Today we’re talking to CrossFit athlete and coach Adam Neiffer. Adam has been in the competitive CrossFit space since well before it exploded in popularity, and with a competition history dating back to 2009, he’s one of the most experience team athletes in the sport’s history. More recently, Adam was a visible figure at the 2020 CrossFit Games Finals, where he served as coach to Rookie of the Year Justin Medeiros. Adam joins the podcast to talk about the unlikely call that got him back into coaching elite athletes, coaching in the Finals bubble, and much, much more.
On this episode of The BarBend Podcast, host David Thomas Tao talks to Adam Neiffer about:
- Why coaching in the “athlete bubble” was a positive experience (02:14)
- Starting CrossFit before the days of elite coaching — or really, any coaching — around 2005 (06:23)
- Why so many firefighters — like Adam and Bill Grundler — were originally attracted to CrossFit (07:25)
- How Adam became Justin Medeiros’ coach years after he thought his elite coaching days were done (10:48)
- Taking someone from a “really good” CrossFitter to one of the world’s best (16:07)
- The family crisis that almost ended Justin Medeiros’ CrossFit Games season (21:00)
- Adam’s coaching style (and does coaching style matter?) (24:05)
Relevant links and further reading:
