England’s CrossFit champion Zack George on massive cuts to 2020 CrossFit Games – ‘It’s all just fuel for the fire’
- The obese teenager found fitness and is now the ‘fittest man’ in the United Kingdom
- Cuts to the 2020 CrossFit Games because of Covid-19 means George is now on the outside looking in
Zack George can probably thank the sedentary allure of video games for his exceptional physical prowess.
Growing up in Leicester, England, George was overweight as a child and struggled mightily with body image issues. His dad, hoping to inspire his son to get off the couch, enticed his 14-year-old with the offer of a PlayStation 2 if he could lose some weight. In the beginning, George’s goal was solely for the console.
“I really wanted a PS2,” said the now 29-year-old. “So I started to eat less junk food. I’d literally have McDonald’s or KFC, four or five times a week, that was my go-to lunch or dinner. And the weight started to slowly drop off as I started to eat healthier.”
After George dropped enough weight, he found his way into sports and ended up representing Leicestershire as a teenage county athlete in rugby, squash and table tennis. He credits a Tony Robbins seminar, an American self-help guru, with helping him shift mindsets at the start.
“I was quite self-conscious going to things like swimming pools, because I didn’t want to get my top off. I remember even being at home with my family and if they had friends around, if I had a top off I would quickly go and put a top on because I was embarrassed about my body.”