Why I think David Goggins sends the wrong message

He encourages people to push beyond their physical limits... but that will just result in the vast majority of those that do this getting hurt.

The youtube version

Many of you have probably heard of David Goggins. Maybe some of you haven’t.

He emphasizes the importance of pushing past perceived limits and living outside one's comfort zone. He advocates for developing a "calloused mind" to endure challenges and adversity.

And so because of him many people think that’s it all just mental.

You can just push yourself as hard as Goggins and you’ll look like him and achieve what he did.

And that my friends… is such complete and utter bs.

Don’t get me wrong. I think a strong mental game is very important in life… but applying this in a way that motivates people to exercise beyond their limits will simply hurt a lot of people.

Today i’ll analyze Mr. Goggins a bit because I think there are some really good lessons to be drawn for Reviv.

First, a bit more about who is David Goggins?

David Goggins is a retired Navy SEAL, ultramarathon runner, endurance athlete, and motivational speaker known for his unparalleled mental toughness.

Born in 1975, he overcame a challenging childhood marked by poverty, abuse, and obesity to forge a path of extraordinary personal transformation.

Goggins served in the U.S. Air Force before becoming a Navy SEAL and also earned recognition as an Army Ranger.

As an endurance athlete, he has completed grueling ultramarathons and set a world record for pull-ups in 24 hours.

His bestselling memoir, Can't Hurt Me, shares his philosophy of embracing discomfort and pushing beyond limits.

How do I explain David Goggins’ transformation?

Some folks ask me how David Goggins changed his body so much without changing his teeth.

And when I first heard his story I also wanted to dig a bit further. To see if there was perhaps a clear exception to my general set of rules that your body is ruled by structure.

But after digging I realized he didn’t change his ‘structure’. He always had a solid skull and spine.

Even when he was heavy as in this pic above you can see that his skull is very solidly shaped and he has a solid profile.

When you have a solid profile and skull, you can just drop weight and things will generally start to look tight.

But the reality for the vast majority of heavy folks out there is that they don’t have this type of profile and skull. And so slimming down by going on an extreme diet doesn’t result in them looking anything like Goggins does.

Pushing yourself to your physical limits is simply stupid in my view

David is known for advising to push yourself beyond your physical limits. Because that is what he does and that works for him.

But i’m sorry… the vast majority of people do not have the amazing structure he does. Look at his profile and skull shape in this pic above. It is probably good enough to be a model.

Let’s compare against someone like Brandon Frazier who had great structure and then ruined it (definitely something dental). But then he went on a pretty big diet & exercise routine to drop the weight this past year.

But this is what he looks like after all that effort.

His profile is still GONE.

And he is still a very far cry from this version of himself. Despite probably throwing the best dieting and exercise experts money can buy at the problem.

Why? Because you do not fix structure by dropping weight.

Period!

You need a strong mental game

One thing I do agree with Goggins on is having a strong mental game.

Coming back with Reviv also requires a strong mental game. Because it’s a daily war.

Things are gonna hurt sometimes.

It’s gonna feel like you’re not progressing sometimes.

And if you think it’s gonna be like popping a pill and everything gets better than you’re in for a rude awakening. Because that is most definitely not how this works.

I’m coming back for the three last years already.

I put effort in daily.

I agree with pretty much all of these 10 rules of David.

And i can often tell who has it and who doesn’t pretty early on.

It is the folks that have a chip on their shoulder like me that usually end up progressing the fastest.

They just keep trying to optimize and pushing progress faster.

Because the faster they get back… the faster they even the score with whoever or whatever kicked them when they were down.

Closing thoughts

David Goggins is a person I both disagree and agree with.

I disagree that people should be encouraged to push themselves beyond their physical limits. Because he doesn’t understand how structure works.

And reality is that he is structurally gifted whereas most others are not. So when those are in bad structural shape try to repeat what he does…they will simply create more damage.

In fact i’m sure that there are hundreds or even thousands that read his book and already learned that lesson the hard way.

But i do agree with his thoughts on mental toughness.

Recovering with Reviv requires this. It’s a daily fight but a long war.

I engaged in this war without a guide. Without knowing whether I was going in the right direction.

And so I made tons of mistakes. Expended massive effort, both physical and psychological, just to find out later that i’d made a big circle. That was my story for years.

But i’m as motivated today to finish was I was 10 years ago. Why?

Because I live with this Goggins phrase “turn darkness into power.” When I get completely out of this… there is a whole line of people that laughed when i told them about this stuff, and who I plan to have the last laugh with.

As they age and their health turns… i plan to look & function as if age just bounces off me.

And I will ask them… “I guess you’re not laughing anymore? I guess i’m now the one laughing at you.” :)