CrossFit Project: Turning 7s into 10s

Never an organization to shy from controversy, CrossFit media produced a video that depicts how people use the workout program to exceed their natural genetic capacity. Well, not all people, but women. And not all women, but Rita Benavidez, Jackie Perez, Erin Cianciolo and Andrea Ager. And it focused on their looks. Called, 'Turning sevens into tens,' the video wasn't universally well received by the +CrossFit community. But I think the tagline used is certainly appropriate and definitely applies to all CrossFitters regardless of gender: 'Beauty in Strength.'

CrossFit: Beauty in Strength

CrossFit athlete Jackie Perez

CrossFit athlete Rita Benavidez

Whatever one thinks of the video above, the ability that CrossFit has to transform people's lives is even more impressive than the program's capacity to improve their physiques.
 
And that's by design.

In his seminal piece 'What is Fitness' Greg Glassman writes, “We have observed that nearly every measurable value of health can be placed on a continuum that ranges from sickness to wellness to fitness….Done right, fitness provides a great margin of protection against the ravages of time and disease….A fitness regimen that doesn’t support good health is not CrossFit…being ‘CrossFit’ comes through molding men and women that are equal parts gymnast, Olympic weightlifter, and multi-modal sprinter or ‘sprintathlete.’ Develop the capacity of a novice 800-meter track athlete, gymnast, and weightlifter and you’ll be fitter than any world-class runner, gymnast, or weightlifter.”
 
Fitter than any world-class runner, gymnast or weightlifter is a pretty bold statement. And it's a pretty big improvement over the physical capacity anyone was born with.

The principle articulated in the United States' Declaration of Independence, "All men are created equal," is so deeply engrained and beloved that it has become a truism most of don't even have to think about. But clearly, there are differences among us. People like Rob Orlando, Rich Froning, Chris Spealler (ok, or Kristen Clever, or Lindsay Valenzuela, or Katie Hogan) can all do things that I may not be physically capable of achieving. Ever. And physical aptitude comes more easily to some than others. Some people are just bigger, stronger, and faster than others.

Rob Orlando. Fitter than me.

An amazing thing about CrossFit, though, is that everyone can improve on whatever genetic inheritance they were given.

Similarly, adopting a latticework of mental models approach has allowed Charlie Munger to outperform those with much higher 'natural I.Q.s. For Munger, as with Glassman and CrossFit, performance is what matters.

Munger has remarked, "A money manager with an IQ of 160 and thinks it's 180 will kill you. Going with a money manager with an IQ of 130 who thinks its 125 could serve you well."

Chris Spealler. Fitter than me.

In CrossFit and in life, the difference between success and failure often has nothing to do with 'natural' capacity. And those with tremendous natural gifts are sometimes outperformed by those with lesser ability. There's a reason the story of the rabbit and the hare is one of the first we learn as children. As Munger puts it, "Smart people aren't exempt from professional disasters from overconfidence. Often, they just run aground in the more difficult voyages they choose, relying on their self-appraisals that they have superior talents and methods."

Kristan Clever. Yes, fitter than me.

CrossFit and Munger's mental model approach can help avoid those pitfalls. And turn our sevens into tens. Body and mind.