14 Aug Even the Mentally Tough Hear The Excuses
I felt like such a fraud for years.
I’d be in the middle of a workout and start to hear the excuse to cut the workout short or go lighter. I swear I even looked around a few times to see if someone else heard me hear it.
As I pressed through the workout, sometimes the voice will dissipate, and other times it would continue to chirp at any opportunity to stop training.
Funny, I know, but I would hate hearing that voice. I think I would even get more upset at myself for hearing it, even though I couldn’t help it.
I thought something was wrong with me – maybe I was just mentally weak and lacked the competitive mindset I talked about. I mean, why would someone trying to build their mindset consistently hear the excuses in their head to take a foot off the gas or go easier?
It’s only someone who is mentally weak that hear the “easier would be better” calls, right?
Each time I heard it, I’d get upset and start to beat myself up mentally while simultaneously trying to keep training.
Until I learned the truth.
We don’t control what thoughts pop into our head.
That voice you hear at the gym? You don’t control it.
But just because you hear it doesn’t mean you have to listen to it.
I heard Joe Rogan talk about how both he & David Goggins had a conversation on the fact that both still hear that voice inside. Goggins refers to it as “his inner b&**!,” and it consistently shows up in his head, but he’s just trained himself to compete against it.
Think about that – one of the toughest mindsets in the world still hears the excuses & calls for comfort when he trains.
Which means what?
That it’s natural to hear the excuses, the cries for comfort & the chatter to take it easy.
What separates Goggins and other mentally tough individuals from most people isn’t that they don’t hear the voice, but that they’ve learned to not listen to it.
Our inner talk is like songs on the radio – just because you hear something doesn’t mean you’re forced to listen to it.
It’s not your fault if you hear the voice – but it is your choice if you give into it.
Mental toughness starts by learning to ignore that voice – and even talk back to it. To push through the discomfort. To battle against the pull to be lazy.
TO COMPETE.
Your greatest competition always has been and always with be with the voice in your head & the person you see in the mirror.
Choose to show up, compete, and overpower it this week. I’m cheering for you, Competitor.
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