Today we’d like to introduce you to Doug Lewis.
Hi Doug, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
After retiring from my Ski Racing career as a Two-Time Olympian and World Championship Bronze Medalist, I found myself lost and without an identity.
I went from the pages of Sports Illustrated to a 25-year-old freshman at the University of Vermont mixed in with the other 40,000 students trying to graduate. I thought it would be so easy to just skip over to the top of another industry without working that hard. The harsh reality is that until you find that new passion, you will be treading water for a long time. That new passion was found when I was invited to coach some U10s at a local Ski Club in Vermont.
All of a sudden, my energy passion, and sense of purpose were back and I had found my new goal – to inspire and educate young athletes about how to pursue their dreams. To teach them the important skills that all Champions have – grit, resilience, goals, and a focus on sports physiology and nutrition. ELITEAM fitness programs were born! In addition to working with young athletes ages 11-17, I also work with Corporate Groups and help them inspire and educate their Leadership Teams to push their limits, embrace failure, and HAVE FUN!
Can you talk to us about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It has not been a smooth track to where we are now at all! In the first year (1990), we organized a Fitness Camp and sent out a Flyer without including the date!!! We have had to learn and grow and struggle every step of the way. However, when you are passionate about your Goal, it is not working at all, it is just solving problems and overcoming challenges.
Another challenge was sticking to our goal of having our camps be for athletes who want to work hard – to enjoy and seek out the struggle – to dig deeper than they have ever dug! In the end, though, we are known around the world for our commitment to challenging our athletes to fail, learn, fail again, and solve problems. We strive to have our athletes leave camp lovingly to DO HARD THINGS.
We teach self-awareness to our athletes and corporate groups, but we first have to become self-aware take advantage of our strengths, and work on our opportunities for improvement.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
My wife and I try to live according to the tenets we teach at ELITEAM – to always push your limits. This has led us to many athletic adventures. For example, I have become an Ultra-Runner. When I was on the US Ski Team, I hated to run. I was an Anaerobic athlete who only had to pass the two-mile test for endurance. Otherwise, I worked on Power, Strength & Agility.
After retiring though, my body was still in great shape without many injuries so I signed up for a Marathon – more for the challenge than the exercise. It was an awesome experience of struggle and pain and low moments that all culminated with the intense high of crossing the finish line. From there, I just kept pushing farther. At this point, for the last 6 years, I have entered (AND FINISHED) a 100-mile running race somewhere around the world. I try to pick a race that is super hard, super beautiful and somewhere I have never been!
This past October, we went to Big Bear Lake in CA outside of LA and I ran around the lake, accumulating 17,000 vertical feet and somehow finishing in under 24 hours! It was a life goal of mine to finish sub-24. My wife is my coach, confidante, supporter, and Aid Station queen – I could not do it without her. Although the result is awesome, looking back, it is the 5 months of grit training, nutrition, and sleep that I enjoy the most. Setting goals is the key to staying motivated and inspired! What goals are you setting today?
Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
Find your passion and somehow make it part of your daily life. Mine (as well as my wife’s) is Skiing and being an Athlete. So that has been essential to our planning. It affects where we live, who are friends are, our daily schedule, as well as what we eat.
So, I encourage everyone to find what they like to do, and make it part of their life – every day! And for most, that means sacrificing some things that may seem awesome, but may not be by your values. Like drinking staying up late, or living in a particular home.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://eliteam.com/olympian-doug-lewis/
- Instagram: @eliteamdigdeep
- Facebook: Doug Lewis
- Youtube: Youtube.com/ELITEAM
