• Skip to content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • News
  • Features
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Entertainment
  • Sports
  • Archives
    • Volume 16: 2014/2015
    • Volume 15: 2013/2014
    • Volume 14: 2012/2013
    • Volume 13: 2011/2012

Student Independent News

NUI Galway Student Newspaper

  • Home
  • About
  • Get Involved
  • Contact Us
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy

Unlocking your full potential and refusing to cruise by at forty percent-Lessons can be learned from Ultra-Runner David Goggins

November 19, 2020 By Sin Admin Leave a Comment

 

By Donagh Broderick

David Goggins should have been just another unfortunate statistic in our society. Abusive father, single mother, learning disabilities, apathetic teachers in poor rural schools, a pregnant girlfriend, an African American who experienced racism first-hand growing up in Brazil, Indiana. Later in life he would be diagnosed with the sickle cell trait and discover he had a hole in the atrium of his heart.

David had every reason to quit and say he wasn’t meant to be anyone great. Today he is known as an ultra-marathon runner and triathlete, the man who set a world record for pull ups. He is the only man in history to become a navy seal, an air force tactical air controller and an army ranger, who undertook three hell-weeks finishing on broken legs and even attempted to join Delta Force, the United States’ most elite Special Forces Unit. He also served a tour in Iraq. At age 45 Goggins is now a volunteer fighting forest fires in California alongside men half his age.

Throughout his life Goggins sought out the hard path and a lot of the time the hard path found him whether he liked it or not. He put himself in uncomfortable situations to callous his mind. This is how David refers to the process of mentally toughening yourself by doing what makes you uncomfortable or what you are afraid of. In his case, he was able to teach himself to swim and conquer his fear of the water so that he could join the navy seals. Goggins didn’t have good genes or the right background and yet has managed to do more in twenty years than most of us will do our entire lives. The man confronted his inner demons to master his mind to push himself past the 40 percent we all cruise by in life at.

When Goggins ran his first hundred-mile marathon, he did so to raise money for the Special Operations Warrior Foundation, a foundation that gives college and other financial grants to the children of fallen Special Operations soldiers. The experience left his body, which was thick and muscular and thus completely unsuited for the endurance requirements of running, shattered and badly broken. Later in life he would discover he was so jacked up and tight that his body was beginning to shut down which would require hundreds of hours of stretching to rectify. His legs were so badly fractured after his third hell week attempt, he would have to complete BUDs training, a rigorious underwater SEAL fitness test, by binding them in tape as he would not be allowed to try for the Navy SEALs again. Despite messing himself up and mangling his body so many times he always bounced back and improved, proving that anyone can recover from setbacks no matter now dilapidating.

Goggins is living proof of what the human body is capable of when pushed to its limits. When we confront our inner fears and know how to answer the simple questions of why we’re putting ourselves through the pain on the road to improvement we can accomplish almost anything. It’s not always easy of course. Goggins believes that most of us cruise through life at 40%, barely scraping at our potential and this belief forms the basis of his personal life philosophy. You might break yourself, injure yourself, mess up and deal with excruciating pain, but you’ll push yourself to things you never believed you or anyone else thought you were capable of. Goggins explores his life story and his beliefs further in his book ‘Can’t Hurt Me’ which was published in 2018, a book that should make its way onto all of our reading lists no matter our path in life.

Goggins had to do three hell weeks before he could graduate from BUD’s, having been taken down by double pneumonia on his first attempt and failing a water exercise after his second. It took him three attempts before he broke the pull up record he tried to smash. At every turn Goggins never accepted

the idea that he had reached his limit, that it was not meant to be. He learned from his mistakes, unlocked his full potential and persevered.

Following David’s example we could all push beyond our 40 percent limit, master our minds and reach our full potential. To Goggins I will say what he always says to his followers online, “Stay hard!”

Follow Us
Facebook Follow
Twitter Follow

Related

Filed Under: Features, Lifestyle, Opinion, Sports, Today's Highlight Tagged With: #DavidGoggins

Reader Interactions

Drop us a comment! Cancel reply

Primary Sidebar

Tweets by NuigSin

More News

Bobo the Clown – A Wexford Wedding

Bobo the Clown – A Wexford Wedding

By Caroline Spencer Any upcoming events where hair and makeup are ‘a thing’ I … [Read More...] about Bobo the Clown – A Wexford Wedding

Beauty Bag review April

Beauty Bag review April

By Anastasia Burton Hello, my fellow make-up lovers, and welcome back to my … [Read More...] about Beauty Bag review April

We’re not ovary-reacting!

We’re not ovary-reacting!

By Rachel Garvey Periods. Each woman has a different way of describing their … [Read More...] about We’re not ovary-reacting!

Mise agus mo mhuinín – mo chuid taithí pearsanta

Mise agus mo mhuinín – mo chuid taithí pearsanta

Le Anna Campbell San alt seo, beidh mé ag labhairt faoi mo chuid taithí a … [Read More...] about Mise agus mo mhuinín – mo chuid taithí pearsanta

Budgeting Advice 11

Budgeting Advice 11

By Anastasia Burton Today I bring to you yet another budgeting advice piece. … [Read More...] about Budgeting Advice 11

Footer

RSS Latest SU News

Recent Posts

  • Bobo the Clown – A Wexford Wedding
  • Beauty Bag review April
  • We’re not ovary-reacting!
  • Mise agus mo mhuinín – mo chuid taithí pearsanta
  • Budgeting Advice 11

Recent Comments

  • Art and the Artist – The Sundae on Kesha’s trial outcome a loss for victims of sexual abuse and workers’ rights
  • John. on One to watch: author Louise O’Neill with new book Almost Love
  • Swapping liner for lip filler: the kylie jenner effect – campus on Swapping liner for lip filler: the Kylie Jenner effect

Copyright © 2021 SIN Student Newspaper. All rights reserved.