Dottir: My Journey to Becoming a Two-Time CrossFit Games Champion

by Katrin Davidsdottir, Rory McKernan

This is a memoir by two-time CrossFit Games champion, Katrin Davidsdottir.

Dottir is two-time consecutive CrossFit Games Champion Katrin Davidsdottir's inspiring and poignant memoir. As one of only two women in history to have won the title of “Fittest Woman on Earth” twice, Davidsdottir knows all about the importance of mental and physical strength. She won the title in 2015, backing it up with a second win in 2016, after starting CrossFit in just 2011.

A gymnast as a youth, Davidsdottir wanted to try new challenges and found a love of CrossFit. But it hasn't been a smooth rise to the top. In 2014, just one year before taking home the gold, she didn't qualify for the Games. She used that loss as motivation and fuel for training harder and smarter for the 2015 Games. She pushed herself and refocused her mental game. Her hard work and perseverance paid off with her return to the Games and subsequent victories in 2015 and 2016.

In Dottir, Davidsdottir shares her journey with readers. She details her focus on training, goal setting, nutrition, and mental toughness.

Genres: Sports, Nonfiction, Biography, Memoir, Fitness, Audiobook, Biography Memoir

304 pages, Hardcover

Published August 6, 2019

Reviews

[Khurram · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book with a great message and incredible insights and first-hand knowledge of the mind and life of a champion.

Katrin Davidsdottir's has an amazing story and extremely important messages about never giving up, learning from setbacks, and how you treat other people. All these are essential in becoming a world champion, but also staying a champion not just in sport but in life as well.

I am not a huge CrossFit fan, but I am always interested in the mental mindset needed to be a champion or a success. This book shows this in spades. The book starts with the 2007 games, which were Katrin and her team's greatest "underperformance." As is quoted in this book

"People have no idea how good you have to be to suck at the World CrossFit games."

What this is just to qualify to get to the World CrossFit games you need to be fitter than 95% of the world's population.

The reason for starting the book with a loss is that it shows the mentally needed to not just learn from failure but want to learn from failure and come back stronger, fitter, or better.

The format of the book is the 2007 World CrossFit games, then back to the beginning of Katrin's early adult life, her start in gymnastics, moving to other sports and training till she finally found CrossFit. The book covers the choices and sacrifices both mental and physical needed to become a two-time champion.

The book is full of life lessons, the journey from one destination to the next. The only reason I did not give the book 5 stars is I did not find it as gripping as some of the other Autobiographies I have read, though this could be as stated me not being a huge CrossFit fan. However, this is a great insight into becoming a champion, remaining a champion, and incorporating that into becoming a great person.

[Diane S ☔ · Rating 2 out of 5]

I admire the hard work and training that goes into this sport. Winning champion two times is a fantastic and difficult accomplishment. It just didn't translate well into the written page. At least not for me. I think this is one of those cases where watching, participating is better than reading.

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reviewed on: Ashes Books & Bobs.

Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press & Netgalley for the chance to read this book early!

I love when two of my main interests merge, in this case, reading and fitness in one package. I’ve been a fan of CrossFit and the Dottirs for years, starting with my discovery of the sport and Annie Thorisdottir in 2010. Since then I’ve been excited to see girls from Iceland taking over the fitness world – showing women beauty comes in many forms. They are shattering the box society wants to force women into by becoming elite athletes, slinging weights, and completing tasks the average person cannot imagine. My love for the sport started with Annie, but I’ve come to admire each of the girls from Iceland and continue to watch CrossFit specifically to see them compete each summer. I even have my own motivation wall in my garage gym with posters of Katrin, Annie, and Sara! When I discovered Katrin’s book, I couldn’t wait to dive in and learn more about her lifestyle from her own words!

There were many facets of this book I enjoyed reading about, from the landscape and characteristics of Iceland to the mental ups and downs of pushing one’s body past its limits every day. I couldn’t imagine being more inspired by a Dottir than I have been in the past, but Katrin accomplished it by letting her humanity shine through the pages of her memoir. Though her work ethic cannot be compared to the average person, it was refreshing to see she’s just a regular girl with an unmatched desire to put in work and time to pursue her passion. Her feats of strength and capacity for work are inspiring, but her character outshines all of it. In this book, she almost focused on her flaws, failures, and weaknesses more than her greatness. I was impressed by her humility in writing about her life.

I stayed up late reading Katrin’s story and was even brought to tears when she reflected on her grandmother’s life and unfortunate passing. The bond they shared and the strength she continues to draw from her Amma was beautiful to behold. I loved her grandmother’s words of wisdom and the advice she gave Katrin throughout her life. I felt honored to be able to experience those touching moments through this book.

It was interesting to see the number of people that come into pushing one person to become “The Fittest on Earth”. It’s truly a team effort that propels each athlete to the top, but the dedication and mental toughness of Katrin is the cherry on top. My favorite thing about this book was Katrin’s show of mentality playing the biggest factor in the preparation and execution of the Games. Even though she has experienced a highly respectable success, she still sometimes struggles with feeling down or burnt out. If the head isn’t in it, the body will not follow. To see that even one of my most admired athletes experiences these moments too is somehow comforting to know. I found a lot of motivation in these pages and even more respect for the demand these high-level athletes place upon themselves.

The ending felt slightly rushed and I would have liked to see a few ideas expanded upon, but I highly enjoyed this look into a topic and person I’m incredibly interested in and motivated by. I could have read double the amount about Katrin’s life and hope that the other Dottirs will follow suit in writing about their experiences. These women are changing the world. If you’re a fitness fanatic, this book should be on your list.

[Milda Stasaitytė · Rating 2 out of 5]

Katrin is a fun girl with an amazing work ethic and athlete mentality. The story is interesting to anyone who has at least tried CrossFit, but even more so to anyone who’s competed in it. The problem is the writing which is pretty horrible and very social media if that makes sense (she herself writes how she is not a reader and how Pippi Longstocking is a CARTOON character 🙄). So her book really feels like nothing more than merch.
Other than that, it reads quickly and can be quite motivating to give that extra kick in your next training session.

[Zsófia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think I would have devoured this book in about two days, but it took me five days because as I was reading, I decided to watch the CrossFit Games events on YouTube that Katrín was talking about in the book. I had so much fun this way and I was totally engrossed throughout. I have been a regular at the gym for almost 7 years, doing work with kettlebells, barbells and bodyweight exercises, but I have never previously paid much attention to the world of CrossFit due to its high risk of injury. I still don't want to train this way but I have decided to pay close attention to the Games from now on as I have realized how exciting it is and how amazing the competing athletes are. I can totally appreciate their strength, stamina, willpower & the huge amount of work they put into this. I loved this behind the scenes look.
Another very important aspect of Dottir for me is what Katrín wrote about women's body image and how your relationship with your body changes once you start training. I have personally experienced everything she talks about, and I am so happy that this message is being promoted to a wider audience. I am so motivated when I see these female athletes (and thousands of girls in their wake) doing their thing and laughing at anybody who doesn't understand that their muscles are the result and visual representation of their hard work and something to be proud of.
Now this book is not a literary masterpiece but of course that's not what they wanted it to be either. Instead it delivers its important messages in a way that's easy to understand. I also want to congratulate Katrín for her willingness to be vulnerable and opening up about very personal matters. And she's only 26 years old! I can't wait to see where her journey takes her in the future.

[Sarah Stone · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dottir was seemingly everything I thought it wouldn't be. I expected Davidsdottir's first book to be another lighthearted fitness memoir, but I was incredibly wrong. As a bookseller, It's rare for me to even make notes in a books, but I was drawn to notate and highlight key takeaways nearly every page. Davidsdottir's theme and mantra of "be the best me" is something regardless of your CrossFit knowledge can take away from her memoir. She goes on to say "Champions don't have balance, and the reason they are exceptional is because they focus all their time and energy on what they do." For Katrin, she is a champion in her job as a professional crossfit athlete, but the takeway was how you as the reader could also be a champion at your job regardless of what it is. A huge "lightbulb" moment of the book is when Davidsdottir realizes that she can only control what she can to "let(tting) the rest of it roll off my back." As a female entrepreneur I found that this really resonated with me. Finally, I enjoyed reading about not only who Katrin was an athlete but also about her family, childhood, university, and her friendship with two-time champ Annie Thorsdottir. This isn't a book for just the niche crossfit athletes but for anyone that is looking to dial in their professional and personal lives to "be the best me."

[Lance · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ugh! I rarely rate a book this low, but this book jumped all over the place, had no flow, and aside from her first championship at the CrossFit games in 2015, wasn’t all that inspiring to me. I am sure that some will enjoy this book, but not me.

[Robin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a memoir about the amazing Katrin Davidsdottir. She is a two time winner of the Fittest Woman on Earth prize. She is a Crossfit star.
As a huge fan of Katrin Davidsdottir I had to ask to review this book. I love that she is always smiling. She is strong and fit, but still a girly girl. I love that my grand daughter can watch her and know that it is okay to be strong and feminine.
On to the book!
She started off in gymnastics, but it was not her thing. She just did not love it. When she started in Crossfit in 2011, she knew she had found her niche. One of the things that I loved about this book is her close relationship with her family. She and her grandmother were very close. She had the confidence that her grandmother was always there for her and always believed in her. I hope my grandchildren will always know that about me too. I feel like this memoir was well done. She seemed to be open and honest about her success and her failures. She is a woman who is not afraid to put in the work to get the results she needs.

[Sean · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Nice and easy read.

[Em Green · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was amazing I have always been interested in the Icelandic woman CrossFitters! This book delivers it all her struggles and successes, I love this and a 1000 out of 5!

[Katie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Memoir of a 2-time winner of the CrossFit games. I loved the 2 feature-length documentary movies I saw about the CrossFit games competitions, and was excited to find a memoir from one of the winners. This sport is weirdly dominated by a high proportion of Icelanders, a country with a population of only 330,000 so it's really interesting and weird how many of them are at the top of this sport.

Katrin describes the process of becoming astoundingly fit and ripped, which is beyond me but which I find fascinating to read about. The process of becoming THIS strong and lifting things (over and over) that regular humans find unimaginable times 10, is just naturally a good story. Sports memoirs in general keep me on the edge of my seat, and it definitely delivered on that as well as being a nice complement to one of the aforementioned movies which I watched last night; it was great seeing it happening on the screen just as she described the events in the book.

However--I can't rate it any higher because this is one of the most sloppily-edited books I've ever read. Some of the mistakes were just downright funny though... part of a CrossFit competition workout was typed as a run of "300 miles" when it was really 300 meters. Um, BIG DIFFERENCE. And she typo'd the name of one of her siblings in the photo captions not once but twice. Then, there was the one chapter where she obviously must have written it herself as opposed to the ghostwriter because it was peppered with exclamation points (as was the Intro, which she also wrote).

[Marguerite Rauch · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sports memoirs are not for everyone. I found this one appealing for several reasons: 1. the insight into Icelandic culture, especially with respect to athletic women; 2. the culture and community of CrossFit; and 3. the minutiae of the athlete’s mind, and how minute by minute one must think to become a champion. Katrin is very candid about her mental and emotional struggles, and the reader benefits from the deeply honest examination of unproductive thought patterns during training and competition. It gave me much to think about with respect to staying motivated during the daily grind, and ways to think about setting and achieving goals in any endeavor, whether it be work, personal projects, diet, or fitness.
Impressive indeed that a small island nation can produce a relatively high percentage of notable CrossFit Games competitors. Katrin describes the Viking background of Icelanders, and how dogged determination was required to settle and prosper in such a barren land. The “sled dog” mentality of digging into hard work is a perfect match for CrossFit training and competition. The friendly competition and supportiveness of the CrossFit community is highly beneficial in the grind of training. In a sport where one may be tempted to train in isolation, the community atmosphere, that doesn’t exist at many gyms, is emblematic in CrossFit gyms (at least in Katrin’s view.) My experience in my local gym is more of an individual endeavor, with little to no interaction or even eye contact with others. Talking to others would feel like a strange and unwelcome imposition. Katrin describes a real fitness community of support.
I was very impressed by her candor regarding the mind set needed to go all out for winning, the way you need to laser focus attention, remain absolutely positive, while self-assessing health and technique, and urging one’s body to be on the edge of reckless, but not going over that edge. It’s a really difficult balance to strike, and it makes sense that, as with many things, over-preparation is key. That way, regardless of what happens, you feel equipped to make the best of it. It gives you a level of confidence you can’t have any other way. Katrin needed to find the commitment to this goal, and as such a young person, she naturally was fumbling around trying to figure out what goal she should commit to. She took on too much at times, which only served to be depressing when she couldn’t perform her best in any area, with mediocre results from too many goals. She was trying to “find herself”, trying to figure out who she wanted to be, and where her talents should take her. Trying to please those she admired, her diplomat grandfather, her strong father, her supportive grandmother and mother– none of them could supply the answer that had to come from within her, Katrin. It is a struggle we all must live through, and often many times through our lives.

I highly recommend this memoir, which sets the bar higher, meets and exceeds your expectations. Having watched several CrossFit Games documentaries, it is helpful to have an insider’s understanding on the nature of the challenges athletes endure.

[Agnė · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a huge fan of CrossFit. Also, I adore Katrin Davidsdottir's work ethics and her mindset. These facts definitely make me a little bit biased when evaluating Katrin's memoir, but I found Dottir: My Journey to Becoming a Two-Time CrossFit Games Champion to be very inspiring, positive, and engaging look behind the scenes of one of the best athletes in CrossFit history.

Most people already know that Katrin is a stellar athlete. I mean, in the last five CrossFit Games, she consistently finished among the top five, winning twice. But Katrin's memoir reveals that she's also an exceptional human being. Her gratitude and vulnerability are commendable, and her relationships with her family and close friends are beyond admirable.

However, as a book, Dottir isn't perfect by any means. Its flow is a little bit off sometimes, and certain parts are a bit repetitive. Such flaws didn't diminish the book's impact on me, but again, I might be a tiny bit biased :)

[Karin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not to take away from her accomplishments as an athlete, but this memoir was really dry, repetitive, and gave me no real insight what it's like to train for something of this caliber. Honestly I would rather have read a memoir by her coach. I hate to say it but this is the kind of memoir people are referring to when they say young people shouldn't write memoirs. It's really not the age of the writer, but there isn't enough real insight there.

[Dennis Ray · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh.... The idea is nice, but not everyone should write a book. Not enough descriptive writing and real insight, not enough depth and you don't feel like you got to know the REAL Katrin.

[Isabel Liedtke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Katrin Davidsdottir's biography is a profoundly inspirational tale that transcends the realm of CrossFit. It skillfully illustrates how vulnerabilities can be transformed into strengths, shaping her into a remarkable athlete. The narrative beautifully captures the journey of a champion—someone dedicated to relentless hard work, sacrifices, and a holistic approach to both physical and mental aspects of competitive sports. Whether you're a CrossFit enthusiast or simply appreciate stories of resilience, Davidsdottir's biography is a compelling and motivational read that resonates beyond the realm of athletics.

[Marcelo · Rating 3 out of 5]

“I am the fittest woman on earth but in that moment, I felt so powerless”

Such an insightful quote, reminding the limitations of the human body. I enjoyed the book especially as a fan of CrossFit but I thought the structure of the book could have been better and the energy of the moments she’s describing failed to live up in words compared to what I’ve seen on documentaries or YouTube.

[Megan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Katrin seems very sweet, but there doesn't seem to be any point to the book other than to tell her life story, which is not presented in a compelling or meaningful fashion. It seems to be lacking a lot in terms of self-awareness and how any particular moment, struggle, or success fits into the greater picture.

[cellomerl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Audiobook, read by the author. How good is it?? Well, reading this book took me right out of my year-long slump and straight back into my workouts with a vengeance. That’s how good.
This is one hell of an accomplished, courageous, inspiring and charming young woman.

[Julia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great insight into Katrin’s mind during her biggest competitions and her growth through failures. I thought that there was a lot of push and pull Katrin’s voice and the authors which made it feel inconsistent/choppy but overall a great read

[Eddie Lopez · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great insight into the mind of a CrossFit athlete and the up’s and downs of the sport. She was very open in with her experiences which I appreciated. She didn’t hold back in depicting the lows in her career.

[Levi · Rating 4 out of 5]

There were a lot of cool things about this book, but one thing that stood out was how many times Katrin talked about how egalitarian Icelandic society is. Little surprise that the country (population of just under 350K) has churned out some of the strongest/fittest women ever.

[Rachel Anderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Katrin and her dedication. Super cool to have a glimpse into her mindset and challenges. Also she makes me proud to have Viking blood..shoutout to strong women, built like a frickin truck.

[Julia Johnston · Rating 5 out of 5]

Give me 80 more chapters please. I love her

[Eileen Souza · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great to learn more about Katrin's experiences and perspectives - especially through the many events where I have cheered her on. Vinna Sleđahundur!

[Janelle Lori · Rating 5 out of 5]

I mean, it’s Katrin. It’s everything you’d expect from this Wonder Woman. Fantastic story- the audio book was fabulous!! Her voice is full of emotion and even a couple giggles

[Mary R · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Katrin. She's so positive and inspirational. This book wasn't great though. As someone who has seen the documentaries, I thought she used the documentaries for guidance on how to write the book. Or perhaps she's already an open book online so none of this felt new to me. It felt strange to hear for the first time about her best friend in the last hour of the audiobook. Also, reading this after she left her coach makes me wonder what will be said in future memoirs.

[Mona Kubin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've always loved Katrin. Her Interviews. The way she talks and how positive she always seems to be and i love the insight this book gave me on her and how she got there because not every journey is an easy one. I admire her honesty in her book. I feel like this was very vulnerable book.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quick, easy read. If you love the sport side of CrossFit, you’ll enjoy this book.

I would have liked to see some things a little more fleshed out - the 2018 season felt rushed, the underlying turmoil of her 2017 season. The end of the last chapter before the epilogue felt out of place. On the flip side, there were some things that were brought up many times and felt redundant. Additionally, there were many spelling and grammar errors that contributed to an overall sense of the book being rushed.

[Leiba · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 1/2 stars (I feel compelled to deduct half a star when a book is not adequately proofread)