Our first reaction to being hit by some outside force, some adversity is to shrink away from it. I propose that men must retrain themselves to suppress this instinct and instead lean into the resistance.
I learned an interesting fact from the Huberman Lab podcast. We commonly think of the hormone testosterone as being the manly hormone. It is associated with sex drive and muscle mass, among a myriad of other manly products. But it also acts to make effort feel good.
It makes it enjoyable to lean into the resistance.
Perhaps this is why men find great enjoyment in various sports, despite their difficulty. Otherwise, why would a man think it is reasonable to deadlift 800 pounds? He could have proved that he was a man of strength 300 pounds earlier. But partially due to this additional effect of testosterone men pursue things that are difficult. This is natural for us. In fact, we cannot thrive without real resistance. This cannot be resistance fabricated by society, it must be real.
Think of the cultures and societies in the modern age that were robbed of resistance.
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Consider Native American Indians who were given so much because of how leftists claim they were treated. They were given land, business, tax advantages, preferential selection in business and college, yet they are failures. They have incredibly high rates of alcoholism and diabetes and have failed to make use of the opportunities they have been given.
Think of the black community. Culture continues to promote the idea that racism is growing and prominent in the world. They say that blacks have been kept down and treated badly and are still treated poorly in the world. What good has this done the black community? What good has this done to their rates of single motherhood and poverty?
By making these two groups believe they are the victim of some crime, one of the many consequences is that this robs them of their freedom to lean into the resistance. Instead of being encouraged to work against a real adversary, they are made the victim of a crime. This is a passive attitude and robs men of the ability to be manly.
What we need to do is learn to lean into the resistance of life. Instead of shirking away, playing the victim, or accepting limitations, we must learn to lean into the adversity and convert it into strength.
The next time you find yourself hitting some adversity, real or simulated, lean into it. Learn to attack adversity and convert it into strength. You can do this in a simulated manner in the gym. Learn to lean into the effort of your training instead of thinking of it as suffering. In doing so you will become more of a man.
