By Honorary Reporter Jasmin Mikolay from Germany

An official poster for the Netflix survival show "Physical: 100," shows Markus Florian Krapf, one of the few foreign contestants. (Netflix)

A brand-new Korean fitness survival show, “Physical: 100,” recently made its Netflix debut. The “reality” show seeks to find the contestant with the most ideal physique, regardless of gender, age, or ethnicity out of 100 starters. Only one person who completes all five quests and can prove their mental and physical toughness wins the 300 million won prize (about 224,000 euros).

Markus Florian Krapf from Germany is a rising TV personality and model in Korea, and one of the few foreigners among the 100 candidates on “Physical: 100.”

During a bachelor’s degree semester abroad in South Korea, Krapf fell in love with the country and decided to do his master’s degree there as well. After graduating from Korea University in Seoul, he stayed on in Korea, working hard to be a successful fitness model. He has also participated in a variety of YouTube projects and TV programs, and has commercial experience working with brands such as LG and Coway.

This interview with Krapf was compiled from a personal conversation via a Zoom meeting with him on Jan. 31, right after the release of the first episode of “Physical: 100.“

Athletes, actresses, gymnasts, dancers, cheerleaders, weightlifters, YouTubers, influencers and ex-military members are among the 100 participants in the fitness competition, and Krapf made the cast quite rapidly. “One of the writers contacted me directly via Instagram. Afterward, I went for an interview. But I didn’t know exactly what I was getting myself into at that point or who else would be on board. They just told me it was a survival show and 100 people were going to compete against each other,” he said.

Krapf explained his own preparation method before shooting “Physical: 100” as follows, “I’ve been doing fitness and bodybuilding for almost a decade now. If you change your training in the short term, you can injure yourself. I wanted to avoid such injuries in advance. So I reduced the training volume a bit before the show so that I had fresher energy for the activities that awaited me.” He added, “It turned out that there were activities that you don’t get demonstrated by trainers in the gym.”

Markus Florian Krapf trains hard, especially if he has an upcoming body profile shoot. (Markus Florian Krapf)

The biggest challenge in participating in “Physical: 100” for Krapf was not just physical. “It was extremely difficult to prepare mentally for it. There was always in the back of my mind the question ‘What if I hurt myself?’ I might not be doing anything anymore, which made me insecure. That’s why I wanted to give everything but without endangering my health and my body.”

Expressing his opinion on which candidate left a lasting impression on him, he said, “I have great respect for the high-school participant Kim Byeong-jin, who is a member of the national taekwondo team of the Republic of Korea. During the show, I weighed 84kg but I was obese until I was 19 years old and weighed 115kg. Unlike him, I was not athletic and hated sports at his age. Kim Byeong-jin competed with people who have much more experience than him and are much older. There wasn’t even a single moment when he showed fear. Hats off!”

When asked if he would do the show again, Krapf replied, “For me, it was really shocking to realize that the first challenge was a one-on-one match, because I had never fought in my life before that moment.” He summarized: “All in all, it was a great experience being on the show, but I don't want to do it again. After the first real challenge, the one-on-one match, some people had broken legs or left with dislocated arms and were covered in blood. I had minor injuries, bruised knees, and my skin opened up. All fought to the bitter end, but I wouldn't like to get severely hurt.”

Turning to his fitness routine, Krapf said, “I train at least two hours a day, on average three to four hours. One hour is for strength training and the rest is cardio and sometimes skilates.” He added, “Before big shoots, I follow a strict diet where I only consume less than or round about 2,000 calories and follow an 80/20 principle - 80% eating clean, 20% eating freely.” When asked if he changed anything in his fitness routine after he participated in “Physical: 100,” Krapf replied with a smile, “Actually, I hang on the bar more often now. Now I could easily last more than three minutes on the bar.”

To encourage foreigners, Krapf stated, “Many of you might like to come to Korea and live here, or maybe you have a completely different dream, who knows! Whatever it is, just do it! You can be worried and afraid of something new. But what do you have to lose? Even if it doesn't work out the first time, don't give up. At some point, it will work.”

In December 2022 Markus Florian Krapf was one of the hosts of the K-Wave Festival held by KOCIS. This picture shows him next to MC Park Sewon, announcing the winners in the Talk Talk Korea category. (Aleona Konovalova)