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Why You Are Stronger Than You Think with Ross Edgley #73

Sep 11, 2019 1h 33m 21 insights
“You are more powerful than your mind allows you to believe”   This week, I have the great pleasure of sitting down with arguably the fittest (but definitely one of the loveliest) men on the planet – swimmer and all-round adventurer, Ross Edgley. He believes that the next frontier of human performance is the mind and his superhuman feats are testament to that fact. He is the first ever swimmer to circumnavigate the whole of Great Britain without ever setting foot on land. And this is just one in a long list of mind-blowing accomplishments for Ross. But how is all that relevant to the rest of us? As well as talking about how he got through his epic journey, Ross explains the science behind why our minds limit us. He explains how we can all push ourselves beyond our comfort zones and reap the amazing knock-on benefits that come from doing that. We delve into the importance of intrinsic motivation and self-discovery through self-discipline. Ross speaks with wisdom and humility and is truly inspirational – he challenges you to go on your own journey of self-discovery. The overriding message from both of us is – it doesn’t matter where you start, just start somewhere. I hope this episode inspires you to push yourself outside your circle of comfort. Show notes available at drchatterjee.com/73 Follow me on instagram.com/drchatterjee/ Follow me on facebook.com/DrChatterjee/ Follow me on twitter.com/drchatterjeeuk
Actionable Insights

1. Recalibrate Mind, Expand Life

Voluntarily subject yourself to challenges beyond perceived capabilities to recalibrate your mind and positively impact all areas of life, including work, family, and personal growth.

2. Just Start Somewhere

Begin your journey towards any goal or healthier lifestyle immediately, without waiting for optimal conditions or feeling fully prepared, as starting is the most critical step.

3. Prioritize Intrinsic Motivation

Cultivate motivation that comes from internal reasons, where the process itself is the reward, as this leads to higher achievement and sustained effort, especially during extreme challenges.

4. Embrace Adversity Training

Deliberately engage in ‘adversity training’ to become comfortable being uncomfortable, building mental fortitude and resilience by voluntarily exposing yourself to hardship.

5. Understand Fatigue’s Emotional Roots

Recognize that fatigue is often an emotionally driven state, a self-preservation mechanism from your brain, rather than a true physiological limit, allowing you to push beyond perceived boundaries.

6. Be Your Own Health Architect

Take an active role in understanding and making decisions about your own health, seeking knowledge and tools for prevention rather than solely relying on external help for cure.

7. Define Your Training Purpose

Clearly articulate your training goal in a single, concise sentence to ensure focus, avoid diluting your efforts, and allow your body to adapt specifically to the intended stimuli.

8. Build General Physical Fitness

Establish a broad baseline of general physical preparedness (running, jumping, climbing, crawling, basic motor skills) to build work capacity, which serves as a robust foundation for later specialization in any sport.

9. Progress Over Perfection

Focus on making consistent progress rather than striving for perfection in every training session, acknowledging that non-optimal efforts still lead to improvement and growth.

10. Reframe Stress to Excitement

Consciously reframe feelings of stress or fear as excitement to alter your physiological and psychological response, turning potential dread into positive anticipation.

11. Practice Free Breathing Methods

Explore and practice free breathing techniques, like those taught by Wim Hof, as a universally accessible and powerful tool for improving health and well-being.

12. Master Basic Physiological Needs

Prioritize fundamental physiological needs such as sleep, warmth, and proper nutrition as the essential building blocks for overall health and well-being.

13. Perform When Feeling Worst

Cultivate the mental toughness to perform effectively even when feeling at your worst, tired, or underprepared, drawing inspiration from military training.

14. Choose Minimalist Footwear

Opt for minimalist shoes to allow the intrinsic muscles, ligaments, and tendons in your feet to function naturally, improving movement, balance, and musculoskeletal health.

15. Daily Foot Mobility Exercises

Dedicate five minutes daily to specific foot exercises to improve foot mechanics, which can alleviate issues like back pain and restore proper body movement.

16. Try Cold Showers

Incorporate ice cold showers into your routine to stimulate thermoregulation, improve physiological adaptations, and get comfortable with discomfort, enhancing resilience.

17. Activate Mammalian Dive Reflex

When experiencing cold water shock or gasp reflex, submerge your face in water to activate the mammalian dive reflex, which naturally slows heart rate and reduces blood pressure.

18. Separate Strength and Stamina

Avoid training for both strength and stamina within the same session, as it dilutes the specific cellular signals for adaptation, making your body unsure what to prioritize for optimal results.

19. Integrate Strength and Stamina

Combine both strength and stamina training in your overall program (though not necessarily in the same session) to prevent injury, improve work capacity, and enhance performance in either discipline.

20. Optimize Nutrition for Extremes

When facing extreme physical demands, prioritize calorie density, nutrient density, digestibility, and palatability in your diet to sustain energy, manage health, and ensure consumption.

21. Morning Mindfulness Practice

Integrate a mindfulness practice, such as meditation, into your morning routine immediately upon waking to establish a well-structured start to your day and tick off the ‘mindfulness’ component.