NASHVILLE, Tenn. — When Nashville Fit Magazine released its annual Best Of Issue, one name rose to the top of the group fitness category: Diamond Adams.
Named Best Group Fitness Instructor, Adams represents more than high-energy playlists and full classes. She embodies movement as ministry, fitness as therapy, and community as a lifeline.
This week’s Fit Friday feature celebrates not just her title, but the story, sisterhood, and spirit behind it.
Adams doesn’t remember a time when she wasn’t moving.
“Since I was 5 I’ve always been in athletics,” she said.
From gymnastics to ballet, tap, jazz, professional dance, cheerleading, and step teams at church, physical activity wasn’t optional, it was her childhood.
She credits her mother for that early exposure.
“She was very intentional of making sure that I was in clubs, organizations and very active at a young age,” Adams said.
That consistency carried her through middle school, high school, and into college at Tennessee State University, where she became a majorette with the famous Aristocrat of Bands.
“I was the girls in the front of the marching band and by the time I was a senior, I was the head captain!” She expressed.
But dance wasn’t just performance. It was discipline.
“We had to be physically equipped to March miles. I mean, like five, ten fifteen miles. We had to dance for hours at a time, and we were in the gym three different times a day,” she added.
Fitness wasn’t aesthetic. It was preparation.
It set the stage, literally, moving forward.
After graduation, the structure disappeared.
“I lost a piece of my normalcy,” Adams shared.
She searched for classes, gyms, and community spaces that could recreate the connection she once felt. What she discovered was deeper than a workout.
“I learned then that I was looking for something bigger than fitness. I was looking for something bigger than just movement. I was looking for a community,” she admitted,
She began coaching with the Nashville Youth Basketball Association, mentoring young girls and building dance and cheer teams.
“I knew that I was building communities with my dance team, and always incorporating the importance of fitness. But I wanted to do it on that level with adults.”
In 2018, she landed her first official group fitness role at TruFit Athletic Club in Donelson and launched a dance fitness class.
“It was my therapy. It made me feel good and I love the the idea of pouring into someone as an instructor and creating a safe space for them,” she said.
Today, Adams teaches at TruFit, The Lab Training Studio, and at her nonprofit’s basketball facility, The Academy.
Her formats include: Xtreme Hip Hop Step, Xtreme HIIT Dance, Xtreme Burn and even Line Dancing.
Her classes are known for their intensity, but also their joy.
“I am an ball of energy in my classes!” She said.
She intentionally curates the environment. “All of my classes are a energetic, fun, dance party, non-judgment, community.”
For anyone intimidated by group fitness?
“I would say is find me!” She shared. “Join me! Show up and understand your why.”
And once you show up consistently?
“You’re guaranteed to get results, whether it’s mentally, spiritually, physically or socially. You’re going to gain something with consistency and showing up.”
Music fuels the movement. Adams keeps her playlist versatile and unapologetically bold.
From T.I. to Ciera to Beyonce to Cardi B, you will not be able to sit still in one of her classes.
Because in her space, it’s not just choreography — it’s therapy with a beat.
If fitness is the vehicle, FOREVER FITT is the mission.
The brand’s meaning is far more than just a coincidental acronym.
“It stands for finding internal treasures together,” she explained.
At the core of Adams’ life is faith. “I am a woman of faith and without it, I am nothing.”
Between 2018 and 2021, her life shifted dramatically. She experienced the loss of her eighteen-year-old son and later stepped away from her 13.5-year corporate career.
“With those back to back shifts and dynamics in my life, I felt like 2 specific pillars were taken away,” Adams said.
Out of grief and transition came clarity.
“What is next?”
FOREVER FITT began as an athleisure line — self-designed and self-built.
With over 30 designs, the brand evolved into something bigger: The Forever Fitt Society — a faith-fueled movement and sisterhood.
“Our mission is to empower women to move boldly, uncover their internal treasures and step into their confidence with purpose,” she said.
She often reflects on Matthew 6:21:
“For where your treasure is, there will your heart beat also.”
Adams shared that FOREVER FITT is for the women who are rebuilding, growing, evolving and ready to glow different.
“It’s a society where we feel good, we look good and we can lean on each other,” she added.
At home, that philosophy extends to her husband and 9-year-old daughter. They hike, shoot hoops, attend walking groups with church, partner with the Nashville Black Wellness Collective, and prioritize nutrition.
“We are huge smoothie fans!” She expressed. “Nutrition is the core.”
Health isn’t performative in their household, it is being lived; the same way Adam’s mom instilled in her.
Being named Best Group Fitness Instructor surprised her.
“I am not a person that seeks recognition. I literally just love doing what I do!” She said.
But the award validated something deeper. “It’s not until the recognition that I’m like, ‘Oh, I am actually changing someone’s life.’” Adams admitted.
Her mission is simple yet powerful:
“My goal is to create a community where women and people understand that movement is medicine as well as therapy.
Her clients that join her every week in the gym are often referred to as her “fit family”
Through her classes, she’s watched friendships form, businesses launch, instructors get certified, and confidence blossom, inside and outside of the gym.
“It can change someone’s life,” she added.
And everything she builds?
“Everything that I do is filled with purpose and in Christ.”
Winning Best Group Fitness Instructor isn’t the finish line. It’s momentum.
Adams is actively growing into private, corporate and community events, as well as speaking and hosting at events too.
And mark your calendars, Adam’s 2nd Annual “40K ERA Dance Fitness Birthday Event” will be on Saturday, May 30.
More information will be available on her website and Instagram.
Diamond Adams doesn’t just teach classes. She creates atmospheres. She builds sisterhood. She turns grief into growth and playlists into purpose.
In a city known for rhythm, she’s teaching Nashville how to move — boldly, joyfully, and together.
Congrats on this amazing honor!
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