Tyrone Irby
Tyrone Irby trains Ironman Triathlon competitors, marathon runners, fencers, and young athletes. And for the sixty percent of his clients who are runners, he offers tailored strength training.
At 54 and a dozen years into his fitness career, Irby is all about positive change.
I like people and I like a challenge. I can help people recognize and realize their true selves. And sometimes that’s not where they are right now, but where they could be.
How he started
Brooklyn born and raised, Irby came south to attend the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He began a career in the beer and wine industry and stayed 13 years. He always liked to work out and to help others get in shape, so he started a mobile fitness training company. Today, he owns and operates Choice Performance Center in Durham, North Carolina—a fitness solution for athletes and non-athletes who want to improve their functional movements for everyday life and sports performance, he explains.
How about the pressure?
A 2009 diagnosis of type 2 diabetes (which runs in his family), high blood pressure, and high cholesterol brought him up short. He was 44. Everything I thought I was doing right, I was doing wrong. It was how I was eating, how much I was drinking. I like to cook but I was being lazy and eating fast food a lot. I was probably a good 220, and I’m 5’10” tall. I’d been telling myself I’m working out, it’s not really a big deal, I’ll be fine.
So, for me, the challenge was: Okay, I need to change my entire lifestyle, not just a couple of things It wasn’t hard to do, because really, it was my life. I’m pretty sure if I was going the way I was going, I might not be here right now. Ten years later, I am a leaner 185 pounds. Better nutrition, less beer, and more exercise has dropped my blood sugar to an acceptable range.
A lot of people come to me and say I’m not sure I can do this. If you have a plan, you can do it. My job is to be the plan. Your job is to follow the plan. Every now and then, the plan will go awry. But don’t just be despondent and stay fallen off. Get back on the horse.
About wearing compression
Irby first tried compression after a knee injury. That’s when I got a CEP knee brace. It’s the best brace I’ve ever had. Then I tried the socks for working out. Typically, I’ll do some lower body work and then some sprinting. The socks really help me recover. Every now and then, I would have some cramping. But now with the CEP socks I don’t get cramps any more.