Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Jill Charton. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Of course! I am a celebrity and personal trainer, corporate wellness consultant, keynote speaker and the founder of iFour.Life. Though I gained notoriety as a trainer in the entertainment industry working with productions such as Marvel Studios, Netflix, Warner Bros, DC Comics, Stranger Things, She-Hulk, The Big Cigar, Enola Holmes, etc., I make my knowledge and expertise widely accessible online through Instagram, partnerships, collaborations, and group and 1-on-1 training.

My love for fitness started as a multi-sport athlete in Elementary School and continued throughout College. I loved the process of training, attending camps, and especially the team-building aspect that comes with organized sports. I got my start in the fitness industry when my husband suffered a shoulder injury and I fell in love with the field of Physical Therapy but then identified a gap I could fill in the industry. I decided to provide personal training that works cohesively with entire care teams to get recovering patients back to the gym safely.

I became a certified personal trainer 13 years ago and worked closely with my clients’ health team. I understood that everyone is different and needs personalized care. I loved helping people live healthier and happier lives for several years before I decided to create a brand and an online presence. One day after my husband and I had our second child, he turned and asked, “If you had 1 extra hour out of your day, what would you do?” It was like a lightbulb went off in my head, and that’s when the iFour.Life brand was born. The simple yet transformative idea behind iFour.Life is that no matter how busy you are or what your situation is, you can set aside 4% of your day – just 1 hour – to pour into yourself, resulting in a happier, healthier, you.
The four i’s in “iFour” are: Imagine, Inform, Improve and Inspire, which is exactly what I seek to do with the iFour.Life brand. iFour is a brand, training method, ideology, and platform that I use to address physical and mental barriers to becoming the best version of yourself.

As a trainer, this means meeting clients where they are physically and emotionally to reach goals safely. As a speaker and consultant, this means diving further into the thought process, structure, motivation and resources needed to reach your fullest potential.
Regardless of if it’s remote, in groups, through my iFour Core app, through giving tips on social media, through 1-on-1 training, or speaking to large audiences, I make it a point to offer a personalized, connected experience in which I am more of a guide, support, and friend than a coach. Though my trusted expertise has been demonstrated and refined through experiences such as training celebrities for DC and Marvel, I am intentional and relentless about making that expertise widely accessible while remaining relatable.

Not only has my program worked for me, but I’m grateful to be able to have helped many others throughout the past 13 years. I have gotten tremendous support from family and friends that have played a key role in encouraging me in my development of the iFour training method. I’m looking forward to continuing to help many different people in different places of their lives find ways to improve their well being.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

One of the most challenging learning curves for me, like so many others often experience, came when I felt like I had a lot on my plate to manage. At one point while my husband was working 6 days a week as an air traffic controller, I was balancing managing a home renovation project from start to finish (construction and all), managing my own business and giving my absolute best to my clients, all while being a mother to our 1 and a half-year-old daughter and being pregnant with another one on the way. As you can imagine, things felt a bit crazy. It would’ve been so easy for me to say “I don’t have the time, I don’t have the energy,” which I almost fell victim to, especially when the task at hand was only for myself.

Instead, I took an internal self-dialogue pivot and learned the true importance of carving out just 4% of my day, 1 hour, to take care of myself. Instead of constantly giving to everyone else and not focusing on what my own needs were as a wife, mom, trainer, and friend, I have found that many people relate to these challenges and by working together, we could overcome them together.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

When I started my own company, I learned that there will always be learning curves and changes in schedules. Having kids, being a personal trainer, and then being introduced to the fluidity of the film and music industry for celebrity training only reinforced this idea. Throughout this experience, I’ve not only learned how to better manage the curve balls that come my way, but I’ve realized that I’m doing so much more than taking clients through a workout. I’m on a mission to meet clients where they’re at to address mental and physical barriers to becoming the best version of themselves. Naturally, as is part of life, part of that work will be in creating resilient, sustainable fitness habits and mindsets for a life of health and happiness, which I wouldn’t be equipped to address if it weren’t for being a challenge I’ve overcome myself.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.ifourlife.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jillcharton/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jill.charton/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jillcharton/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/jillcharton
• Youtube: youtube.com/@jillcharton

Image Credits
Stephen Renney, Michelle Rose, Alex Chapman, and Josh Stringer