Here’s How Nutrabolt Performance Director Eric Rakofsky Found His Career In Fitness

When he was young, Eric Rakofsky turned to exercise because of the instant gratification it brought him.

Soon enough, he became a living testament to tenacity. First came his merits as an amateur boxer, then as a personal trainer with an impressive roster of powerful people. And then next came an avalanche of tiny and big wins, from opportunities as a motivational speaker, to various podcast appearances, to a game-changing full-time gig: becoming Nutrabolt’s performance director.

Rakofsky has lived one of those inspirational stories people love to hear, fueled by doing what he loves and a motivation to rise above his humble start in life. He’s a resilient person who believes in hard work. But he’s also had a knack for being in the right place at the right time.

However, his story is all the more impressive knowing what he has had to overcome. When he was 11, his father died. Rakofsky later found out the death was due to drugs. His mother battled addiction herself, and Rakofsky decided early on that he wanted to be different and focus on what he could control.

Despite having little money, he realized that going outside and getting exercise didn’t cost a thing and made him feel exponentially better. He found that exercise–whether shooting hoops, running, or boxing–rewarding. The payoff  became a driving force in his life.

Early on, Rakofsky turned to boxing as a release–the physical manifestation of his life and the experiences he went through. He worked inside the ring as an amateur boxer, rising all the way up to the Golden Gloves.

But knowing that wasn’t a long-term plan, a new opportunity arose shortly thereafter: he was invited to be a personal trainer at Gotham, a West Village celeb-magnet gym in New York City, where he trained hedge fund CEOs, professional athletes, publishing giants, models, and actresses.

Part of his success, he said, centered around creating friendships with clients to ensure trust. While his professional profile was growing in New York City, his son was born on the West Coast. He traveled back and forth enough times to know he needed to shorten the distance between them.

So he moved to Austin in 2021. It cut his travel time in half. Shortly after he settled in Central Texas, his son and the son’s mother moved here, too.

He found a job as as coach at Kollective, the high-end social performance club where his primary role was to help cultivate the same type of high-end clients he’d worked with in New York. One thing led to another, and then he was consulting with Nutrabolt CEO Doss Cunningham as he built out his C4 Performance Center.

Soon, they were in talks to make the work full-time.  “If you know Doss, or enough about him, if he’s giving you a seat on the plane, you go with him,” Rakofsky said.

Rakofsky often mentions the concept that movement is freedom. This seems to be a driving force in his life. He wrote on this concept for Thrive Global during the pandemic, explaining the concept. “Freedom is having the ability to master the very little that we do have control over like your mind and body. If you can master those two, you’ll always be free.”

Behind Nutrabolt Performance Director Eric Rakofsky’s Programming

When asked how he has been able to attract such successful, highly-motivated clients,  Rakofsky first gives credit to starting in New York as part of it, but then delves into his own style.

“I’m not reinventing the wheel when it comes to creating a program. It’s about creating a program that is best suited for each person. The personalization is an important touchpoint, but also them being able to do it alongside, or in the network with, other highly-motivated, successful people, is another draw.”

While Rakofsky’s career has not followed a traditional path, he shares thoughtful suggestions for up-and-coming  personal trainers.

“If I could tell you what to do or how to start, if you’re lucky enough to be a TikTok or Instagram star with a huge following, then by all means, go that route, be authentic, monetize it, and figure that out,” he said. “If not, I would definitely take the academic route and get your certifications.”

He got his own certifications on the job as he went along, he said, while learning from mentors.

Advice From This Nutrabolt Performance Director And Trainer

He advises aspiring personal trainers to “take the test, study, figure out if you want to work with athletes, tech people, moms who just had a baby, or all of them. Because otherwise, if you don’t have a specific understanding of your training style and the people you want to work with, you and your clients will keep bumping heads, and the client won’t be interested in working with you anymore.”

In the future, he says, he wants to keep growing alongside Nutrabolt. On a personal level, though, his goals are to be present for his son and maintain as much peace as possible in his life.

If his past history is any indication, that should be no problem.