Meet Mike Krajewski of East

Today we’d like to introduce you to Mike Krajewski.

Hi Mike, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start, maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers?
After playing college football in Canada, I knew strength and conditioning was the field I was meant to be in. Once I finished school, I went to work on becoming certified through the National Strength and Conditioning Association. At that point, I had begun my first job as a trainer in Canada. I trained for about a year in this role before pitching my services to my cousin, who at the time, played for the Nashville Predators. I moved down to Nashville in the summer of 2012 and began training him in preparation for the next NHL season, which was unfortunately delayed due to a lockout for a few months. My cousin Kevin decided to travel to Copenhagen and play pro hockey there for a month to stay game ready for when the NHL season booted back up. Very fortunately for me, they were looking for a new strength coach. We packed up and flew to Copenhagen, where I had the experience of a lifetime, getting to train an entire professional hockey team in Europe.

After completing our short contract in Denmark, I moved home to Canada and began the grueling process of trying to achieve a work visa in the United States. I knew this was the best path for me if I wanted to make a name for myself. After about 8 months of applying all over the states and countless job interviews, I finally was granted a 3-year work visa after a personal training studio in Franklin, TN, offered me a job.

Throughout those 3 years, I had a great time living in Nashville and working as a trainer, but I always dreamed of opening my own studio. I began focusing on saving, knowing my next goal was to open my own space. I finally opened my first space in East Nashville in January of 2019. My studio was full, and things were running successfully for about a year until the tornado in 2020 completely demolished what I had built. However, as one door closed, another opened, and I opportunistically was able to find a bigger and more beautiful gym space by September of 2020. The business has been great, and the MK Fitness family is growing. Recently, I’ve been able to hire two new phenomenal trainers to help grow my company!

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Of course, there have been some major bumps in the road. The tornado which destroyed my first gym could have sent me into a negative spiral. I’ve always been taught to view struggles or setbacks as opportunities to learn and grow. With the help of my supportive wife and extremely generous fitness community in Nashville, we shifted my mindset. We viewed it as an opportunity to step up and invest in a bigger gym, which is what I needed to enhance the growth of my business.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
At MK, we focus on providing an elite, extremely professional, and fun atmosphere for clients of ALL walks of life to come in and learn how to train properly. Our goal is to help clients build the tools to walk into any gym and have the confidence and knowledge to execute effective workouts to build strength, lose fat, and feel great in their day-to-day life!

Where do you see things going in the next 5-10 years?
During the pandemic, I got a little nervous, thinking more training styles would shift to online models. However, the more I’ve been considering it, I believe that nothing can replace the accountability of in-person training. I feel like wearable tracking devices are here to stay as I’m noticing more and more clients wearing them and loving the real-time feedback they provide.

Contact Info:

• Website: mkfitness.ca
• Instagram: @mkfitness_

Image Credits
Jake Matthews