Mike Cola of Mike Cola Fitness (84 Lexington Ave, Mount Kisco 914-864-2235; mikecolafitness.com) has been in the fitness biz since he was 16 years old and has some pretty specific ideas about what works and what doesn’t. “I consider myself a contrarian because I go against a lot of accepted ideas,” he says. “A lot of people start on an exercise program thinking the harder the workout is, the better. My philosophy is that when you work out hard, it should be in short intervals, and when you work out long, it should be easy.”
Another of Cola’s beliefs is that you can’t control your weight with exercise alone. “You get your abs in the kitchen, not the gym—so anyone wanting to lose weight will have to include changing their diet to reach their goal.”
In addition to one-on-one training, Cola teaches small group classes, some of which will be held in the studio’s private back yard.
