About

MICHELLE YEAGER TURNER
ACE Certified Personal Trainer
Licenced Zumba, Zumba Kids & Zumba Kids Jr Instructor
Oh Baby Fitness Certified
Red Cross CPR/AED Certified

Michelle has had a passion for fitness since her youth.  She grew up a competitive gymnast, attending practice four days a week, from elementary school through 9th grade.  Once she entered middle school, she also became a cheerleader and was named All American cheerleader each year she cheered in high school.

Michelle attended college at the University of Chapel Hill where she cheered for both football and women’s basketball her freshman year.  She was excited to be cheering at the game where Charlotte Smith was the first woman to dunk in a women’s basketball game.

After graduating college, Michelle moved back to Louisville and started teaching first grade at Hawthorne Elementary School.  She worked for seven years in the school district and also danced for two seasons for the Louisville Fire Arena Football Team.

For most of her adult life, Michelle has been a gym rat and in 2008, her good friend Larry Jackson finally convinced her to enter a fitness competition.  It took a lot of hard work, a very strict meal plan and discipline, but she came out on top by winning her division at her very first competition.  For the next three years, she went on to do dozens of figure and fitness competitions and was a nationally ranked competitor who almost turned pro.

In 2010, she met a guy name Milton – whom a year later would become her husband. In 2011, she left the field of education and followed her passion for fitness.  She opened up her own fitness studio, charizYa Fitness, where she did personal training and taught Zumba and fitness classes.   Competing was ‘permanently’ put on hold as she enjoyed married life and then had a beautiful son named Maximus. In 2013, when Maximus was a year old, Milton and Michelle decided to try to give Maximus a sibling.  Unfortunately Michelle had back-to-back miscarriages and they were devastated.  Her doctor suggested to wait two months before trying again.

What’s a girl to do for two months? Why not compete?! Michelle dusted off her competition heels as prepared for a bikini competition to show that a wife and a mother of a toddler could set and achieve a physical goal at the age of 37. It wasn’t fun, it’s wasn’t easy – but she did it!

Today Michelle travels around the community helping others to achieve their fitness goals.  She teaches fitness classes at various schools, businesses and organizations.  She does motivational speeches and with infants, kids, special needs, and adults. Michelle also is excited to be a Fitness Expert on WDRB in the Morning where you can catch her every other week giving fitness tips.