So much of why I started this newsletter was just a personal conviction. I knew I wanted to start something on my own, I had this idea for a while, and I am passionate about sharing things that help people grow - I just had to get out of my own way.

Regardless of where this newsletter goes, I am already thankful for the journey and the discipline of sitting down to write this every week.

My 245-pound self was desperate for motivation and for someone to help kick my gears into drive. I am thankful I found the sources to help me navigate diet and nutrition that I did. I am thankful that I finally stopped saying “I’m not a runner” and gave it a try. I am thankful for the people that encouraged me to pick up a book and read early on in my 20s.

The sole focus of this newsletter and whatever side projects arise from The Superset is to execute what I currently see as some sort of a purpose - to help guide and inspire others to begin / improve their own reading, running, diet, lifting, listening, and growth journeys. However small or large that number winds up being is irrelevant.

Now let’s have ourselves a week -

Brain - 5X Mr. Olympia Chris Bumstead on Numbing Emotion

Podcast: The Jordan B. Peterson Podcast | Ep. 423 | Greatness, Marriage, Parenthood & Climbing New Mountains | Chris Bumstead

Chris Bumstead is a 5X Mr. Olympia Champion in the Classic Physique category and regarded as the most popular bodybuilders of this decade. As a fan, it has been fun to watch him navigate the ups and downs of (as he calls it himself) “setting a standard”, and having to continue to not only live to that standard he created, but to keep pushing to move that bar forward.

Through the journey, any bystander can tell that Chris has grappled with the stress and anxiety of being the #1 in something, of having the following he has, and of trying to balance life with his sport - one which is fairly all-consuming.

I loved this podcast episode for these latter reasons. The physical appearance of a meathead, but the mind and mouth of someone who is far more stoic. He is getting closer to retiring, has a child on the way, and is recently engaged, but is still for the moment pushing to be the best he can be.

I have transcribed a portion of this podcast that hammered hard on Chris talking about the downside of numbing out negative emotions. He describes in the podcast that his old self tried to numb and suppress the stress and anxiety he experienced leading up to shows, but realized that when you numb certain emotions, you end up numbing out all of them.

Every emotion we feel has its place in our story. The anxiety is because something matters to you. Overcoming stress magnifies the feeling of reward when you accomplish something. Obstacles in the journey become triumphs at the celebration.

I thought this was just a powerful excerpt worth hearing. If you listen to the podcast, you can skip the first 20 minutes or so if you want to pass the section about the semantics and background of the sport of bodybuilding. Enjoy:

“I've fallen in love with the self-discovery and growth that I have discovered through bodybuilding by pushing my limits physically and mentally, by going through states of suffering, overcoming these odds that hit me at the worst times, and being able to see how far I can take a goal and how far I can push myself. I've fallen in love with the growth that has come with that.

And so that's continuously what pushes me. And we spoke about the feelings I have on stage and I think a lot of successful people including myself have gotten really good at things because of our ability to compartmentalize and to suppress things and continue to work as things are going on.

But what I realized from a young age was that if I suppress things or compartmentalize and push them to the side for too long without keeping them back up, I start to suppress everything. So the kind of thing I said at the end of this year was if you numb the bad, you numb the good. You start to numb your whole life and you start to feel less and be less present. And I didn't want to be that person anymore.

So partway through my career, I was like, I'm winning, but what I feel is relief that it's over at the end. I want to feel joy. I want to feel the fear and anxiety before and the joy afterwards, all of it rather than nothing. So that was a huge transition that I've pushed through in the last few years”

Body - Nutrition for Running (I Wish I Knew This Sooner)

You learn something from every race and training block of running. The first time you lace up a pair of shoes (ones that probably aren’t fitted for you…), you think the only thing you need is some headphones, to down a few swigs of water before and a place to run.

At its core, it really isn’t much more complicated than that. That’s the beauty of running. Any time, anywhere - with minimal equipment. The breaking point comes when you start to try to improve your runs - faster time, longer distances, more elevation, etc. You start to realize that there is probably some information you are missing.

I will cover many of these tips I’ve learned on my personal journey in subsequent volumes, but I think an easy one people miss that’s within their control is nutrition and fueling.

If you’ve ever hit “the wall” during a run, your first conclusion is probably that you aren’t in good enough shape yet. That may be somewhat true, but the reality is probably closer to the analogy of a car and running out of gas. Our bodies are much like vehicles - keep gas in the tank and it will keep running.

Our body stores and produces several key fuel sources for our muscles to feed on during physical activity. At some point in your run, if not fueled properly, you are going to feel a “Low Fuel” light come on in your mind. It might be a side cramp, tightening of the hamstrings, dry mouth, increased heart rate, etc. But the culprit is probably your pre and intra-run nutrition.

Here’s what I have come to make a staple of my running routine:

• Electrolytes: The simplest and most readily available supplement of them all. As you sweat, your body loses sodium. These supplements aim to supply your body with extra before and while you run, to prevent your body from cramping and remaining hydrated (pulling water & nutrients where it’s needed). Even if you aren’t running, a balanced diet can always find a need for some electrolytes. I use a powder from BPN (link), but there are plenty of options out there.

• Supplemental Carbohydrates: As you run, your body taps into the energy stores in your muscles that have been converted from the carbohydrates you have consumed in your diet. I take this before all runs, but especially for your longer efforts, adding a powdered carb source that is quickly digestible (I use G1M sport from BPN also), can be like a reserve fuel tank for your body for when it reaches depletion of what is currently in the muscles. Gels are also a popular option, especially on race day and long training runs.

• Salt Tabs: This is a quick and easy one. If you struggle with getting the electrolyte fluid down, looking into salt tabs / capsules can be an easy solution. They are great for long runs, and especially great for hot temperatures when your sweat rate increases. I use these from Amazon.

• FOOD: It should go without saying, but fuel your body for what you are going to ask it to do. If you are going on a long run, make sure you get enough carbs in the day before. Get something on the stomach in the morning if you can. A simple and effective fuel source is just in our diet.

Book - Extreme Ownership by Jocko Willink

Extreme Ownership is a book that if I didn’t stop myself, I could write thousands of words on. Unfortunately, this newsletter is not the place for that.

Saying that, it is absolutely on my Top-5 recommendations list, especially for those looking to go down the path of improving discipline and/or leadership.

The concept is simple - To succeed, you have to own everything that happens in your life. The good, the bad, the faults of your team, your diet, your nutrition, etc. Jocko, a former NAVY Seal, does a great job reinforcing this case throughout the book. Here is the link for the book, and a couple of quick hitters to start:

“The test is not a complex one: when the alarm goes off, do you get up out of bed, or do you lie there in comfort and fall back to sleep? If you have the discipline to get out of bed, you win—you pass the test. If you are mentally weak for that moment and you let that weakness keep you in bed, you fail. Though it seems small, that weakness translates to more significant decisions. But if you exercise discipline, that too translates to more substantial elements of your life.”

“When setting expectations, no matter what has been said or written, if substandard performance is accepted and no one is held accountable—if there are no consequences—that poor performance becomes the new standard.”

“On any team, in any organization, all responsibility for success and failure rests with the leader. The leader must own everything in his or her world. There is no one else to blame. The leader must acknowledge mistakes and admit failures, take ownership of them, and develop a plan to win.”

(For those who read and don’t label themselves as a leader - which a lot of the book circles around to - I encourage you to still read. Everyone is a leader in differing capacities).