06/02/2026
‼️Monday Member Highlight (but on a Tuesday)‼️
This week we're highlighting the newest coach to join the ranks at UnCharted CrossFit, Mike Burkart!
"After serving in the military, most of my fitness routine centered around traditional gym workouts and swimming. Years later, my youngest daughter started doing CrossFit in Columbia and encouraged me to give it a try. What immediately attracted me to CrossFit was how much it reminded me of the military: people working hard together, pushing through challenging workouts, and building bonds through shared experiences.
There are two things I love about CrossFit. First, I don’t have to plan my workouts. Someone else takes care of that, so I can simply show up and put in the work. Second, it’s the people. In a traditional gym, you may see the same faces every day without ever learning anyone’s name. At CrossFit, and especially at UnCharted, everyone knows each other. The sense of community and support is unlike anything I’ve experienced in a regular gym.
For me, fitness is one of the best tools for maintaining mental health. After a long day of work, it’s important to have an outlet where I can focus on something physical and leave the stress behind. The gym gives me a chance to burn off mental energy through physical effort. By the time I’m done, I feel reset and ready for whatever comes next.
CrossFit has helped me maintain my mobility and quality of life as I’ve gotten older. I can’t do everything I could when I was younger, but I can still do a lot of it. CrossFit also helped prepare me for and recover from a double knee replacement. The strength, mobility, and overall fitness I built through training made a huge difference in getting through that process and returning to an active lifestyle. CrossFit has allowed me to stay active, capable, and confident that I can continue doing the things I enjoy for years to come."
Mike, welcome to the UnCharted coaching team. You're a great part of our fitness community, and we're excited to see you flourish as a coach!
