The Other Half of Fitness: Building Mental Fortitude

The complete story of fitness isn’t just about developing the ten general physical skills— cardiovascular/respiratory endurance, stamina, strength, flexibility, power, coordination, agility, balance, and accuracy —or even about demonstrating work capacity across various time and movement domains. If we really want to understand what it means to be fit, we also need to talk about the mental game. [1]

Your mind plays a powerful role in performance. Just like physical strength, psychological readiness takes practice. As coaches, our job isn’t just to teach you proper technique and range of motion. We’re also in the business of building fortitude .

Fortitude is defined as strength of mind that enables a person to bear pain or adversity with courage. Whether you're maxing out a lift, grinding through a tough workout like Murph, or taking on a challenge outside the gym, true fortitude comes from these mental building blocks:

1. Positive Beliefs: Program Your Mind for Success

The way you talk to yourself matters. Negative beliefs—like all-or-nothing thinking, dwelling on failures or words like "can't" or “never” —can undermine your efforts before you begin. Instead, shift your self-talk to focus on the positive. Try vocalizing your progress and potential.

Instead of: “I’ll never be able to do a strict pull-up. It’s too hard.”

Try: “ I went from using the green band to the blue band—I’m getting stronger every day.” [1]

2. Mental Preparation: Focus on the Challenge Ahead

Mental readiness is about aligning your mindset, focus, and emotions so you can perform your best. [1] One way to do this is by rehearsing technique cues that help you dial in your movements ( “pull myself under the bar” for a squat snatch or “push the bar down hard” for toes-to-bar). 

Another way is to have a routine to put your mind and focus 100% on the task at hand–for example with a 1 rep max lift, setting up the same way every time you go to lift. Have you ever seen a competitive lifter walk up to the bar to perform a lift? They may shuffle their feet, shake out their shoulders, etc. before getting in their set up position to lift. It’s the same routine every time. 

Prepare your mind like you prepare your body—deliberately and with intention.

3. Mental Toughness: Rise Above Discomfort

Mental toughness is the ability to stay focused, composed, and confident even when you're physically overwhelmed. [1] That inner voice will try to distract you with self-doubt, especially under pressure. The key is learning to redirect your focus.

Use these tools:

Reps-focused thinking: If you’re doing a set number of reps in a workout, try counting down instead of up to stay present and motivated. “Only 5 reps left!” feels better than “I still have 5 reps to get through”.

Movement-focused attention: In a burpee you can think, “chest to the ground—okay, now step up, jump!” or during box jumps challenge yourself on top of the box to “ step, step, JUMP!” to jump back up on the box as soon as your feet hit the floor rather than resting between reps. 

Positive self-talk: Remind yourself, “You trained for this. Keep going. You’ve got this.”

Mental Toughness in Action: Conquering Murph

Every Memorial Day, CrossFit gyms across the country take on Murph , a Hero workout named in honor of Navy SEAL Lt. Michael P. Murphy, who gave his life in service (as portrayed in Lone Survivor ).

The Murph workout is 1 mile run, 100 pull-ups, 200 push-ups, 300 air squats, 1 mile run (with a weighted vest). 

Hero workouts are designed to honor fallen service members by reaching deep within yourself to find inner strength and mental fortitude–pushing yourself both mentally and physically beyond what you think you’re capable of achieving. It’s a reminder of the sacrifices made by our military and service members and a testament to the strength and resilience of the human spirit.

Here are a few ways to stay mentally strong through Murph:

• Pace Yourself: Don’t go out HOT. Remember, Murph is a test of endurance, and it typically takes 45 minutes or more to complete. You don’t “win” in the first mile or initial rounds of pull-ups, push-ups and air squats.
  
  
• Breathe with Purpose: Intentional breathing helps manage your heart rate, sustain energy, and keep your focus sharp.
  
  
• Break It Down: Tackle one round at a time—5 pull-ups, 10 push-ups, 15 air squats. Don’t get overwhelmed by the total volume.
  
  
• Lean on the Community: The power of group workouts lies in shared struggle and mutual encouragement. Listen for the cheers—they’re for you.
  
  

Fitness isn’t just about what your body can do. It’s about what your mind can endure. Fortitude is built rep by rep, just like strength. So next time you step into the gym, remember: the work you do on your mindset is just as important as the work you do on the barbell.

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[1] Shrago, E. (2008). The mental game: Training the mind for competition. CrossFit Journal. https://library.crossfit.com/premium/pdf/CFJ_Shrago_MentalGame.pdf