Standing in the Shadow of CrossFit

[Dan Donche]

We’re coming up on two years of existence this November. I think the time has flown by because we are so busy moving forward that we leave our old selves in the dust, which, according to Anthony, is the whole theme of it anyway. Looking back on 2006 and comparing it to now, I am completely amazed at what has evolved and transpired over those months. I feel as though it’s not only time to take a look at where we came from, but where we’re headed as well. We’re going to get reacquainted. In this process I want to address some of the largest misconceptions people have about Fatal Fitness, and why we do things the way we do them. To understand that you must first understand how it all started.

The Beginning

Rewind two years to 2006. I was on my second tour in Afghanistan as a member of the Tactical Air Control Party, plagued with the same problem most deployed service members are plagued with—nothing to do. So I put my time to good use and started studying to become a certified personal trainer through the NASM (it came highly recommended by Men’s Health). I loved learning about fitness, but being a TACP I also loved off-the-wall workouts of high intensity. I get bored quickly, and of all the traditional workout programs I’d tried were too monotonous.

But that’s not why I started FFitness.

Fatal Fitness was started because I felt I wouldn’t be able to do personal training effectively in Casper, Wyoming (my hometown, where I was planning on going after the USAF). I had experience with websites, and thought I could create something that combined my newfound interest for fitness with my internet skills. The only problem was where to begin.

This is what I knew the site had to have: unique workouts that were intense and challenging (because that’s always what I’ve liked); content that was constantly updated to attract visitors to the site; quality workouts/exercises; I also wanted the workouts to be named after cool things like “phalanx” and “cyanide”. (There is more on that in our FAQ…)

The first workouts were posted on Myspace as bulletins. I don’t think anybody did them besides me. My limited time on the internet made it difficult for me to create a website, so I kept up with the Myspace thing until I came back home.

Unforeseen Problems

Fast forward to 2007. Fatal Fitness, by this time, has grown in size, we have a lot more content, we’ve sharpened our workout-creating skills, and we’ve constantly been trying to trim the fat from our methods and discover better ways of doing things.

Enter CrossFit.

CrossFit is the premier place for elite, functional fitness. They have thousands of followers, they are extremely adept at providing quality instruction/workouts, and they are very professional.

They also post workouts every day, which are intense, challenging, and unique. Their workouts are all named (albeit they use a different naming convention than we do) to make their daily workouts more exciting. Did I mention they have a very large, loyal following?

It was only a matter of time before this giant discovered us in the room. When viewing upon us from their perspective—the perspective of the industry leaders who have been doing their thing since the seventies;it only makes sense to see us as this execrable counterfeit. And I knew that some CrossFitters would have a less-than-welcoming reaction, especially since when you view our website, the only thing you can deduce is that we offer a) a daily workout, that’s intense and functional, and b) it’s a daily workout that’s intense and functional.

I’m sure the first thing that comes to mind is “WTF?”

Aware of CrossFit

I don’t monitor CrossFit’s every move, but I am aware of who they are and what they are about. This is not a matter of keeping up with the Joneses here—the focus of mine has always been on what Fatal Fitness is doing rather than how we can be more like everyone else. FFitness started out because I wanted to do my own thing, and that tradition continues to this day. I am constantly striving to make FFitness better, more effective, more scientific. I am always learning, keeping an open mind, trying out different methods, trying to come up with new ones, testing things, experimenting. That is the essence of who we are. “Each day I am better than the last.” That’s a line from the FFitness Creed. It applies to the site as much as it applies to any one person.

Because of this, and because CrossFit have pioneered a lot of effective methods in functional fitness, it would be stupid of me not to learn about it. But we are also looking into everything else as well (kettlebells, Pararescue/SEALs pool workouts, gymnastics, boxing/mma training methods, power lifting, etc). This is in addition to all our experimenting.

On Making Our Own Path

It has been a very slow-moving process over the past two years. Not only have we had to establish a solid personality that strives to be different, we have to tackle unforeseen challenges as they come up. One of the biggest was structure. Like I said, we are constantly experimenting to find what we want to do. For the longest time, our biggest limiting factor was a lack of structure. The workouts were random. We had everything else. So we figured out a structure. We’re perpetually improving it. We’re figuring out better ways to design workouts, better exercises, new ways of doing things. We’re figuring out new ways to bring you quality information. We’re constantly improving the website and its features. The thing people don’t realize is that we actually are trying to reinvent the wheel here. We aren’t trying to steal the design from everyone else, but we do know what the wheel is supposed to look like. The goal is not to outdo the other guy, but to ultimately provide people with a means towards achieving better levels of health. I think CrossFit has that same goal.

And regardless of whatever light they view us in, we will always hold CrossFit in high regard. I never want to display a lack of professionalism towards them. They have their shit together. They are professional. I admire how they demand quality. Those are honorable things, and we can only hope to achieve that level of professionalism in the future. And while it's okay to show some pride in what we do, and while it's okay to display a certain level of competitive spirit, it's not okay to trash such an awesome group of quality individuals, even if they may not have the same attitude towards us. Let's remember that we are as much about strong character as we are about fitness. Let's keep doing our thing and show the world by example that we are in this for the right reasons, that we hold true to our values.

As I stated before, each day we are better than the last. If we hold true to that, that level of professionalism will surely come.

[Gary Dean Eyster Jr.]

I am glad to see this post/blog. I in the past did CrossFit for a short time. It was introduced to me through a friend and even though I didn't really take to it alot of my friends did. What I like about Fatal Fitness is the people that I have met that do this workout too. They are professional and nice.. I don't trash CF but there is a different mindset here. You hit the nail on the head be courteous to others even if the same isn't returned. So my hats off to you and what you have started..