Heart: Scott Wells

April 24, 2012

Jennifer Heathcock

It might be Scott Wells’ first appearance at a CrossFit Games Regional, but don’t be fooled. He’s no newcomer to CrossFit or training hard.

It might be Scott Wells’ first appearance at a CrossFit Games Regional, but don’t be fooled. He’s no newcomer to CrossFit or training hard.

The owner of CrossFit The Woodlands has been around CrossFit long enough to have taken the original CrossFit Level 1 Seminar from Greg Glassman at the original Santa Cruz gym. For the last eight years, he’s focused on his work and his athletes, and dedicated many hours to his Lift Strong, Run Fast training methodology.

“I have never been a big fan of competition. I compete everyday when I train,” he says. “I don't need a competition to tell me I'm in shape. But, every time I go to local events, I seem to win.”

Wells trains twice a day, six days a week. The 33-year-old Singapore native uses the conjugate system, focusing on recovery. And he’s got something right. Wells can deadlift 615 pounds and run 400 meters in a time of 52 seconds, all while tipping the scale at 200 pounds. He's traveled the world and learned different training methods along the way.

Wells says it’s about adrenal response to training stimulus. He does all of his own programming. His methods are no secret. He sends all his workouts to anyone who wants them, including one of his biggest competitors in the region, Aja Barto. This year, three individuals and a team from his box advanced to the South Central Regional. “Programming is like chess, anyone can learn to play in a matter of minutes, it takes years to master,” he says.

Wells says he wasn’t taking the workouts seriously in the Open. Since then, he’s changed his tune. “When I get to San Antonio, I'll be ready. You can count on that.”

On the topic of strengths and weaknesses, he says he'd like to see a heavy deadlift at the Regional, but he admits Olympic lifting is one of his weaknesses. “I can only snatch 245 pounds and clean and jerk 315 pounds,” Wells says. “Even though that might sound good to some, it's nowhere near where I need to be.”

Open Workouts 12.1 and 12.5 went smoothly, but he faced adversity in between, working through too little sleep and many distractions. “Never go into anything thinking about strategy. My strategy is: go hard and take 1st.”

Following that dictum, he came in 5th in a region with a powerhouse of talent.

“The competition gets better every year and I think of the top 10 people, anyone can be No. 1. Everyone in the top 10 has the skill to be No. 1,” he says. “It’s just how they perform. Will you be ready when the lights come on and your number is called?”

But those four other men in the South Central Region ahead of him aren’t whom he’s chasing. Wells has a “David and Goliath” type story, looking to unseat Rich Froning as the Fittest Man in the World. “Froning is my Goliath. If I want to beat Goliath, I have to turn into Goliath. Have to be bigger, faster, stronger,” he says. “If you’re not ready by you’re training, nothing will prepare you.”

Preparation three years in the making. Wells is beginning to work in three-a-days, and he’s hired a chef to prepare his meals until he hits the stage in San Antonio.

The coach, business owner and father says fitness has to remain a way of life. “I always get asked what my Fran time is. My reply is, 'Fast enough.' A 2:15 Fran doesn’t make me good at anything besides Fran.”

But he’s not slowing down, in what he calls a ‘young man’s sport,’ because he’s set on one outcome: winning.

“I have respect for every competitor out there. But, if anyone thinks they’ve got a bigger heart than me, I'm going to make them prove it. When I get to Regionals, I'm going to bring everyone to the deep end and see who can swim. That's where we'll settle our business and see who's good enough to compete on the world stage.”