An Introduction To Endurance Philosophy
In this write up, I’m going to share:
my personal experience finding virtue through endurance
the 4 Values of my Endurance Philosophy and how they allow excellence to emerge from within us
Let’s dive in.
I want to live a good life.
I want to feel proud and accomplished and like I’m becoming the best version of myself.
I’ve experienced shame and lived in ways that make me feel worthless.
I hate having low self-esteem.
My Problem? I Had No Values
My early and mid-20s were dominated by emotional impulse, alcohol, drugs, gambling, porn, anger and a bad attitude toward the world.
My moral compass was corrupted by Vice and I defaulted to checking the boxes of public perception to validate my progress in life.
Graduate from college, get a job, get promoted, etc.
I figured that stuff out, but something inside me still felt unsatisfied.
Who am I? What is my purpose? What am I capable of? What am I doing with my life?
The questions that have been asked for thousands of years started surfacing in my mind. I didn’t have any answers.
Then I read “The Obstacle Is The Way” by Ryan Holiday and discovered the 4 Stoic Virtues:
Courage, Justice, Temperance and Wisdom
I felt like I had an internal guide for the first time in my life. They made sense.
But I needed something to bring them out of me.
My Solution? Find A Vehicle
In February 2019, I decided to take on the biggest goal I could think of: finish a 70.3
I thought the applied pressure of the race and the connections I’d make along the way would be good for me.
I totally underestimated their positive impact.
My 4 Values of Endurance Philosophy
Since setting that initial goal, I’ve…
completed 50K and 100K ultramarathons
qualified for & competed in the 70.3 World Championships
completed 3 Ironmans
coached 4 athletes across their first ultra finish line (up to 100 miles)
coached 10 athletes across their first 70.3 finish line
coached 7 athletes across their first Ironman finish line
Through my own experience and in coaching others, I’ve distilled the benefits of endurance into 4 Values:
Competition, Potential, Responsibility and Loyalty
The pressures of endurance sports force excellence to emerge from within the Human Spirit.
I’ve felt it happen for me and I’ve seen it happen for others.
Here’s how:
#1 Competition
Competition = Public Risk + Personal Action
This is the clear divide between the casual and the committed.
Performing in public demands truth, honesty and accountability.
We risk shame, humiliation, reputation and character. Our ass is on the line.
When we set our own rules and test ourselves in private, the mind tricks us, deceives us and accepts less than our best.
Before endurance sports normalized competing, I had no tangible understanding of where I was succeeding or failing in my personal goals.
I was screwing around gaining and losing the same 15lbs, doing the same workouts at the gym with the same amount of weight.
In reality, my entire life was on maintenance mode. AKA I was regressing.
Competition exposed that I lacked discipline, routine, consistency and accountability.
My behavior changed and my perception of self skyrocketed.
#2 Potential
Potential = Interest + Environment
Since I was a little kid, I wanted to be a professional athlete.
But as I moved through life, athletics were slowly stripped away.
I wasn’t disciplined enough to play at a respectable college. My family all worked in corporate business. My direction in life was assumed.
But my Authentic Self values athletics. Playing sports is in my DNA.
To deny athletics from my life is to live in misalignment with my potential.
If I want to feel like I’m becoming my best, I have to respect my natural interests and participate in them!
I don’t need to be a professional athlete to extract the values that participating in sport offers.
Signing up for a 70.3 realigned me with my interest and inserted me into an environment that bred progress.
I was finally working toward my potential.
#3 Responsibility
Responsibility = Freedom + Leadership
The unchecked freedoms of the modern world brought out the worst in me.
Want a drink? Grab one. A sugary snack? Sure. Another one? Go ahead. Want to throw some money on the game? Absolutely. Porn? Nothing wrong with that.
With the freedom to take part in anything, we have a responsibility to choose things that serve us.
My personal leadership was non-existent because I didn’t realize my responsibility to myself and those around me.
Endurance sports demanded that I held up my end of the bargain.
Sure, I could still participate in the Vices listed above, but judgement day was coming and I didn’t want to fail.
I found strength in the 3 main responsibilities that came with training for a 70.3:
Routine. I built a new one. No more casually showing up to the gym after work (or skipping it without obvious repercussion). Consistency and discipline became my goals.
Communication. I kept my wife in the loop on my training and reset expectations with family/friends on what I was committed to.
Action. I put in the training time and did the work.
I realized all the positive change I desired was in my control.
Excellence was within me. I just had to set the right conditions to let it out.
Taking responsibility gave me a sense of power and optimism.
#4 Loyalty
Loyalty = Discipline + Desire
I had no loyalty to myself because my desires did not have adequate discipline attached to them.
I said I wanted to be physically healthy, emotionally stable and confident in myself.
But my actions said otherwise.
I was gluttonous, quick to get angry and content doing things that made me feel bad about myself.
Because I lacked discipline, I lacked personal loyalty. I did not trust myself.
Endurance sports presented an opportunity to rebuild that trust.
Keeping up with my training meant I was keeping my word.
I began doing everything I said I was going to do.
I became my own teammate.
The 4 Values of Endurance Summarized
Competition = Public Risk + Personal Action
We must step into the arena and test ourselves in public
Once our true character is revealed, we have the chance to strengthen it
Potential = Interest + Environment
We all have excellence within us, but it will stay dormant without the right conditions
When we follow our interests and surround ourselves with people/habits that encourage progress, our personal greatness begins to shine
Responsibility = Freedom + Leadership
Personal leadership comes from realizing the responsibilities attached to your freedoms and goals
Loyalty = Discipline + Desire
Personal loyalty is forged by exercising the discipline your desires require
Become your own teammate
Did you enjoy this post? Share it with a friend here: