What is fitness?

Most people think of it as how much you can lift… how fast you can run… how long you can last.

But I’ve come to realize fitness isn’t just how far you can push—it’s how well you can recover.

It’s not just the size of your engine—it’s the quality of your steering.

Fitness is the capacity to meet the moment—physically, mentally, emotionally… and spiritually.

It’s being prepared for life—not just a race. 

It’s what you want, when you want, and not having any limitations towards your peak expression. This doesn’t just exist. It’s earned: day in and day out. 

Let’s be real.

We live in a world addicted to stimulation — scrolls, notifications, to-do lists, hustle porn, and the endless pressure to do more. We chase dopamine like it’s our full-time job. But here’s the truth most won’t tell you: you don’t need more. You need less. Less noise. Less distraction. Less chasing.

What you really need is boredom.

That’s right. I said it.

Boredom isn’t the enemy — it’s the doorway. The forgotten portal. The still place between the chaos. And inside that stillness? That’s where your true life lives.

In this iron-sharpens-iron edition of the ALLSMITH Podcast, Bryce sits down with NCAA Champion, Pan-Am Gold Medalist, and ASICS athlete Michael Macchiavello — a man who didn’t just wrestle opponents… he wrestled with identity, ego, and the high cost of success.

Because here’s the truth no one talks about:

Sometimes, the crown weighs more than the climb.

Sometimes, the win steals more than the loss ever could.

This episode is a masterclass in mindset, adversity, faith, and the fire required to keep your soul intact when the world hands you gold. Macchiavello opens up about training for greatness, the dangers of being defined by your results, and what it really means to forge purpose through pressure.

When it comes to nutrition, ALLSMITH is all about keeping it simple, sustainable, and satisfying. Food isn’t just fuel; it’s an opportunity to build muscle, burn fat, boost energy, and enjoy life. The goal isn’t to follow a rigid diet but to create a lifestyle where healthy eating becomes second nature — while still giving yourself the freedom to enjoy a burger, pizza, or margarita without guilt.

There’s a chapter in every journey that few talk about, but everyone faces—the Lonely Chapter. It’s the stretch of road where the crowd thins, distractions fade, and the real work begins. This isn’t just about chasing dreams; it’s about the sacrifices, the discipline, and the relentless pursuit of something greater than yourself.

In the ALLSMITH world, we know this phase well. It’s the grind before the glory, the silence before the breakthrough. It’s when you realize that growth often demands solitude—when leveling up means leaving behind old habits, comfort zones, and sometimes even relationships that no longer serve your purpose.

One of my favorite things about training and working out is the almost limitless options to gain strength, build muscle, increase range of motion, and feel better over all. If you aren’t careful, this can lead to some paralysis by analysis which is why it’s always great to hire a coach. I might know a guy!

Most good functional training programs have a wide variety of bilateral (both sides working at same time) movements that consist of squats, deadlifts, presses, pulls, the Olympic weightlifting movements of cleans, snatches, and jerks, jumps, and some integration of nonstructural movements like rowing and skiing. 

All of these are great, but after 20+ years in athletics, professional basketball, and coaching a wide array of athletes, I’d like to make a simple observation: almost all athletic movements are done unilaterally. Whether on a field, court, track, bike, skates, or other athletic arena, many of the movements are in a unilateral (single side) fashion. This does not mean unilateral is better than bilateral, but it is definitely worth highlighting a bit as unilateral work often gets overlooked. 

Next time you are in a funk, feeling overwhelmed with life, or feel the weight of the world on your shoulders, try these exercise-related tools for managing and overcoming those thoughts and feelings. 

After many years in high level sports, twelve years of coaching, three years of podcasting, and countless conversations with some of the world’s most incredible humans, I have discovered a common thread in just about all of them. 

We are all a bundle of stories. Our worlds are heavily influenced by how we talk to ourselves, and the stories we tell ourselves based on life’s events. Keeping these stories bouncing around in our head isn’t a big deal in the beginning, but overtime, we accumulate more and more stories and without writing them down it becomes an unorganized library with books and pages everywhere. 

You see, writing helps us better understand our thoughts, our feelings, the events in our lives, and as I say often, “Writing fills the gaps within our thinking.” It helps us to create meaning. Below is some structure to help with this life changing habit you should start today. The habit is called journaling. I used to get touchy feely about this word and it had a negative connotation for me. So I prefer to think of it as brain dumping and mindset organizing. Let’s unpack this a bit.