Bound Newsletter 2.15.2026
The Teams Are Set. The Intramural Open Starts Now.
How to Win the CrossFit Bound Intramural Open
So How Do You Actually Win?
You win by:
✔ Showing up every week
✔ Getting judged and judging others
✔ Submitting scores on time
✔ Bringing the loudest cheering section
✔ Finishing strong in Week 3
It’s not just about PRs.
It’s about consistency.
It’s about team culture.
It’s about community.
What This Really Means
The Intramural Open isn’t designed to crown the fittest individual.
It’s designed to build the strongest gym.
For three weeks, every athlete matters.
Every judge matters.
Every cheer matters.
And every rep counts.
The Leaderboard Will Move.
The Energy Will Rise.
And One Team Will Take It All.
Which team will it be?
That part’s up to you.
Let the games begin. 💪
(It’s Not What You Think)
The teams are set.
The workouts are coming.
The leaderboard is ready.
But before Week 1 kicks off, let’s talk about how this thing is actually won.
Because here’s the truth:
The Intramural Open is NOT just about who can lift the most or move the fastest.
It’s about who shows up.
Who supports.
Who brings the energy.
And who understands how the scoring system works.
Let’s break it down.
🏋️ 1. Performance Points
Yes — performance matters.
Each week, athletes earn points based on placement in the gym:
1st -10 pts
2nd - 9 pts
3rd - 8 pts
4th - 7 pts
5th - 6 pts
6th - 5 pts
7th - 4 pts
8th - 3 pts
9th - 2 pts
10th - 1 pts
If you finish high, your team benefits.
But here’s the twist…
Performance points are only part of the equation.
🙌 2. Participation Points (Where Championships Are Won)
Every athlete can earn up to 25 points per week just by being involved.
You earn points for:
Completing the workout - 5 pts
Judging another athlete - 5 pts
Attending Friday Night Lights - 5 pts
Submitting your score on time - 5 pts
Registering for the Open - 5 pts
That means someone who finishes mid-pack but does all five of those things can outscore someone who wins the workout but skips judging or FNL.
Let that sink in.
You don’t have to be the fittest athlete in the gym to be the most valuable to your team.
🎉 3. Spirit & Energy Points
Every week, coaches award bonus points for:
Best team energy
Best theme or costumes
Best sportsmanship
Weekly team challenges
If your team brings the noise, dresses the part, and supports every heat — you’ll see it reflected on the leaderboard.
Energy is strategic.
🔥 Week 3 Changes Everything
Just when you think the standings are locked in…
Week 3 scores are multiplied by 1.25x.
That means no team is safe.
And no team is out.
Everything is still in play until the final workout.
Bragging Board:
Some of the boys competed at one of the largest in person fitness competitions in the world this past weekend in Charleston, SC - The Fittest of the Coast
Jeb Buffington - 4th place (8 pts from podium) in the 45-49 Age Group Division
Jesus Mundo (The peoples champ) - Finished in the top 48
Grant Griffin & Logan - (currently in 5th while creating this in the PRO Men Team)
Trevor Lampe & Cole Scott - (Currently in 21st out of 33 teams in the Rx Men Team)
* not pictured is Matt Link who finished 10th in the 40-44 Age Group division
Snatch PRs from last week
- Dylan Porter 225
- Fatih Sen 100
- Sarah P 115
- Casey Linch 160
- Stanford Garey with a 230lb Snatch!
Check Out our Weekly Training Highlight Reel Below
Upcoming Brithdays & Anniversaries
Anniversaries
5-Years
- Brian Chambers Feb 22
4-Years
- Hilary & Trevor Maloney Feb 14
3-Years
- Ruben Rivera Feb 3
2-Year
- Greg Dafini Feb 12
- Jim Blackhall Feb 15
1-Year
- Elaine Dunbar Feb 7
- Sam Porter Feb 20
- Paulette Colon Feb 28
- Sabrina Melo Feb 2
Birthdays
Kamila Hernandez Feb 15
Savannah Haygood Feb 17
Jenni Pettit Feb 17
Jennifer Hughes Feb 19
Ryan Allen Feb 21
Miles Pettit Feb 26
Upcoming Events & Clinics
CROSSFIT OPEN - FEBRUARY 26 through MARCH 16
- Jan 14th is the opening day for registration. Let’s represent this year!
- HERE are more details.
Barbell Club starts back on Thursday February 19th
Friday Night Lights
Feb 27
March 6
March 13
Olivia Kates Path 5K in celebration of Olivia Pugh to benefit the Oliva Kate Pugh Strength and Shield Scholarship to Harrison High School Seniors
February 28, 2026 @ 8:30am
Sign Up By Following this LINK
CrossFit Journal Article of the Week: The True Measure of Elite Conditioning: Technique Under Fatigue
By Stephane Rochet, CF-L3
In all types of sports — from MMA to basketball, football, soccer, and hockey, to biathlon, climbing, gymnastics, and tennis — coaches often remark that the champions we revere have a “great engine” or that they are remarkably conditioned.
Many fans take this to mean the athlete has a great VO2 max, cardiorespiratory endurance, or power endurance. While these traits may play a role in an athlete’s conditioning, truly elite conditioning stems from the ability to maintain excellent technique under fatigue. This is what sets great athletes apart in how conditioned they appear, and it is a key factor in how they overcome their opponents.
To perform with excellent technique while fatigued requires a high level of capacity in all 10 general physical skills, honed sport or activity-specific technique from diligent, dedicated practice at real-world speed, and the mental discipline to stay focused in the moment and accomplish the task while ignoring the screaming signals from the brain to stop and rest.
Outside the sports world, success in many professions also requires skillfully performing one’s craft while fatigued. For soldiers, firefighters, and police officers, this ability can determine the difference between life and death. Developing the capacity to perform complex techniques while fatigued requires us to push ourselves in practice to a level of fatigue that matches competition level, and work on developing and refining our technique in this state. We must do this with the specific skills our sport or profession demands, but we can also use our strength and conditioning program to support these efforts. As the old saying goes, “We don’t rise to the level of our expectations; we fall to the level of our training.”
“We don’t rise to the level of our expectations; we fall to the level of our training.”
CrossFit has long been considered a “tip of the spear” strength and conditioning program, meaning that it provides the capacity required for elite performance in sports or in rigorous physical professions like soldiering. MMA fighters have remarked that CrossFit workouts feel like a fight, and soldiers have said our workouts mimic the physical aspects of combat.
Indeed, one of the key components that differentiates CrossFit from other fitness programs is that we demand athletes push their relative intensity in workouts — to push into uncomfortable zones of effort — while maintaining excellent technique. We call this threshold training. Threshold training provides the blueprint not only for developing, to a high degree, the 10 general physical skills we need for fitness, but also for building our ability to perform complex tasks at game speed, over and over, without succumbing to fatigue.
Put simply, we can take the mental and physical lessons we learn from threshold training in our CrossFit class into jiu-jitsu practice, football practice, or military or law enforcement scenario training. The capacity that allows us to perform proper squats, cleans, snatches, push-ups, or deadlifts at a high relative intensity with great technique, even when fatigued, is the same capacity required in sports, on the street, or on the battlefield.
Obviously, the stakes may be different in the real world, but this makes it all the more important that we train for the worst in the friendly confines of the gym. If we don’t train in a way that forces us to execute great technique while fatigued, we are likely to fail miserably when life or nature inevitably thrusts a challenge our way that requires this capability. This is why it is so important to strive every day to give our best effort to maintain excellent technique in our workouts, even as fatigue mounts, rather than letting fatigue win, getting sloppy, and just trying to get through the workout.
The difference in results from these two approaches is the difference between good fitness and elite fitness. If we’re going to suffer in our training the way we do, we might as well become elite.
RECIPE OF THE WEEK: Slow Cooker Salsa Verde Chicken & Rice Bowl
Instructions
Place chicken breasts in Crockpot.
Pour broth, salsa verde, and green chilies over the top.
Add spices and lime juice.
Cook on:
Low: 6–7 hours
High: 3–4 hours
Shred chicken with two forks and stir back into juices.
Cook rice separately.
Assemble bowls:
1 cup rice
6–8 oz shredded chicken
Optional black beans + fresh toppings
Why This Works for CrossFit Athletes
✅ High Protein – Supports muscle repair and recovery
✅ Moderate Carbs – Replenishes glycogen after hard training
✅ Low Fat – Keeps digestion lighter around workouts
✅ Meal Prep Friendly – Tastes even better the next day
🔄 How to Adjust Based on Goals
Cutting / Leaning Out:
Use ¾ cup rice per serving
Skip beans
Performance / Higher Volume Training:
Increase rice to 1½ cups
Add extra black beans
Extra Flavor Boost (Minimal Fat Added):
Add Greek yogurt instead of sour cream
Sprinkle cotija cheese lightly
Macros (Per Serving – approx. 6 servings)
Protein: 40–45g
Carbs: 40–45g
Fat: 6–8g
Calories: ~380–420
Great for post-workout recovery or meal prep for the week.
🛒 Ingredients
Protein Base
2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast
1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
16 oz jar salsa verde (look for low-sugar option)
1 can (4 oz) diced green chilies
1 tbsp cumin
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
Juice of 1 lime
Carbohydrate Base
2 cups dry jasmine or basmati rice (cook separately)
Add-Ins (Optional but Recommended)
1 can black beans (drained & rinsed)
Fresh cilantro
Diced red onion
Shredded lettuce
Pico de gallo
