Last night I received word from Bill DeSimone of Congruent Exercise that my fitness mentor Greg Anderson died over the weekend. Greg Anderson ran Seattle’s Ideal Exercise and has been active in the High-Intensity Training community for many years. Greg was passionate about fitness and High-Intensity Training.
How I met Greg was pure luck. When my Tales From the Glitter Gym series was featured on MetaFilter, I got slammed with negative comments. One of the negative comments was specific to the fact that I was dismissive of cardio. I decided to do a more detailed post on the topic, so I wrote The Myth of Cardiovascular Training. Although there are some minor things I would change today, for the most part, I am still proud of that post.
Shortly after that post, I received an email introduction from Greg. He really liked the new cardio post and invited me to his HIT gym for a workout. Greg’s gym was a short drive away from where I live in Seattle.
I detailed my first HIT workout with Greg in the post High-Intensity Training at Ideal Exercise of Seattle. Prior to this workout, I was attempting to practice what I had been reading in the book Body By Science. I was doing the movements correctly. I was even doing OK with the fluid movements and the timing.
What I didn’t get until my workout with Greg was what intensity really means. After this workout and a follow-up session with Greg, I became a believer and disciple of HIT. People laugh when I tell them I work out just 10-15 minutes per week. They wouldn’t laugh had they experienced a HIT workout by Greg Anderson. Those first 9 minutes I spent with Greg will forever be seared in my memory.
Greg Anderson is my fitness mentor. I learned a lot from him. He will be missed. Dr. McGuff, the author of the greatest fitness book ever, Body By Science, just posted a nice tribute to Greg titled The Greatest Trainer in the World. Read it all.
UPDATE: Dr. McGuff has foolishly let his BodyByScience website go offline. I have recovered the article and am posting it below in its entirety.
The Greatest Trainer in the World
by Doug McGuff December 2, 2012
I was getting ready to go down to UE for my WOW when I found my cell phone. I had a voicemail from Washington State that came in at around 2am. A second voicemail had been left later in the morning. When I checked the messages, I found the most devastating news imaginable.
It is with a heavy heart and unimaginable sadness that I inform BBS followers and the HIT community at large that my dear friend Greg Anderson has died. Greg introduced me to real HIT in May of 1997 when I made the pilgrimage to Ideal Exercise in Seattle to be trained by who I would come to regard as the best HIT trainer who ever lived. I remember the five-sets of devastation like it was yesterday. I wore a brand new pair of Reebok shoes when he put me through that workout. They have been my training shoes ever since that day. Every workout I have done at UE has been with those shoes, simply because I wanted to recapture some of the magic that Greg delivered to me that day. Later that year, I would open UE based on the inspiration Greg provided and I returned to be certified by Greg because no-one else would do. I could have been certified by Ken Hutchins himself, but I chose to travel across the continent to be certified by Greg. Greg introduced me to my childhood hero Mike Mentzer. Greg set a new course for my life when I met him in May of 1997. I have sought his counsel on all issues great and small since that time. He is quite simply one of the greatest minds I have encountered in my 50 years on Earth…and now he is gone. I spoke at length with his wife Ann-Marie and she asked me to notify the community of Greg’s passing. After making some difficult phone calls, I went down to UE for my WOW. I cried as I laced up my 1997 Reeboks. I will not post my WOW, instead I will post my WOW that Greg put me through in May of 1997. I will post a more formal memorial in a few days, but no matter how good I will try to make it, it will fall short of doing justice to this legend of a man.
Nautilus Power Plus Leg Extension (with custom fall-off cam)
Nautilus Power Plus Leg Press
Nautilus Rowing Torso (cams flipped for proper fall-off effect)
Nautilus Compound Row (static hold)
Nautilus Flat Bench Press Machine.
As I lay on the floor, he handed me a tiny Dixie Cup of water which I could not hold without spilling.
Comments
Mark
December 4 at 2012 at 11:25 PM
Greg will be missed greatly. He was a good friend and hell of a great guy that i’ve known for over 10 years.
Ann-Marie
December 6 at 2012 at 8:43 AM
Thank you Michael.
Your kind words mean a lot. You are always welcome at Ideal Exercise.
Sincerely,
Ann-Marie Anderson
MAS
December 6 at 2012 at 5:40 PM
@Ann-Marie - Thank you!
Laird
December 6 at 2012 at 7:44 PM
I just heard about this terrible news. I worked for Greg and Anne-Marie at IE in the late ’90s. Greg and I also trained in martial arts together. That was an important chapter in my life. Circumstances have taken me far from Seattle and I’ve fallen out of touch with the Andersons, but this news is difficult to learn.
Anne-Marie: My condolences. Greg: RIP, amigo. See you on the other side.
Sincerely,
Laird
Doug
December 7 at 2012 at 10:28 PM
My best friend is gone.I am so sad.Can’t get a grip on it.Ann-Marie,you are in our thoughts,all day,everyday.I will miss my phone conversations with Greg.
canadian
December 8 at 2012 at 4:28 AM
my condolences, having just recently stumbled across this blog and HIT, its a disappointment to come across news such as this :( …
Jeff
December 8 at 2012 at 10:25 PM
I am so sorry Ann-Marie and I am stunned. Thats the best way to describe hearing of Gregs passing. Greg was a great friend and mentor to me as I was starting that road to understanding HIT training. He was an inspiration who not only was always willing to teach but was able to bring it down to what was important. Never any B.S.!! Greg was a great trainer to be sure but also a great business man. He continued to grow and change his business with Ann- Marie as a partner to great success. He enjoyed his job!! Even though I fell out of favor with Greg over the last few years, I will miss the times we spent together and wish for more. Greg was great in exercise but he was also a great guy. There were many times he had me laughing so hard I thought I would burst. His wit was fast and furious. A brilliant guy and I am saddened by losing him. Bless you Ann- Marie and please know that I would love to help you if there is anything I can do.
JP
December 15 at 2012 at 4:00 PM
Wow, just read this. The last time I saw Greg was when Dr. McGuff did a presentation at Ideal. He seemed just fine then. How did Greg die?
MAS
December 15 at 2012 at 4:04 PM
@JP - I do not know.
Juan
December 16 at 2012 at 12:05 AM
Can someone in the know please tell of the proximate cause of death? I hear nothing but words of praise, but a deafening silence on the cause of death.
JP
December 16 at 2012 at 5:47 AM
Here is the obit: http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/seattletimes/obituary.aspx?n=greg-alan-anderson&pid=161619609#fbLoggedOut
Juan
December 16 at 2012 at 2:53 PM
JP, the Obituary does not answer my question. It only says that he died peacefully and to donate to the American Heart Association. Is it improper and impolite or just plain dumb to ask about the proximate cause of death? Did he die of a heart disease or failure of some kind? What did the High Intensity Training Protocole have to do with it?
Ann-Marie
December 16 at 2012 at 6:36 PM
Hi, Thank you, JP, for posting the obituary from the Seattle Times. The memorial on Saturday, January 19, 2:00PM at Pier 57 on the Seattle Waterfront is open to anyone who wants to come remember Greg and send him off to Valhalla.
Greg died of the same causes that his maternal grandfather did at the age of 49. Gout, extreme arthritis, and coronary artery disease, to name the most obvious. This last year, Greg had taken four major falls, inuring his back severely each time. I believe the damage to his body was just to much for his diseased system.
The cause of death, per the coroner, was that his arteries were completely blocked with calcium. Sometimes genetics trump the best of efforts to beat them. I know in my heart Greg is in a much happier place now.
Best Regards, Ann-Marie Anderson
JP
December 17 at 2012 at 1:26 AM
Ann-Marie, please accept our condolences. Greg will be missed.
Steve
August 6 at 2015 at 5:58 PM
He didn’t believe in cardiovascular exercise and he died from heart disease?
MAS
August 6 at 2015 at 6:04 PM
@Steve - My take on Greg’s writings is that he felt cardiovascular health could be a by product of strength training, specifically High Intensity Training. Getting stronger is an efficient path to improved cardiovascular health.