Mike Cola Takes a Contrarian Look at Fitness

Tucked inside a small, white storefront along Mount Kisco's Lexington Avenue is a workout space meant for exercising with a personal touch.

“There’s no other clients here besides a trainer and a client at one particular time," said Mike Cola, who has run in the space since moving his business locally last fall.

Cola, a Millwood resident who has been a personal trainer for about 25 years, moved his business to Mount Kisco from the Bronxville area so he could be closer to his kids when they finish school for the day.

So far, business has been fine for Cola, who has managed to retain more than half of his customers who appeared in person, while keeping almost all of those who get home visits. Cola, whose customer target area is Westchester County and Greenwich, CT, is also getting new clients.

Aside from doing workouts himself, Cola has two trainers who support him, either at the building or on the go. Typically, he gets about 35-40 people per week, which is a good number for a small-scale operation.

“Literally, if I add three more clients, I’m full," he said.

When asked what differentiates him, Cola notes his background.

"I must have 50,000 hours of actual hands-on, you know, personal training experience," he said.

Cola said that most of his clients are in their 30's, 40's and 50's.

“It really helps when you work with a trainer who’s kind of your same age as opposed to going with someone much younger," Cola said about being in their age group.

Going against conventional wisdom is something that Cola touts.

“I have somewhat of a contrarian philosophy," he said.

For one, Cola believes that people can control their weight more by diet than by exercising, which be believes can have dimishing returns after a point. He also cautions against over training and not doing excercises that are too strenuous.

“I can get someone in great shape without hurting them and working around things to make them feel a lot better," he said.

Important in his services are what a series of muscle activation techniques (MAT), which include (from his website) restoring body alignment, correcting imbalances in muscles and make for a quicker muscle recovery.

“It’s really muscle building and body fat reduction in a really safe, you know, professional way.”