033: Hitting The Rest Brakes HARD w/ Kelly Starrett

Us athletes like to identify as hard chargers. We’re tougher, more resilient, and more tenacious than regular Joe’s. As such we pride ourselves on how we can keep on pushing when others would stop.

Like I’ve said before, this is an essential skill to develop for any athlete, and any human. If you gave up at the first sign of discomfort, you wouldn’t get very far in life.

However, your body and your mind aren't made for endless grind.

Speaking from an evolutionary perspective, we were built to work very very hard, and then rest completely and fully for a long, long time.

Let’s dissect this a little bit. We can break this problem down into three components: rewire, regulate, and dominate.

Rewiring is the process of changing the story. The story getting in the way of most athletes is the hustle and grind mentality. “I’ll sleep when I’m dead”, “I’ve gotta outwork the competition”, or maybe a fear trap of “oh my God, everyone’s working harder than me and I will fail if I let myself rest.”

Regulate is the physical side of the equation. Too many athletes we speak to spend their days constantly switched on. Pushing, grinding, forcing their body into the ground. Which is fine if there’s ample recovery too. Even your down time isn’t really down time: the hours on your phone are not the rest you think they are. Your body and mind still perceive this as work.

Finally, dominate. This is on the competition or gym floor. We’re grinding instead of flowing. Great performances don’t come from a place of constant grind, they come from putting yourself in a place of effortless effort.

Without these three components, minds fill with negativity and bodies don’t perform. To perform at your best by harnessing your full mindset, rewire, regulate and dominate.

In this conversation with Kelly Starrett, we discuss the value of putting the brakes on - enforced down time - in order to put yourself in a better place. We also discuss the value of having fun, changing up your warm ups, the greatest mindset challenge Kelly has ever faced and a tonne more besides.

Enjoy this wide ranging conversation with the wonderful, Kelly Starrett