Why Progress Should Feel Hard
Slater Coe • November 24, 2025
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You’ve been training long enough to know that EASY workouts don’t change you.
But there’s a difference between something being hard and something being productive and knowing that difference is the secret to your progress.
In sports psychology, there’s a concept called "desirable difficulty". It means that learning or adaptation happens best when the challenge is hard enough to push you, but not so overwhelming that you break down or burn out.
That sweet spot of being uncomfortable but achievable is what we want.
Why “Hard” Is Good for You
When we face something physically or mentally demanding in the gym, our nervous system and our muscles are forced to adapt. That’s how we get stronger, faster, or more skilled.
But, it might feel messy in the process. Our lifts might slow down. Our positions might feel a little wobbly. Our confidence might dip.
That doesn’t mean it’s not working. It means our body is reorganizing itself under pressure. In strength training, that’s called progressive overload. In motor learning, it’s called adaptive stress. Put more simply, it's growth.
The Science of Struggle
Tempo squats, strict work, lifting under fatigue, barbell complexes, gymnastic complexes… those are all examples of “desirable difficulty” built into our programming.
It’s not there to make you suffer; it’s there to make your nervous system work harder and remember better. The struggle creates skill retention and deeper strength.
How to Use It
*Don’t chase comfort. A workout that humbles you is feedback, not failure.
*Embrace the learning curve. When something feels awkward (like new barbell positions or tweaked technique) that’s your brain wiring a new pattern.
*Recover like it matters. Difficulty without recovery is just fatigue. Sleep, eat, and hydrate like your progress depends on it. Hint: it does.
*Training isn’t supposed to feel easy. It’s supposed to feel earned.
Desirable difficulty is where strength, skill, and confidence collide. It’s where you start realizing that the work you once avoided is exactly what builds the version of yourself you’ve been chasing.
So, when class feels uncomfortable, when the bar feels heavy, when the workout looks intimidating... good. The work is working.
If you notice a moment in class where you want to pull back, try stepping into it, instead.
MORE RECENT POSTS
Our next cycle kicks off this Monday, August 10th, and we're going to keep building raw strength, aerobic engine, and mental toughness. Our workouts will ask a lot from you... heavy volume, strict pacing, and the mental grit to push past your comfort zone when the fatigue sets in. But that’s exactly why you walk through our doors every day, right? Whether you’re gearing up for a future competition / race or locking in your percentages on the Back Squat, remember why we show up, hold each other accountable, and put in the work. Cycle Breakdown Here’s what’s coming to class and what we’re testing at the end of this cycle: 1. Strength Focus: Back Squat • The Goal: Raw strength, volume endurance, and recoverability. • The Strategy: This cycle features a modified, condensed version of the legendary Smolov Jr. squat program... famous for its demanding volume and aggressive percentages. We’ve stretched the traditional four-day-a-week protocol across two weeks to keep it sustainable while still delivering big gains. The Back Squat test we have planned for the cycle will challenge your overall strength as well as your ability to recover between sets. There's also a strategic element that rewards those who know themselves well and can pace appropriately. 2. Monostructural Engine: Run / Row Test • The Goal: Aerobic capacity, pacing, and strategic output. • The Strategy: Every Tuesday will be a dedicated aerobic capacity day to build your engine and balance out the high squat volume. Using Tuesdays as a dedicated engine/aerobic day also helps offset some of the squat volume elsewhere in the cycle. Each Tuesday will alternate between a straight Run/Row day and multi-modality engine sessions featuring the Echo Bike, sandbags, and box jumps. 3. Olympic Lifting: Snatch Battery & Explosiveness • The Goal: Technique, speed, and barbell cycling capacity. • The Strategy: We are focusing exclusively on the Snatch this cycle. Progressions will alternate every week between precision EMOM work and high-intensity partner snatch battery/cycling sets. • The Test: 3-Position Power Snatch and 3-Position Full Snatch. 4. Hero / Benchmark Test: "Kalsu" • The Goal: Unmatched mental fortitude and pacing under heavy fatigue. • The Test: We’re capping off test week with one of the most physically demanding Hero WODs in the CrossFit archives: Kalsu (Thrusters + Burpees). The goal here is to test your pacing and your mental toughness when the legs get heavy. Show up, stick to the percentages, and let's get to work.
There are very few exercises that challenge your body the way simply carrying something heavy does. You've seen more Farmers Carries and Sandbag Carries in our programming as of late, and we like them because they require your entire body to work together. Your grip has to hold on. Your core has to resist twisting. Your hips and legs have to stabilize every step. Even your posture improves as you fight to stay tall under load. Unlike sitting on a machine, carrying weight asks your body to solve a real-world problem... 'cuz And guess what? Groceries aren't perfectly balanced. Neither are suitcases, mulch bags, coolers, or helping your kid who's fallen asleep on the couch. As we age, maintaining the ability to carry heavy things is one of the simplest ways to preserve independence. You're training balance, coordination, grip strength, posture, and work capacity... all while walking.
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