Believe Bigger. Play More. Keep Growing.

Kevin and Jesse prepare to take on the Pack n’ Play Rodeo prior to our gym’s first Baby Shower. A grueling test of strength, endurance, and skill that required focus, resilience, and patience. My favorite thing about this image is seeing all of the families present on a Saturday morning. Husbands and wives, fathers and mothers, sons and daughters all working out together and welcoming new life and future doers of burpees.

Earlier this year, something pretty incredible happened during a redo of CrossFit Open Workout 25.2. Danielle had a specific goal in mind and a clear belief about what she was going to be able to accomplish based on what she believed her limits to be. She communicated that belief to me, then set off to attack the workout. As she rushed through the reps, she reached the point where she expected to get stuck—the pullups—but she just kept going.

While she was working through the set of 18 pull-ups, I put away her jump rope and unloaded her barbell, because she had already reached her limit. But then, to both of our surprise, she finished the pull-ups and turned to grab her jump rope for the next set—only to realize I had already put it away. Luckily, we scrambled to get her back on track, and she pushed through all of her jump rope reps and another full set of thrusters, going much further than she had planned.

Self-Belief Shapes Your Environment

After the workout, we talked about the power of self-belief. She had convinced herself that she would only make it to a certain point—and she believed it so strongly that I believed it too. That belief subtly shaped her environment; it even influenced me to put away her equipment before the time had expired. But when she kept moving past her own expectation, the reality shifted. The lesson? Your mindset doesn’t just affect you—it ripples into the world around you. So, be careful.

The Role of Play & Practice in Breaking Limits

Last week, we saw firsthand how powerful play and practice can be. During a single short dedicated practice session, more than a dozen athletes hit skill PRs! Dean completed his first-ever handstand push-ups. Mike hit a new max set of kipping HSPUs. Tess, Ashley L., Danielle, and Mariah took on supported handstand walking for the first time. Isaac even strung together multiple bar muscle-ups! These breakthroughs happened because these athletes approached training with curiosity, exploration, and a willingness to try.

Too often, we approach workouts (and life) with rigid expectations about what we can or cannot do. But what if we treated training as play? Play is where we explore, take risks, and break past self-imposed limitations. It’s where we step outside of expectations and create space for growth.

Think about when you were a kid—how you learned new skills through curiosity and repetition, unhindered by a fear of failure. When we bring that same approach to our training, we unlock new potential. We stop just executing movements, and we start truly developing capacity. And as we build our skills through play, we simultaneously build our self-belief. We start to identify as someone who CAN instead of someone who cannot, reinforcing the idea that growth isn’t just physical—it’s deeply mental as well.

How to Apply This in Your Training

1. Challenge your expectations. Are you stopping at a limit because you truly can’t go further, or because you believe you can’t?

2. Embrace play in practice. Try new skills with curiosity instead of pressure. Experiment. Have fun. See what happens when you push past perceived boundaries.

3. Recognize how belief impacts others. Just like in the workout above, your mindset doesn’t just shape your experience—it affects those around you. What energy are you bringing into the gym?

Believe Bigger. Play More. Keep Growing.

Limits are often self-imposed. When we shift from a mindset of expectation to one of play, we open doors we didn’t even know existed. Let’s lean into that mindset this week—who knows what we might discover?