RESILIENCE is REQUIRED

Brad Nordstrom, NDSU’s former strength and conditioning coach, and his wife Angie Nordstrom started Maximum Performance & Fitness (or MPF as their loyal clients like to call it). In the craziest year they have ever experienced, 2020, they celebrated that milestone. But like most small business owners, they weren’t able to actually celebrate. In their milestone year they faced a rst-ever mandated shutdown during the worldwide pandemic. But, if you’re looking for a story of resilience and commitment, you will nd it at MPF. From the owners to the clientele you are surrounded by exactly that: resilience and commitment.

Angie always supported Brad’s dream even though she knew it wouldn’t be easy for him or them as a family. She believed that the risks were worth the potential reward and that the lessons owning a business would provide were ones you couldn’t learn elsewhere. She desperately wanted that for her children. To not only show them what it means to build something you are so passionate about, but what grit looks like.

“I believe that God has given us all a calling in life, and that each of us has received a gi to use to serve one another,” says Angie. “I know without a doubt that Brad has a gi to motivate and lead people. I see it in the way he interacts with clients, how e ortlessly he can strike up a conversation and shoot the breeze with anyone, and how passionate he is about helping people become a better version of themselves through tness.”

Even though they knew this was the right path, it hasn’t been all rainbows and sunshine. Angie recalls always trying to be a listening ear, especially in 2020, and giving advice or throwing out ideas wherever she could. Yet, it’s the support from the outside world that means the most when your livelihood is at stake.

“Small businesses have closed right here in our community from the pandemic,” says Angie. “I am eternally grateful for those who reached out to my husband when our doors were closed and asked him to continue to bill them each month; those who have shared how great a loss it would be if MPF was not a place for them to go to; those who told him that they appreciate all the e orts we’ve made to keep the doors open; clients who have become like family; clients that will drop their plans for the evening so they can stand in as an actor in a media ad or give a testimonial on our behalf. That is what makes us push forward. It’s so important to celebrate the little wins.”

As business needs varied throughout the year, Angie’s roles have changed. She has done everything from social media content handling, marketing, HR, courier, interior decorator, merchandiser, admin, event organizer and more. “When your spouse goes into business, you do too, so it’s all hands on deck,” says Angie. But burnout is a very real thing, and knowing that, they bought a camper to force them to get out of town and unplug when they could. “Lake-time has been the best self-care investment we have ever made,” says Angie.

Work ethic, perseverance, humility and sacri ce are what she prays her children take from their life of entrepreneurship. “My hope is that they see how hard their dad has worked to grow his business,” says Angie. “Though nothing was handed to him, he paved his own road to his dream.”

She recollected that Brad always tells them “you will make time for it if it’s important to you.” And if you know Brad, he approaches health with the same perspective. MPF is more than a gym, it is a community where your success is their goal.

CHECK OUT MPF at mpfitness.net and sign up for their new year special that includes a body composition assessment and a full month to try their most popular program, MELT, for only $50.