Navy SEALS go through a hell week called BUDS training. It’s physically grueling and mentally taxing. And over 70% of the candidates quit. They ring the bell three times and are shipped back to the fleet. Not kicked out — they quit. They don’t have the mental toughness to survive the nearly 24-hour-a-day grief thrown their way. And that’s perfectly OK with the SEALS. Because in combat, you can’t afford to quit.
It’s about mental toughness.
I guess today’s PLS theme would be mental toughness. Paul wasn’t happy with the caliber of our workout today and poured it on. He pushed us hard. Some responded. Some didn’t. The sprints at the end were tough. Very tough. He read us the riot act at the end of the session.
Of course, Paul had a different motive that the BUDS instructors. He’s not trying to get us to quit. He’s trying to get us to change. To quit the bad mental and physical habits that got us in bad shape in the first place. Yes, that change involves pain.
Ripping yourself out of your comfort zone is painful. Very painful. They don’t call the comfort zone for nothing.
I know. I’ve been doing it for three years now.
Today’s workout was hard. I pushed a towel the length of a basketball court six times. I walked at 4 mph at 15% incline and ran at 7.8 mph. I bear crawled and inch wormed my way across the floor. I felt tired muscles try to cramp. I felt my age.
But I did it. My body told my mind to shut the hell up.