First is a beautiful, well made book.
It’s expertly written, multi-dimensional, and one I had a hard time putting down.
Leaving me with over 8 pages of notes, this book was more ‘takeaway dense’ than just about anything I’ve read this year (which for me is the biggest indicator of how worthwhile a book is).
(If you’re unfamiliar with CrossFit or Rich Froning, skip down to the videos at the bottom of this post for a quick overview.)
Expect insights on success, purpose, competition, fitness, faith, life, relationships, family, and parenting, as well as a memento mori to start living the life you want to live right now.
This post is designed as a reference for some of the biggest takeaways I had from the book. Even if this is the first time you’ve never heard of CrossFit or Rich Froning, it’s definitely worth a read to whet your appetite before going out to buy the book.
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The Takeaways…
[*] When PURPOSE is taken care of, everything falls into place.
For Rich that’s faith and religion: “To bring glory to God in everything I do.” However, even if you’re a hardened atheist, the psychology behind this is fascinating:
You need a higher motivation to be the best – and stay there.
When that’s the case, no amount of success can numb your ambition.
“Winning in 2011 did nothing to reduce my desire to win in 2012.”
Compare this to the motivational difficulties most athletes go through – even some of the most celebrated of all time – and you’ll see why faith is such a big driver behind Rich’s success.
[*] Adversity can make you stronger or crush you. It’s ultimately how you frame it.
“If not for that rope, I am convinced I would have not won another Games.”
“That rope changed my life.”
We need to reframe setbacks as challenges.
“Some people view those moments as trials, while others view them as proving grounds.”
[*] Hard work pays. Get over the illusion that there are people more ‘gifted’ than you.
People who work hard gain an advantage over those who don’t.
There are lines in this book that echo Will Smith’s ‘talented vs skilled’ mantra:
“There are, without doubt, thousands of people in the world who are more physically talented than I am.”
“For me to be successful, I cannot allow anyone to outwork me.”
[*] Hard work makes you stronger.
(When coaching) “I like to figure out the mental side of the people I work with to learn what makes them tick. Then I want to push their breaking points higher.”
“You won’t be expected to do more than you can do, but I assure you that you will be challenged to do more than you think you can do.”
Hard work (with sufficient recovery) won’t ‘break’ you, it’ll push your breaking point higher so that you become more resilient.
“Muscles are made stronger by increasing their workloads. So is the mind.” (again, WITH SUFFICIENT RECOVERY)
[*] “Shared suffering” is the key to REAL connection.
This is eluded to in the book and something I’ve certainly found with my own training. You might not ‘know’ someone that well (in terms of what they do, their background etc.,) but ‘suffering’ leads to a deeper level of connection with the people you train with.
You get a true sense of their character.
[*] Obsession is no excuse for not having your priorities in order.
“Fitness is third on my list of priorities.”
“Grow in some way spiritually every day.”
(You see this in a recent video where Rich talks of a curfew his wife Hilary has laid down for which he has to be done at the gym so they can spend time together.)
[*] Use ‘Stakes‘.
“Accountability system where if they don’t read their Bible one day, they do thirty extra burpees.”
(In my experience having something set daily (e.g. 30 burpees) works better than having something longer term (e.g. give X amount of money to a charity I hate as described in the 4-Hour Chef.)
[*] Humility
Humility is knowing how small you are and not getting caught up in your own hype.
“All the people who know me as Rich the CrossFitter are going to forget about me one day. I won’t compete forever, and there will be athletes who come along and make people forget whatever accomplishments I wind up with.”
However, you have to be POWERFUL for people to recognise it.
[*] Surround yourself with two kinds of people.
1) People who will fuel your obsession.
“The real secret to my success, though, is my workout partners. I always surround myself with people who are better than me or will push me.”
2) People who will keep you level-headed and in balance.
“Where I place carries no significance for what she (Rich’s wife Hilary) thinks of me.”
“‘I’m hungry,’ Hilary said. ‘Let’s go.’ The exact same thing she said when she first saw me after the disappointing finish in 2010.”
“She’s never been one of those caught up with Rich Froning the CrossFitter, and that’s exactly what I need.”
[*] Don’t be too rigid with your schedule.
Accept life will continue to throw you curve balls.
“I know that despite my best efforts, there will be things that pop up and impact my training.”
[*] Be RUTHLESS with eliminating distractions when you need to.
(In the run up to the Games) “Anything that is not directly part of training for the Games does not find a place on my schedule.”
[*] Mix the good with the bad to make it bearable.
Rich mixes movements he doesn’t like with movements he does like.
“It has to be fun or I won’t do it.”
I’m sure many of us could apply a similar methodology to the work we do.
[*] You don’t see yourself from the same perspective from which others see you.
You look just as intimidating to the other guy as he does to you.
[*] Be a little ‘stupid‘.
Break conventional wisdom to test what really works.
“We weren’t concerned about conventional wisdom; we just wanted to keep improving.”
[*] Be ruthless in competition.
“Leave no doubt.”
(Not actually from the book, but advice passed on from a college coach of Rich’s in an interview on the CrossFit Journal. “When you get them down, you slit their throats.”)
[*] Be clear in your intent to WIN.
“I can’t imagine competing with a just-good-enough mindset. If I’m there, I’m there to win.”
[*] It’s okay for losing to hurt.
“In my wife’s photo album of the 2010 Games, there is a picture of me bent over as the silver medal was placed around my neck. I’m smiling. It’s a fake smile.”
[*] To be a champion you have to develop an appetite for first place.
“I was frustrated because even though I was sitting in first place, I had yet to win an event.”
(If unfamiliar with the scoring system, this is entirely possible. One could win the entire competition without ever actually winning a single event. This didn’t stop Rich from using this as fuel to drive him home to a storming finish – both in 2012 and 2013.)
“I wanted to score as many points as I could… The competitor in me did want to to win by as many points as possible.”
However…
[*] Don’t carry this mentality into everything.
“Basketball was never my sport, so I was content to sit in the stands and watch my friends play.”
Pick your battles. Don’t try to be #1 at everything. Save your energy for the things that matter.
[*] Build the demand of habits.
“When I don’t work out, my body feels worthless.”
If you do something enough (e.g. read every day), you get to this place (e.g. where you mentally feel worthless). Doing the things you want to get good at daily is the #1 way to lock in the habit for life.
[*] Death can be the greatest motivator.
Rich was a fireman in college and writes, “It was sobering to find people dead and to see people dying.”
(I believe that one of the biggest reasons people are so apathetic is because they’ve deluded themselves into thinking they’ll live forever. Without it, with infinite time, would we actually have the drive to do anything?)
[*] Being busy is no excuse.
“Someone busier than you is exercising right now.” – Alicia Bell
“I squeezed in workouts during breaks in my coaching schedule, and between graduate classes I was taking… Some days I completed five full workouts.”
[*] You’re never too big for the basics.
“There were certain areas I knew I needed to train every day to improve… working on my squat form.”
(See: Virtuosity – Greg Glassman)
[*] When nervous, have a book to turn to.
For Rich it’s the Bible (which he will read between events when competing). If you’re not religious perhaps try Marcus Aurelius’s Meditations.
[*] Even your heros aren’t living their childhood dreams.
“Baseball was my sport, and I planned on making it to the major leagues as a middle infielder.”
[*] Introvert? You can lead with ‘quiet confidence’.
“I was more of a lead-by-example captain than a rah-rah type leader.”
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So there you have it! The 26 lessons.
Use this book to inspire you onto your own form of greatness, not just to fire you up in the gym or fuel your CrossFit obsession.
“Too many CrossFitters get caught up in doing Crossfit so they can one day compete in the Games. Sorry, but that’s not going to happen for the large majority.”
Further Viewing:
(Some favourite clips – these WILL get you pumped for hitting the gym!)
CrossFit – The Fittest Man on Earth: Rich Froning
CrossFit – How Do You Beat Rich Froning?
Rogue – Who is Rich Froning?
Rich is an inspiration, a role model, and reading this book and following his story has made me a better person.
Congrats to him on title #3 this summer. We’re rooting for you for #4 next summer!
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