that understood how to help me make my business grow. I want the world to know that Your Personal Best Fitness is dedicated to helping women build and sustain a healthy lifestyle one day at a time. No quick fixes, just dedicated hard work.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Cultural Hot Spots: The High Museum of Art, The Bodies Exhibit, The National Civil Rights Museum, an outdoor concert at Chastain Open Amphitheater

Great burger: cowboy style: Grindhouse Killer Burgers

Seafood: Atlanta Fish Market, Red Snapper Seafood

Jamaican food: Negril Village

Live music, drinks, food: Cafe 290

Shopping at Lenox Square or Tanger Outlets in Commerce

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I want to shoutout my kids, Brandon and Hayley for being my biggest motivations and inspirations. I do everything with them in mind. I strive to be an example for them in all areas of my life. They always encourage, support and cheer me on in everything. I also want to shout out my best friend of more than 30 years, Crucita Barron. We met many many years ago on the school bus going to our first day of 7th grade and we’ve been inseparable ever since. Crucita has loved, supported, encouraged, been a shoulder to cry on and everything in between.

Website: www.ypbfit.com
Instagram: @yourpersonalbest
Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/tonya-iverson-391a04170
Facebook: @YPBFitness