Bound Newsletter 10.19.2025
Why We Test Our Strength in Fitness
"The Iron never lies to you." – Henry Rollins
There’s something deeply personal about strength testing. It’s not just about the numbers on the barbell or how much weight you can lift. It’s about honesty. When you step up to the bar, there’s no hiding behind excuses, no shortcuts, no filters. The iron gives you exactly what you’ve earned—nothing more, nothing less.
Henry Rollins said it best: “The Iron never lies to you. You can walk outside and listen to all kinds of talk, get told that you’re a god or a total bastard. The Iron will always kick you the real deal.” That’s the truth of training—it’s a mirror that reflects who you are in that moment, physically and mentally.
Why We Test Strength
Testing strength in fitness isn’t about ego—it’s about awareness. It’s a chance to see where your training has taken you and where you need to go next. Here are five key reasons why we test:
To Measure Progress
You can’t manage what you don’t measure. Testing provides a clear, objective look at your improvement over time. Whether it’s your 1-rep max squat or how many strict pull-ups you can perform, these numbers tell the story of your consistency and discipline.To Set New Goals
Strength testing isn’t the end—it’s the checkpoint. Once you know where you stand, you can map out where you want to go. Maybe that’s adding 10 pounds to your clean, or maybe it’s perfecting your technique before chasing a heavier lift.To Expose Weaknesses
Testing day isn’t always a highlight reel. Sometimes, it’s humbling—and that’s a good thing. It reveals the areas that need work, showing you where you can improve stability, mobility, or endurance. The iron doesn’t sugarcoat the truth.To Build Confidence
There’s a special kind of confidence that comes from moving something you once couldn’t. It’s not arrogance—it’s earned self-belief. Strength testing shows you what’s possible when effort meets patience.To Reinforce Integrity
Testing requires honesty. You can’t fake a lift. You either stand it up or you don’t. The weight doesn’t care about your mood, your stress, or your story—it just responds to your work. That’s what makes strength training such an authentic measure of character.
Stay in Your Lane
While testing is valuable, it’s just as important to stay in your lane. Testing strength is not a competition with the person next to you—it’s a conversation between you and the barbell.
Be honest with where you are today. If you’re recovering, fatigued, or still refining your form, chasing numbers beyond your capacity only risks injury and frustration. The barbell demands respect. Staying in your lane means lifting with intention, not ego. It means understanding that strength is built through consistency, not comparison.
Every athlete’s journey looks different—some days you’re setting personal records, other days you’re reinforcing good movement patterns. Both are victories.
The Iron Never Lies
At CrossFit Bound, we test strength not just to measure load, but to measure honesty. Each lift is a reflection of your preparation, your mindset, and your discipline. The barbell doesn’t lie—it tells you exactly where you are and reminds you that progress is earned, never given.
So when you step up to test your strength, remember: it’s not about chasing someone else’s number. It’s about finding truth in your own.
Respect the iron. Stay in your lane. Be honest. That’s where real strength lives.
Bragging Board
Grant Griffin putting in the work at Crash Crucible
*this event is regarded as one of the most elite in the country in the sport of fitness. From programming, to the event management, to the athletes that participate. For Grant to be invited speaks volumes to his dedication and discipline in and out of the gym to raise his level of fitness to where it is. Proud of this guy.
Jen Wells and Piper competing at the One World Canine Run
*from Jens IG page “Piper and I competed in the @oneworldcaninerun today, and it was an adventure! Over 4.5 miles, we climbed all kinds of things—cars, tire mounds, large spools, and even buses—trudged through plenty of water, tackled some steep hills, and got in a good bit of trail running. We even went through a haunted house!
Piper was adamantly opposed to all tunnels but was such a trooper. I think all the dogs looked just a little confused about the whole thing.
Such a great event! Definitely reminded me how cool CrossFit is and how it really does prepare us for anything.”
Sergo Rivera
Ran the PNC 10 miler in 1:29:21! Sergios been putting in the work and setting his standards higher and higher. Keep it up buddy.
Kalob Apodaca hitting a 325lb push press in the gym and not even PR Day
Let’s Welcome New Members
Caleb Forsyth *a CF Level 2 coach that moved to the area. Excited to have him join our community
Upcoming Anniversaries & Brithdays
Anniversaries
1-year
Javier Hernandez Oct 26
Jermaine Johnson Oct 28
2-year
Travis Tucker Oct 22
4-year
Jeff Mayr Oct 26
Birthdays
Francis Rivera Oct 19
Richard Blatchley Oct 22
Laura Rutland Oct 23
Natalie Gordon Oct 25
Upcoming Schedule & Events
Join the HYROX Sim Changemaker Challenge!
CrossFit Bound athletes—train with purpose! Noble Clay’s motto, “The fit will fight for those who are not,” is at the heart of the HYROX Sim Changemaker Challenge on October 25th in Norcross, GA. This half-HYROX event is not only a great tune-up for Atlanta HYROX the following weekend—it’s also a fundraiser supporting Noble Clay’s mission to strengthen communities through fitness.
Why you should participate:
Test your functional fitness in a HYROX-style competition
Support a powerful local cause
Train alongside elite athletes focused on positive change
Prepare for Atlanta HYROX the next weekend
Represent CrossFit Bound while giving back
Special Offer for CrossFit Bound athletes:
Use promo code: BOUND (ALL CAPS) to claim 50% off registration—available for a limited time until October 3rd!Bonus: The first 150 participants receive complimentary Lululemon performance gear (shirt + shorts worth $140!)
Don’t miss this chance to push your limits and make a real impact in our community.
Gymnastics Handstand Focus Class - November 1st from 10:30-12 with coach Nicole Corey
Amicolola Falls Marathon - December 6, 2025
Full and Half Marathon route in the famous Amicalola Falls State Park which boasts miles of trails, catering to various fitness levels and preferences. The park's trails meander through lush forests, alongside bubbling creeks, and offer stunning views of the 729-foot Amicalola Falls—the tallest cascading waterfall in Georgia .
Jess and some others are already signed up
The Conquer ‘The Toughest Backyard Ultra’
$150 to sign up, and at the start of the race runners will be given a $100 bill to carry the entire race. The remaining $50 goes to the park fees, volunteers and insurance. If the runner desires to stop or times out of the race, they will place the $100 bill into a glass case for the overall winner to claim at the end. Two years into the planning to discover the toughest location to pull off a backyard ultra and we found it at the famous AT approach trail in the Amicalola Falls State Park. The loop starts at the top of the falls with the rugged East Ridge trail leading down to the bottom parking area to pick up the lower Mountain Laurel trail and then up the AT Approach trails with 605 steps back to the top of the falls.
Simple: Each runner will have 1 hour to complete the 4.1-mile loop (1,065ft of elevation) every hour until only one person remains.
Helen Holiday Half & 10K Race - December 13, 2025
discount code ‘Helen10’. *thank you Jen Wells!
CrossFit Journal Article of the Week: The Training Mindset: CrossFit Isn’t Just Exercise
By Stephane Rochet CF L-3
Picture this: You’ve been doing CrossFit for two years. You can hit most movements, and your times are decent, but you feel stuck. You’re going through the motions, checking boxes, and getting sweaty, but are you actually getting better or fitter? The difference between what you’re doing and true training might be the missing piece that unlocks your next level of fitness.
The Nike Slogan That Changed Everything
About a decade ago, Nike used the slogan “Stop exercising, start training” to encourage a “shift from random physical activity to a planned, goal-oriented approach to fitness.” At the time, I recall wondering if this was a subtle jab at CrossFit’s varied programming in favor of the periodized, percentage-based programming that many gurus tout as the gold standard for achieving results. That might just be me being sensitive to the common criticism about CrossFit that if you are constantly doing different stuff, you’ll never get good at anything.
Still, CrossFit fits very well into the marketer’s definition of training as a “methodical approach that strings individual workouts together to achieve a specific, long-term goal. It involves a plan, targeting weak points, and consistent progress over time.” This is precisely what we do. We have clearly defined our goal: to improve fitness or increase work capacity across broad time and modal domains. To achieve this, we create an enormous variety of effective workouts to develop a broad, general, and inclusive capacity. Along the way, we constantly test to identify weaknesses that need to be addressed. We may not use percentages often, and we might not use microcycles, mesocycles, hypertrophy, strength, or power phases in our programming lingo, but we have a plan and intent. We know where we’re going and that’s what we train for.
Exercise vs. Training: The Crucial Difference
I have a different slant on this slogan. “Exercising,” to me, is focusing on the work that needs to be done today, checking off each round and rep, pushing through the workout to get to the end. This is an easy trap to fall into, and we all do this at times. “Training” is more focused on the process, staying in the moment, and embodying the charter of mechanics, consistency, and intensity. Instead of seeing a task that needs to be completed, like doing the dishes or mowing the lawn, we’re honing our craft like playing the violin or perfecting a dance routine. We focus on the quality of each rep from the warm-up through the cool-down, practicing and refining technical elements, all while adding intensity to challenge us as appropriate.
What does this look like in practice? During a workout with thrusters, instead of rushing through 21-15-9 reps to post a fast time, you focus on maintaining perfect front-rack position, driving through your heels on each squat, and pressing the bar in a straight line overhead, even as your heart rate climbs and your muscles burn. Every single rep becomes an opportunity to practice excellence under pressure.
The Three Pillars: Mechanics, Consistency, Intensity
CrossFit has always emphasized developing our mechanics (technique) first in functional movements and then ensuring we can reproduce these mechanics consistently across multiple reps linked together, before judicially and intelligently ramping up intensity over time. This ensures learning and gaining a certain level of mastery in the fundamentals before we start pushing limits. The thing is, once we’re no longer novices, this stops being a step-by-step or linear process.
Why Linear Progression Fails Advanced Athletes
If we work on our mechanics and consistency and get to a good level of proficiency in our movements, and then assume it’s just a matter of progressing intensity over time, we’ll quickly fall into the trap of exercising instead of training.
Mechanics ➡ Consistency ➡ Intensity
Exercising
With this mindset, once we feel comfortable with our movement, we start focusing on pushing more weight, completing the rounds and reps faster, or adding weight or speed, as that is what our linear periodization or progressive overload demands. Without realizing it, we lose the rep-by-rep focus on continuously refining our movement while blending in the proper intensity that is the true hallmark of CrossFit training. We might even let technique “slop” creep in to get done faster or use heavier loads. This approach might be acceptable if we’re relying on isolation movements and machines, but with the functional movements CrossFit uses, the practice, learning, mastery, and pushing never stop. It’s all blended together.
The Continuous Loop: How Real Training Works
Let me dig into this and explain what this looks like in the gym over the long term. As we first start CrossFit, it’s all mechanics. We’re learning the gross points of performance for the main movements, such as proper range of motion, midline stabilization, core-to-extremity movement, and posterior-chain engagement. Gradually, as we incorporate these positions, we work on our consistency. We strive to string together quality reps, and we begin to do more good reps than bad. At this point, we are starting to feel the basic points of performance, so we can sense when something is off, and we can work to fix it on subsequent reps.
Once we’ve achieved the ability to consistently reproduce good reps (such as a set of 15-20 reps in an unweighted movement), we conservatively add intensity. We achieve this by simply adding a little load or speed and assessing how our technique responds. We gently push until we’re uncomfortable and struggling to maintain our technique as the reps accumulate. This is training or, more precisely, threshold training. This is what we do every workout in some form, from warm-up to cool-down, every day. It’s a constant battle. There are good days when we move effortlessly and bad days when we feel like a train wreck. In addition, every tiny increment of increased intensity requires practicing mechanics and developing consistency at that new level of speed or load.
From Novice to Virtuosity: The Long-Term Journey
It doesn’t stop there either. Once we can display the major points of performance consistently at an uncomfortable speed, it’s time to layer in more nuanced technique elements. In the air squat (or any squat), we strive to maintain foot pressure across the big toe, little toe, and the center of the heel every rep. We want to be balanced side to side as we move up and down and avoid having our pelvis tilt to one side or the other. We work for tension in our hips, glutes, and hamstrings in the bottom position and use these muscles (as opposed to a bounce off the calves) to drive us back to standing. And we can always work on our torso position throughout the rep.
In the clean, we can spend years refining our timing, our consistency at the mid-thigh position, keeping the bar close, the speed of our elbows, and the pull under. Even in something as seemingly simple as a push-up, we want to perfect how our shoulder blades move, our hollow position at the top, and the torque we build with our hands into the ground. All of this rep after rep under the duress of intensity.
I recall watching a workout video with Rich Froning where he was practicing air squats — sets of 25 or 50 — during his warm-up because he knew there were details he could improve. This was after winning multiple CrossFit Games. Mike Burgener tells the story of one of America’s top weightlifters who used video software to track his bar path in the snatch with a PVC pipe and 375 lb. The bar paths were identical. This comes from training. This demonstrates a persistent dedication to honing one’s craft, focusing on the present movement to move with intensity.
The Numbers Game: What Training Actually Looks Like
Ultimately, if I had to pin down numbers, I’d say the goal is to be able to move at a speed that is uncomfortable while hitting the gross points of performance 95 percent of the time or more, and the more detailed movement qualities 80 percent of the time or more, while constantly pushing the edge of the intensity envelope. This is hard, challenging, even frustrating work at times, but the reward is worth it. In contrast to “exercising,” which may leave us tired or subject to wear and tear, and decrease our skill, every “training” session captures and deposits results we now own. When we work diligently in this manner, we morph mechanics, consistency, and intensity into practice, mastery, and virtuosity.
Ready to Transform Your Approach?
This is how we become the best, fittest, healthiest version of ourselves. And that’s the difference between training and exercising. Ready to shift from exercising to training? Start with these three steps in your next workout:
Slow down your warm-up: Use every air squat, push-up, and movement prep as technique practice, not just muscle activation.
Choose one technical focus per workout: Pick one specific element — like bar path, breathing pattern, or foot position — and maintain awareness of it throughout the entire session.
Scale intensity to maintain technique: If your form breaks down, reduce the load or slow the pace. Remember: we’re building skills under pressure, not just getting sweaty.
The path from exercise to training isn’t about doing different workouts; it’s about approaching every workout with the mindset of a craftsperson perfecting their art. Every rep matters. Every session is an opportunity to get better, not just get tired.
