Three Core Tenets of Fitness
Josh Arcona • February 17, 2026
The pillars that support lifelong health and real-world capability
Training is an investment in your life and it deserves to be built on solid principles, not passing trends or quick fixes. That belief has guided how we train, coach, and program from day one.
Over more than a decade, we’ve tested, researched, refined, and lived this approach. Through experience on the gym floor, continued education, and real-world results with thousands of members, we’ve identified three core pillars that consistently support long-term health, confidence, and real-world capability.
Our approach is built on developing physical strength, improving cardiovascular fitness, and sharpening cognitive fitness. Together, these pillars create a balanced, sustainable system that helps you move better, feel stronger, and stay mentally sharp through every stage of life.
Whether your goal is lifelong health, staying active as you age, or being prepared for the physical and mental demands of work, sport, or everyday life, these pillars form the foundation of how we train for life.
1. Strength
Strength is the foundation of capability — the ability to live an active, pain-free, confident life.
Why Strength Matters For Health:
- Makes daily tasks easier (lifting kids, carrying groceries, yardwork)
- Improves posture, reduces aches, and supports joint health
- Protects bone density and long-term mobility
- Builds confidence and independence at every age
- Supports active aging and lifelong physical capability
Why Strength Matters For Performance:
- Enhances power, durability, and force production for athletes
- Supports physically demanding careers (fire/EMS/police/military/construction)
- Improves performance in outdoor sports and recreational activities
- Reduces injury risk under high workloads
- Builds the ability to perform repeatedly under stress
Strength gives everybody — beginners to elite performers — a foundation they can rely on.
2. Cardiovascular Fitness
Cardiovascular Fitness improves heart health, energy levels, vitality, and resilience.
Why Cardiovascular Fitness Matters For Health:
- Boosts daily energy and reduces fatigue
- Supports heart health and long-term longevity
- Improves mood, sleep, stress management, and emotional balance
- Helps you stay active without feeling winded
- Supports healthy aging and metabolic function
Why Cardiovascular Fitness Matters For Performance:
- Increases stamina for sport and high-demand activities
- Enhances recovery between efforts
- Supports long shifts and physically intensive jobs
- Improves resilience during long-duration or repeated efforts
- Builds the aerobic base needed for endurance-based hobbies
At 12 Labours, conditioning is aligned with the intended stimulus — training the right effort for the right purpose.
3. Cognitive Fitness
Cognitive Fitness strengthens the mind through skill development, movement learning, focus, and stress regulation.
Why Cognitive Fitness Matters For Health:
- Improves mental clarity and focus
- Reduces stress, anxiety, and emotional fatigue
- Supports long-term brain health and aging
- Creates confidence through mastery and learning
- Enhances mood and overall wellbeing
Why Cognitive Fitness Matters For Performance:
- Improves reaction time, decision-making, and coordination
- Enhances performance for sports and tactical professions
- Builds adaptability and learning capacity
- Supports staying calm and effective under pressure
- Cognitive Fitness benefits every human — active, aging, athletic, or anywhere in between.
These pillars shape everything we do at 12 Labours. In next week’s newsletter, we’ll dive into the training tools we use, and how each one supports long-term health and real-world capability.
MORE RECENT POSTS
THE PROTEIN HABIT CHALLENGE 3 Weeks • Simple • Flexible • Inclusive Nutrition doesn’t need to be complicated to be effective. That’s why we’re running the Protein Habit Challenge, a three-week, flexible and inclusive way to build one powerful habit: eating protein consistently. There’s no food scale, no macro tracking, and no pressure to be perfect. The focus is on showing up, doing your best, and building momentum. The Core Goal The goal of this challenge is simple: build the habit of eating protein at meals. Protein supports strength, recovery, muscle, metabolism, and energy, yet many people under-eat it without realizing. Instead of tracking grams or logging every bite, this challenge emphasizes consistency over precision. You earn points for eating protein at meals, increasing intake toward a simple target, and showing up consistently. You are not penalized for smaller portions, skipping snacks, or being new to nutrition. You earn points for: Eating protein at meals Increasing intake toward a simple target Showing up consistently You are not penalized for: Smaller portions Skipping snacks Being new to nutrition HOW PROTEIN IS MEASURED (NO GRAMS) We use hand portions, not numbers. FULL PROTEIN SERVING Women: 1 palm-sized portion of protein OR 1 scoop protein powder OR 1 cup Greek yogurt / cottage cheese OR 3 eggs OR plant-based options (see below) Men: 1.5–2 palm-sized portions of protein OR 1.5–2 scoops protein powder OR 1.5 cups Greek yogurt / cottage cheese OR 4–5 eggs OR plant-based options (see below) PLANT-BASED PROTEIN OPTIONS (VEGAN & VEGETARIAN) These count exactly the same as animal protein: 1 Full Protein Serving ≈ 1 block (3–4 oz) tofu or tempeh 1 cup cooked lentils, chickpeas, or black beans 1 cup edamame 1.5 cups high-protein pasta or quinoa 1 plant-based protein shake (≥20g protein) Mixing sources (beans + grains) absolutely counts. DAILY POINT SYSTEM (MAX 10 POINTS/DAY) MEALS (3 PER DAY) Per meal: 2 points → Meal includes some protein (about ½ serving) 3 points → Meal includes a full protein serving Max from meals = 9 points/day SNACKS (OPTIONAL BONUS) +0.5 points → Protein snack (½ serving) +1 point → Full protein snack Snacks are never required. DAILY CAP Max 10 points per day Prevents overdoing it and keeps things fair CONSISTENCY BONUS (WEEKLY) You’re rewarded for showing up: 5 days logged = +3 points 6 days logged = +5 points 7 days logged = +7 points WEEKLY MAX Daily points: 70 Consistency bonus: +7 Weekly max = 77 points THE TAKEAWAY ✔ Eat protein at meals ✔ Do your best ✔ Be consistent ✔ No perfection required
The 2026 CrossFit Open Community Throwdown at 12 Labours is a three-week, gym-wide experience built around one simple idea: showing up and doing hard things together. Running alongside the CrossFit Open, this event is about participation, effort, strengthening the community that trains side by side every day. Every member is welcome to take part, including RX, Scaled, Foundations, teens, and brand-new athletes. If you show up and try, you belong. Athletes will be placed into four teams, each led by a volunteer coach captain, with a mix across skill levels, class times, ages, and experience. This will encourage members who may not normally train together to connect, cheer for one another, and share in the challenge. Teams earn points not only for performance, but for attendance, encouragement, judging, and bringing energy into the gym. While workouts are scored across RX, Scaled, and Foundations divisions, participation and community points carry major weight. Teams are rewarded for having athletes complete workouts, judge for others, bring friends to watch, show team spirit, hype teammates, and create memorable moments. From best team theme and hype crew to grittiest performance and best moment of the week, the scoring system is designed so that effort and presence matter just as much as results. Teams will be revealed during a kickoff week with names, colors, and a visible gym leaderboard that stays up for all three weeks. Workouts are announced on Thursdays, followed by team hype leading into Saturday’s main event. Weekly recaps, standings updates, and celebrations will be posted throughout the week. Judging will be available with clear standards, encouragement, and lots of cheering. Leaderboards will be displayed in the gym and shared online so progress is celebrated together. At its heart, the Open Team Throwdown is about commitment, courage, and connection. It is about choosing to show up when workouts feel intimidating, leaning on teammates for support, and celebrating effort over perfection. This is a chance to push personal limits, build relationships, and experience what makes this gym a community, not just a place to work out.
In 2010, shortly after moving to Annapolis, I read an article in a local paper about a new workout concept called “CrossFit”. I joined the local facility and haven’t looked back since! My initial goal was to improve strength and cardio fitness to support my real interests - running and playing golf. While that is still the case, along the way I discovered that I really like lifting weights. One great satisfaction for me is being able to track progress - both in the amount of weight I can lift correctly but also being able to complete more complex movements like TGUs and squat complexes, which were completely unfamiliar to me pre-CrossFit. Caveat - I have not yet been able to do some CrossFit standards such as a handstand pushup or a decent burpee, that’s on me not the coaching staff. There is still time! Part of the CrossFit appeal is the structure of the workouts but another equally important part is the community of CrossFit. Both the fabulous people I work out with at the 6:30AM classes - as well as the attentive and patient coaches (who all can come up with a million scaled versions of a movement before letting you quit!) keep me wanting to come to class. Anyone who thinks they know what CrossFit is like and have not attended a class are missing a tremendous opportunity to become part of an accessible fitness program in a nurturing environment. Come out and see what you are missing - you have nothing to lose and much to gain.
you can ACHIEVE your goals with us
CrossFit is meant for all levels of fitness, and our universally scalable model is built for you.
