How Discipline Turns Every Obstacle into Growth

The Hard Way With Joe De Sena

Spartan Races

Fitness, Education, Self-improvement, Alternative Health, Health & Fitness, 792700

4.7 • 870 Ratings

🗓️ 18 November 2025

⏱️ 19 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

What happens when discipline meets adversity? In a world where comfort wins too easily, true progress begins with facing hard challenges head-on. Joe De Sena talks with Zeus Fitness founder and adaptive coach Jake Weiner about building grit through adaptive training, creating community for athletes with disabilities, and turning mindset shifts into lasting confidence.

Tools, Frameworks, or Strategies Learned:

Mindset Reframing: Jake explains how shifting "I can't" to "I'll try" transforms both athletes and parents, proving that confidence is built one small win at a time.
Adaptive Coaching Approach: Training without specialized equipment—just smarter coaching, personalized cues, and consistent feedback.
Environment and Community Design: Creating a supportive gym culture where athletes mirror each other's discipline, replacing isolation with shared strength.
Routine as Ritual: Building daily movement habits that anchor mindset and consistency—discipline treated like brushing your teeth.
Perspective Shift Practice: Using the mantra "It could be worse" to ground gratitude and push through discomfort.

Closing Insight: "Discipline turns obstacles into opportunity—because every hard thing you face trains both body and mind."

Listen & Subscribe:

Apple: The Hard Way Podcast

Spotify: The Hard Way Podcast

Short, Impactful Content:

Instagram: @thehardwaypodcast

From host directly: @realjoedesena

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Find Your Next Spartan Race: spartan.com/en/race/find-race

For everything Spartan: spartan.com

Timestamps:

[00:10] The Mission Behind Zeus Fitness

Jake explains how Zeus Fitness became a training ground for adaptive athletes.

[03:25] Reframing the Mindset

Jake shares how shifting mindset changes how athletes, parents, and coaches face challenges.

[11:48] Building Rituals That Outlast Motivation

Consistency beats intensity. Discipline becomes automatic when workouts are treated like daily hygiene.

[15:21] The Power of Community and Spartan Grit

Jake explains how his athletes train year-round for Spartan Races—proving that shared purpose and team energy build more than strength; they build resilience.

[20:40] A Lesson in True Commitment

One athlete skips Disneyland to make his workout. A reminder that when purpose is strong enough, excuses disappear.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	What do you suggest for those civilians out there that are lost?
0:03.0	If you feel lost, accept that as part of the normal human experience.
0:08.0	Look at that as a catalyst for you to think differently.
0:11.0	We need to go out on a different path.
0:13.0	And I recommend finding some time alone and doing some introspection
0:18.0	to discover what that's telling you.
0:20.0	Spartans, listen up.
0:21.6	We need to sleep better.
0:22.6	So how do you sleep better?
0:23.6	Never thought about it before.
0:24.6	And so I met Jack, I met Ascentia, I had attention to the mattress to sleep on because it's loaded with chemicals.
0:31.6	Recovery, cooling, and pressure relief, all in one mattress, up to 60% more deep and REM sleep. Less inflammation,
0:40.3	faster bounce back. No toxins, no EMFs, no BS. My buddy Jack, over at Ascentia, he's kind enough to
0:48.3	give us a code for the Spartan community. That's Deca, that's tough mother of all of us. Use Spartan
0:53.3	25, get a discount, prioritize your sleep so you can sleep faster, you can do more burpees,
0:58.8	and you can train more, you can get healthier.
1:00.3	When you sleep well, you live well.
1:03.0	Joe DeSan, CEO, founder of Spartan, hosted a Hardway podcast, got a great one on today.
1:07.5	Got a Navy SEAL, Kevin Stark, husband, dad, great youngsters, leadership expert.
1:15.5	Welcome aboard. Yeah, thanks, Joe. Appreciate it. Are Navy SEALs born or made or, you know, where'd this guy grow up?
1:22.1	That's a good question. There's probably seeds planted and then you've got to cultivate them. I grew up all over the place. My dad was in the
1:28.2	military, so we moved around quite a bit. Overseas actually lived in Germany, Italy for a while and then
	...

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