It Took Seven Years to Become Rookie of the Year (with Nick Mathew)

Today I’m talking to CrossFit Games athlete Nick Mathew, who finished 14th at the 2022 CrossFit Games. Along the way, he also earned the prestigious Rookie of the Year award and won two events in the fittest field of athletes on earth. But Nick was no overnight success in the sport of fitness. He talks about his seven-year journey to the top rungs of CrossFit, including his roots in bodybuilding, overcoming injury, and several near-misses that provided both frustration and motivation. Nick is humble, candid, and honest about his goals in the sport, as well as the — to put it lightly — drudgery that can go along with being a top athlete. I hope you enjoy.

On this episode of The BarBend Podcast, host David Tao talks to Nick Mathew about:

CrossFit Open specialists and playing to Nick’s strengths (2:45)
Dabbling in both bodybuilding and powerlifting (and why Nick didn’t excel in bodybuilding!) (7:00)
How misreading a workout changed Nick’s perspective on CrossFit and human potential (11:00)
Committing to one sport and focusing on making it to the CrossFit Games (a nearly 7-year journey) (15:30)
Why the 2022 CrossFit Games were actually less stressful than Nick imagined (19:10)
Winning the skills medley (21:40)
Scoring another win on the heavy sandbag event (24:00)

Relevant links and further reading:

Follow Nick Mathew on Instagram
Follow David Thomas Tao on Instagram and Twitter

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