From the confines of their fitness studio in west Auburn, young entrepreneurs and certified trainers David and Wynter Weaver see the bigger picture.
Like tailoring the appropriate physical fitness program to their health-conscious clientele.
“We will never promise results overnight,” said David Weaver, coach and co-owner of Inner Icon Fitness, a new center located at 1502 22nd St. NW, off West Valley Highway North. “We promote hard work, dedication and lifestyle changes that result in healthy, strong and active adults who learn that fitness and diet require lifelong attention – not a fad diet or a month in a gym at the beginning of the year.”
Inner Icon – the couple’s brainchild and first foray into the small business world – offers perspective and something different from conventional health clubs. Their studio, for one, is practically applied, without rows of fancy equipment.
“The standard notion is that you have to do your cardio and then do your strength training,” David Weaver said. “But we don’t believe those have to be separate. They can be done at the same time.”
The Weavers also preach good nutrition, followed by proper exercise.
“We do nutrition education with all of our clients,” said Wynter Weaver, a former gymnast in high school who grew up in Auburn. “We want them to be as healthy and fit overall as possible, and nutrition is a huge part of that.”
The Weavers wanted to make a difference in the fitness field by running their own show. The idea to run a fitness studio came from Wynter Weaver while she was designing a business model for a class project at the University of Washington Tacoma. She earned her degree in business marketing and is a nutrition- and CrossFit-certified instructor.
She eventually sold the idea to her husband, a fitness training program honors student at nearby Ashmead College.
A former high school soccer player at Kentlake, David Weaver is a USA Weightlifting sports performance coach and CrossFit-certified instructor.
Together, they are building a following. They welcome all-comers, young and old, serious athletes or just recreationists. They offer flexible group and individual programs.
For instance, Inner Icon began offering a twice-weekly women’s-only morning class to cater to their growing number of female clients.
“We believe that strength is beauty,” Wynter Weaver said. “Women of all ages are challenging themselves in new methods of fitness and are reaching goals at a healthy pace.”
Auburn’s Sandie Gordon has experienced the results. The 62-year-old Hazelwood Elementary School teacher, a type 2 diabetic who was diagnosed with kidney disease last year, joined her granddaughter for personal training sessions twice weekly.
A few months later, Gordon has become healthier, due largely to implementing the Weavers’ nutrition and fitness tips.
“The doctors were very surprised when they saw how well I was doing,” Gordon said. “They’ve told me, ‘Whatever you’re doing, it’s working. Keep it up.’ ”
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Inner Icon Fitness
• Location:
• Co-owners, certified trainers, coaches: David and Wynter Weaver.
• Bio, program: Founded in a home garage in 2009 by the Weavers, a local 20-something couple, Inner Icon Fitness has grown beyond its humble beginnings and into a new 1,200-square-foot space that caters to a growing client base. The 1 1/2-year-old Auburn-based company has created a fitness community that caters to all ages, backgrounds and fitness levels through personal training, small group classes and program design. In addition, Inner Icon offers nutrition consultations and seminars influenced by the Paleo or Paleolithic Diet developed by Dr. Loren Cordain.
• Information: 253-334-5335, www.innericonfitness.com.
