Well put!Mental toughness reduces the negative emotional reaction to suffering which then will free up that energy for healing.
Well put!Mental toughness reduces the negative emotional reaction to suffering which then will free up that energy for healing.
Does he give any examples of how this physical toughness was translatable into overcoming the harder stuff like programmed beliefs and mastering himself at that level? Most people run a mile from that. Maybe he was running a LOT of miles from it. Sorry, not dismissing the book, but just thought I'd ask. Mastering the physical body can be very useful, but mostly (IMO) when the inner strength gained is used to master the rest of the being.
I have only read the first chapter and I have found that his writing has been able to capture my mind. I think this is because he uses language I can relate to. When I’m working with clients who have chronic muscoskeletal pain and are rehabbing old injuries I ask them what is the most limiting factor or thing in their life right now. This is a very important question when wanting to help someone with a rehab intervention. Following are my thoughts so far.I suppose it would depend on what kinds of programmed beliefs.
There are exercises throughout the book that are similar to Peterson’s self authoring and future authoring, together with a sort of mental tool kit and approaches to challenges that may help the reader to achieve their goals.
He is definitely big on being as honest as you can with yourself about the type of person you are and what are your shortcomings, how do you lie to yourself and others. I wouldn’t say that he conceptualises his kind of Work in terms of programmes, exactly. But more along the lines of achievement vs. mediocrity, and allows his readers to personalise the meaning of those ideas for themselves, encouraging them to move away from a dissatisfactory lifestyle of just always being the same person, in the same rut, day after day, and instead trying to identify things about themselves, whether physical, emotional or intellectual, that they could improve and making it clear that growth in any area can’t happen without pain.
Regarding the ‘healing and recovery’ ideas brought up in the thread, Goggins basically pushed himself for years and years, none stop, with no rest or recovery, until his health deteriorated to the point where he was dying. He eventually came to discover that stretching, something he’d never done or taken seriously, was his key to reversing the damage.
PUSH/REST cycle has to be balance for a healthy life. What he learned was that too much push causes excessive neuromuscular rigidity, restricted fluid flow, and excessive inflammation. Stretching, low resistant motion, and deeper sleep will balance out the PUSH.Regarding the ‘healing and recovery’ ideas brought up in the thread, Goggins basically pushed himself for years and years, none stop, with no rest or recovery, until his health deteriorated to the point where he was dying. He eventually came to discover that stretching, something he’d never done or taken seriously, was his key to reversing the damage.
Your determination to increase physical endurance is a FANTASTIC trait that I have observed in about 10% of my patients. It is FANTASTIC since it is 200 times easier to help someone increase their rest and relaxation than it is to increase their exercise and physical suffering. Just saying.A pre-requisite to getting this right is knowledge, i.e. knowledge of physiology and psychology. One has to be able to see clearly what the limiting factors are otherwise pushing through suffering to break through self imposed limits is not going to work. For example I became very capable of pushing through physically and developing very high levels of strength endurance. But I kept pushing instead of understanding that my difficulty sleeping was holding me back. So non-specific suffering, just hammering away at yourself without having a clear strategy does not lead to growth, instead it leads to self destruction. This is pretty basic stuff and my example is obvious to me now but when you’re young and dumb these things aren’t obvious. The reasons for my insomnia were quite complex and I have learned a lot about this over the years.
Yes I think this exactly right. I have a history of centralised sleep apnea as opposed to obstructive sleep apnea.Your difficulty with sleeping is core reason for you low enthusiasm and depression. Depression is the emotional realization that your vital force is bankrupt and you can't by those shiny new shoes.
Do you have sleep apnea? It runs in my family so I have to struggle with it too. I have learned that low brain oxygen causes the dark emotions and horriblelizing life's circumstances. I'll do deep breathing when I wake up during the night and first thing in the morning. Since focusing on increasing my brain oxygen level the negative affect from sleep apnea has greatly improved.
So improving breathing has been and is ongoing work for me. There are psychological as well as complex
Musculoskeletal factors: slight scoliosis, twisted upper palate and sphenoid bone, a slight cross bite, difficulty expanding lungs on my left side, twisted pelvis, and add to that anxiety and gastrointestinal stress all combining to cause a choking sensation and leading to me stopping breathing during the night which wakes me up. I have a lot more good nights these days however still many things get mixed up between physical and psychological and often it can be hard to figure out what to prioritise. But I am a heck of a lot further down the road to feeling alive than I used to be. I don’t have that many headaches anymore and no vomiting from nausea anymore. I do think I’m at the point of needing to physically work a bit harder again with well timed recovery in order to stimulate more work and recovery cycles. Any suggestions or feedback welcomed.
Thank you, yes it has been a puzzle for sure and I must have achieved a whole lot when I consider what’s happened to some of my cousins (ie one died at 27 fromQuit the list of physical distortions! I see your parents did not have their genetic parts up to snuff before making you
You must be advanced enough soul that you wanted a real challenge on how to solve a basket load of physical puzzles. All the best.
This is so true, with all the trials and errors that it takes to find the best solution cannot be duplicated. Then to top it off, you solve another one of your problem that requires you to adjust and tinker with everything else in order to regain the balance. It is a constant building of sand castles.I do think I have been able to help quite a number of people with my approach and so this learning of mine is ultimately quite a blessing.
The back story of this Sargent is amazing. He was a real man who lived a life of mental toughness.The Green Beret has a beautiful voice, “men who mean what they say”.
I worked with all those guys as an EOD Officer in the Navy, and after doing it and reflecting upon them I can’t find it impressive to just mindlessly punish your body for what appears to me to be no reason.Hi T.C.,
I bought the book when it came out during the holiday season (forget the year). I read a little bit of it and stopped. I kind of thought and felt that I wasn't going to get much out of it or there were better things to focus on, because of what you pointed out T.C. in terms of it being about an amazing fakir. And it made me pissed off overall that someone like Goggins, who does seem very honorable, likely doesn't know or understand much about what was above him in terms of the people he was taking orders from and serving.
I've known a few guys that went on to become Navy Seals. I think about them sometimes and that they may not have too much of a clue about what they served as an 'operator' during things like the Iraq War, etc. And I also think about, which touches on Joe's post, what would happen to them if they really realized and viscerally felt what they served in ignorance with respect to the actions they may have taken with that service.
Figure, I may have 'thrown the baby out with the bathwater' though with my reaction, since it does seem that a person can take what is given in terms of what you wrote and apply it in terms of how you described.
I think those books are written to keep up the aura around those institutions more than anything else, good recruiting tools….
I'd have to agree. I had no interest in a military career or even running ultra-marathons after reading the book. I did, however, start to think about how much harder I could push myself without even coming close to my limits in order to improve my mental and physical health.If you actually read Goggins’ book, you’ll find that’s not the case. For someone whose job it actually was to recruit people into the military, he spends little time advertising it as a career, or romanticising about fighting for one’s country. The book is about self-improvement.