[music]

[music]

>> most interested um

that you have [clears throat] a by the

most unique perspective on, probably the

only one. Um is

what was the inspiration for CrossFit?

I was a

I was a competitive gymnast

with a

uh

uh

obsessive uh fascination

with uh bicycles.

And I had discovered as a kid uh young

in my in my early teens that I could

with with uh dumbbell and barbells

um get stronger than any other gymnast I

knew.

And uh that was that was that was a uh

epic moment for me. And so I end up

swinging it with a bunch of gymnasts

that won't lift weights and don't ride

bikes.

People that lift weights that won't do

gymnastics or ride bikes. And a coterie

of bike riding friends that won't do

gymnastics or lift weights. And I knew I

knew a a a fair number of people that

were stronger than I was at weights that

I did weightlifting with, weight

training. I knew people that could ride

bikes better than I could. I knew people

that could that were better gymnasts

than I were. But if you were even

slightly better or even at my skill

level at any one of those three, I'd

crush you at the other two. Crush you.

And so the question kind of comes to a

young kid how fit is this guy? I mean,

what is it what is the cost of being

marginally a better gymnast than me if

you can't ride a bike without passing

out and you and you and your

weightlifting sucks, you're weaker than

my sister. I mean, where what price have

you paid for this expertise? And I I I

had the essence of that uh

uh

moral play, if you will, and and it

feels that way almost in the

physiological world for me. I had the

essence of that lesson

well ingrained with by the time I was 15

years old. I got that I had a

generalized

that you know, it was my dad's my dad's

dread was that I'd become a

jack-of-all-trades and a master of none.

And I think it struck me as like, well,

I think that's what I'm trying to do. It

actually It actually works, you know?

Why can't we be pretty damn good at

everything, especially for doing

everything?

And so and and so if you if you were

better than me even marginally at any

one of the others at any one of the

three items, I'd crush you at the other

three. But even more interesting, we

could go do something that none of us

had done. Like try jujitsu or or surf,

and I'm going to be even even have a a

more potent advantage there. In those

things that none of us had done. So

again, the question is, "Geez, what, you

know,

talk about cross training." And and

therein lies the essence of the CrossFit

notion. Um

for me

at the at at the first hearing of a

triathlon, bike run swim long, that's

not cross training.

There there there's there's they have an

enormous amount in common

physiologically. The movements mechanics

may be very different, but the metabolic

pathways are so [ __ ] identical that

you're you're deluding yourself to think

that getting out on your bike, running,

and swimming has you has you uh well

trained. That your breadth of adaptation

is anything other than that of a

specialist.

Um

and I want to I want to roll up on that.

One of the things that struck me that

was unique about CrossFit

um and this I

I I was I was told this was part of your

history is that CrossFit is you never

work out alone. You always do it in a

community.

Um what inspired that? This is easy. It

was the It was the realization that I'm

working 55 hours a week and uh

on one on one on ones.

Uh

and uh

and by

week's end, you know, I'm still training

7 days a week. And at the end of each

day one on ones one on one training

>> Yeah, one on one training. Private

training sessions with clients. And by

uh uh

day's end my my clients at 9:00 p.m.

aren't getting what the ones at 5:00

a.m. got.

Anywhere near.

And so and and yet I didn't want to pass

up business or or let people go. I

wanted to give everyone an opportunity

to get fit. And so I found myself in

this interesting position of

telling a 5:00 a.m. client that I got

great news for you. I'm going to I found

you a workout partner. And it's the the

good news is doubly compounded cuz it's

going to reduce your training rate.

You're paying me 75 bucks an hour, I'm

going to take you down to 50.

And uh

How

How were you able to do that?

>> I'm going to have two people in that

slot. And it and twice 50 is 100. I just

gave myself a $25 an hour raise. And and

>> Okay. And they they you know, they'd

half bite. They're like, "I don't know.

I'm not really short of money. I really

liked our gig." And I go, "Well, you got

to understand something, man. I'm

starving and got to pay the bills and I

need your help. And I think you're

really going to like this guy, this gal.

Just try it for me for a week. And if

you don't like it, um we'll get rid of

it." And and of everyone I did that to,

and there were there were scores of

them, I had one person that that's like,

"This ain't cool." And she made me train

her one on one uh three days a week for

years and years and years. And even she

would look out on the floor and hear

everyone laughing. "What are they

laughing at?" I go, "Well, they're

having a lot of fun cuz they really like

each other and they're all friends. And

but we have to get back to work, so quit

watching, you know?" She just She She

wanted to be in that group and couldn't

get herself to do it.

But uh the the motivation initially

was uh was uh uh

economic.

But the reality is that um I found that

I was imparting at least as good as

instruction uh two on one as I was one

on one.

Um and there was a resonance and

interaction with two that made trying

three a really [ __ ] good idea. And

down the road what I found is that I

could up to 15 or 20 people give them

all they wanted of me in the one on one.

Now, maybe it wasn't as much attention,

but the way you work a group

um nobody's really looking for me to

come over and talk to them. Cuz it

generally what I'm able to do in a group

of 15 people is I'll be like, "Yeah,

Greg, try it. Great. Great. What the

[ __ ] is that, dude? Come on. You kidding

me? That's how I showed you to squat.

Let me show you what you're doing. Try

it again." And so when I when it was

your turn to get coached, people are

like, "I think I've had enough

attention." You'd ask a group of people,

"Did you get enough individual

attention?" They go, "Oh, sure. I had

plenty, thank you." You know?

They weren't really So if you if you sat

with me in a classroom for an hour and I

gave you a few atta boys and nothing

else, that was like a perfect outcome.

And and in the next phase of this, Greg,

is you you intrinsic spontaneous

occurrence that these clients for whom

you had no corrections that were there

three, four days a week and loving it,

there's my there's my next generation of

trainers. And those are the people that

we got to help out at certs. It started

very naturally, too. Like, you know,

I've got I've got the heart of our crew

on the road doing a seminar something

[music] for the government or mil

cross country.

I don't know who's going to open the gym

in the morning. We turn to one of these

one of these clients that's got keys

anyways.

Go, "Hey, how'd you like to take the

class at 6:00 a.m. tomorrow?"

Never had anyone turn me down on that.

They're you're kidding. Oh, honor. Wow.

And they would show up early and be in

charge in a big way, you know? Really?

So it's a it's a it's a very natural

social phenomenon. And And about when

what year was this

90

8 99.

Yeah, let's go 99.

2000.

99 2000, right in there. I was I was in

Santa Cruz and clearly at capacity as a

trainer.

And [music] go, "Hey, look watch me.

Look at this. I can double up, triple

up, quad up, quint up."

And then those people, you know, you got

you're working with five people when it

was in Friday at 5:00 a.m.

Uh it's done. They're going to bring in

the sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, and

10th person.

>> [music]

[music]