MILWAUKEE — We're approaching the halfway mark of January, and many people are probably trying to stick to their New Year’s resolutions. That’s why I visited Fit Pro MKE Wednesday morning to get some helpful tips on staying fit in the new year.
Watch: Milwaukee gym owner hopes to inspire others through personal fitness story
I spoke with Nick Holtzman, a certified personal trainer and owner of Fit Pro MKE, about getting started with fitness — especially for those who might be intimidated by gyms or haven’t worked out in years.
Full disclosure: This was my first time in a gym in probably 10 years, but it felt good to be back.
Nick shared his personal fitness journey, which began when he was a teenager. He was about 14 or 15 years old — a skinny, introverted teenager without a lot of purpose or direction, still trying to figure out who he was, like many kids that age.
"I discovered it through the weight room, and it's been great," Nick said. "It taught me life lessons like hard work, discipline, goal setting, confidence."
For people like me who are just getting back into a routine, Nick recommends giving it at least a month. But what about those who are afraid to go to a gym or call a personal trainer?
"That's perfectly normal, and anytime you do anything new in life that's exciting or is going to build you up, you're going to be nervous about it," Nick said.
While personal trainers are great for accountability, Nick acknowledges not everyone has access to one. He suggests finding accountability in other forms.
"You can get that in the form of your spouse or family member, co-worker or something like that," Nick said. "Find someone to hold you accountable because that's really important."
Fit Pro MKE has built a strong community of fitness enthusiasts. The gym members who work out there meet every morning at 6 a.m. and hold each other accountable. It's a community of great people who probably wouldn't know each other otherwise.
"The amount of people we've impacted as trainers, and that we've impacted, has been phenomenal," Nick said.
For those looking to start at home, Nick demonstrated a simple exercise routine using just dumbbells. The squat-and-press exercise works both the lower and upper body simultaneously. You load your shoulders with dumbbells, palms facing each other, go into a squat, then press straight up, working your shoulders, biceps and legs all at once.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
It’s about time to watch on your time. Stream local news and weather 24/7 by searching for “TMJ4” on your device.
Available for download on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, and more.
