#661 Navy SEAL Cookie Jars

David Goggins on Becoming Superman

In our last couple +1, we talked about flipping the switch and going from our version of Clark Kent to our version of Superman.

How?

Stand up. Expand. Relax. Pull the thread thru your head. Take a deep breath (in thru the nose, down into the belly, etc.). Chest up. Chin down. Relax a little more. Expand a little more. Smile.

← “Hi, Optimus!”

Today we’re going to talk about a real-life superhero.

His name is David Goggins. He’s a former Navy SEAL (and Army Ranger) who used to hold a Guinness World Record for completing 4,030 pull-ups in 17 hours. (Yes, you read that correctly. Four thousand and thirty pull-ups. In 17 hours. And here I am reasonably happy with my 3,650 pull-ups a year accumulated 10 reps per day every day. lol)

These days he’s setting records as an ultra-endurance athlete.

But he wasn’t always Mr. Superhero.

In his great book Can’t Hurt Me, David walks us through his transformation from being a 297-pound exterminator to a “Who IS this guy?!” superhero.

It’s SUPER inspiring. And SUPER intense.

David tells us that we’re only using 40% of our potential and, in his page-turning autobiographical self-help book, he walks us through ten challenges to help us step up and into our fullest potential.

One of them includes creating what he calls a “Cookie Jar.”

Short story. David’s childhood was brutal and filled with abuse and terror. One of his small pleasures was the fact that his mom always had a cookie jar filled with his favorite cookies. He’d pick one out, look at it lovingly, and then savor the goodness.

Fast-forward to him in the middle of trying to set the Guinness World Record for pull-ups (which he failed at twice before succeeding, btw) or in the middle of one of his crazy-long ultra-endurance events. He’s in a CRAZY amount of pain.

What does he do?

He reaches into his mind’s virtual Cookie Jar. He reminds himself of all the times he’s endured pain, didn’t give up, and achieved something A W E S O M E.

As he puts it: “That’s one reason I invented the Cookie Jar. We must create a system that constantly reminds us who … we are when we are at our best, because life is not going to pick us up when we fall. There will be forks in the road, knives in your … back, mountains to climb, and we are only capable of living up to the image we create for ourselves.”

All of which leads us to Today’s +1.

Skipping the discussion on the metabolic consequences of consuming too much sugar and flour in highly-processed cookies as we discuss in Optimal Weight/Metabolism 101 🤓, what’s in your metaphorical Cookie Jar?

WHO ARE YOU AT YOUR ABSOLUTE BEST?!

Let’s make some Cookies.

Three instances of YOU at your Optimus best, please!

Cookie #1: _____________________________________
Cookie #2: _____________________________________
Cookie #3: _____________________________________

Yep.

THAT’s like you.

Let’s keep those Cookies front and center in our minds as we make that prior best our new baseline.

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