Dispelling the Myth of the Highlight

When you see the world’s best in their prime, everything looks effortless. That perfect snatch. That perfect muscle-up.  It looks like they came out the womb doing these movements.

But take a few seconds to look behind the scenes, and you’ll find that couldn’t be more distant from the truth. Countless reps, years of determination and tens of thousands of hours in the gym produce what you see in those 10-second clips on social media.

It’s sometimes hard to separate the competition merely by their accomplishments and even more challenging to determine who is currently winning in the CrossFit Games landscape. With so many athletes spread across the world, it’s hard to keep up with everything in the ever-changing functional fitness arena.

The creator of Morning Chalk Up, Justin LoFranco, knows that better than most. He came from a career background in politics, spending time on the campaign trail and later working on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C.

While working in politics, Justin talked about receiving a newsletter that condensed the 24-hour news cycle.  Later on, he thought about the same concept of a condensed newsletter but, instead of focusing on politics, was focused on the CrossFit community.  In 2016, right before the CrossFit Open, Justin decided to put out his first newsletter. It started out with a small list of friends with a roundup of stories about competitors in CrossFit.

And that was the beginning.

Now, two years later and with an ever-expanding reach of tens of thousands who wake up to read CrossFit news, the newsletter continues to evolve and to make an impact on its readers.

Struggles to Triumphs

Justin spoke about “dispelling the myth of the highlight,” meaning that too many people only think about athletes in those few fleeting moments of triumph or defeat in competition.  Rarely do you see the complete story of what it cost the athlete to even get to that moment.

And that’s what makes Morning Chalk Up so intriguing. Yes, it highlights the wins, but it delves into the defeats, the lessons of athletes and the heroism found in every box, in every community, to help others feel inspired.

For example, there is an article series called “Letters to My Younger Self”. The series highlights heartfelt letters where athletes reflect on their past experiences, how they felt in the moment, and from those turbulent experiences, how they grew and used those moments to forge the path to what they wanted to accomplish.

When finishing the interview about the Chalk Up, one phrase really struck me about why Justin thinks Chalk Up has continued to grow so rapidly. He mentioned the key value of the newsletter is that it helps us “see something better in the world.”

Isn’t that what everyone needs right when they wake up in the morning?