Video summary
Jesse James West recounts a harrowing experience with Brian Johnson, known as "Liver King," involving an extreme physical challenge called the Barbarian Crucible. The test required participants to carry approximately 315 pounds of weight—including ankle weights, a heavy backpack, and kettlebells—while pulling a sled through sand in temperatures reaching 112 degrees Fahrenheit during July or August. West initially completed a similar but easier version on flat gravel, beating Liver King's time by an hour, which sparked his curiosity about the next level. When invited back for the Crucible, he faced a course ten times harder due to the sandy terrain and extreme heat. Despite suffering from severe dehydration, electrolyte imbalance, and full-blown heat stroke, West pushed himself through three-quarters of the mile before collapsing on the ground for thirty minutes while producers poured water over him that failed to cool his body effectively. Driven by a stubborn belief in not failing, West managed to finish the final quarter-mile despite feeling as though his soul had left his body and having no sweat remaining. Upon crossing the finish line after four hours of agony compared to his initial one-hour attempt, he collapsed completely. This ordeal taught him that when an individual thinks they are done physically or mentally, there is actually 40% more capacity left in their tank—a lesson reinforced during a Navy SEAL course at Lehi High School where West was eighteen years old and weighed nearly two hundred pounds. During this training, students performed grueling exercises like push-ups on the edge of an icy pool while wearing wet sweatpants that stuck to them, followed by deep-end swimming simulations with weighted clothing that simulated drowning conditions until they were forced to switch places rapidly under strict time limits imposed by team captains. West reflects on how these formative experiences shaped his resilience and perspective on pushing beyond perceived limitations. He notes the irony of people mocking adults who seek such challenges at forty-five, comparing it to ridiculing a person going to the gym for weight loss; however, he argues that not everyone had the opportunity to learn these lessons in their youth through elite athletic programs or strict parental guidance like his father provided. While acknowledging that some boot camps may seem cringe-worthy online due to exaggerated marketing stories involving bearded men shouting at sleep-deprived participants, West emphasizes the genuine value of learning endurance and mental toughness during adolescence versus having to discover those truths later in life when pathology might prevent success even with preparation. The discussion also touches upon the importance of trust regarding supplement quality, leading Jesse James West to partner with Momentus for their rigorous third-party testing standards that ensure label accuracy without fillers. He highlights specific products like Omega-3s, Tonat Ali, and magnesium L38 as essential for supporting cognitive performance, optimal hormone function, and better sleep. These supplements are available internationally with a thirty-day money-back guarantee, offering customers a twenty percent discount via the code "modern wisdom" at liv.com/momentus using the link in the description below or heading to liv.com/slowwisdom. West concludes by thanking his audience for tuning in and encouraging them to explore the full-length conversation if they enjoyed this clip about overcoming extreme physical discomfort through unwavering determination.
Read the full video transcript
let me tell you about the hardest thing
that I've done oh God have Trauma from
this one you can thank a guy named Brian
Johnson AKA liver King okay this guy
psychopath love him great guy to be
around uh extremely successful
businessman very motivating uh he does
this thing called the Barbarian you have
15 pound on ankle weights on each leg 15
pound uh or 70 pound backpack 150 140
pound sled
and holding 70 pound kettle bells and
it's 112 degrees outside in Texas and
it's August or July or something and you
have to go through the sand so like sand
gives resistance as as you pull it's
digging it's digging itself into the
ground so it's torturous so it's like if
you do the math it's like 315 pounds
you're carrying so like and you have to
go a mile I've done it once with him the
first time I met him uh and we did it on
flat gravel I did it in an hour in 20
something minutes I beat him by an hour
I was like what the hell just happened
bro
that was like okay that was one of the
one of the hardest things I've done not
the hardest then I do the Second
Challenge a year later he invites me
back he's like I want you to do the
Barbarian Crucible like this sounds
terrible but I'm in I'm all four stupid
things that I'm gonna have to put myself
through that's why I literally have like
scars from this and we do this about
quarter mile in I was like already
having a first heat stroke and I was
like what I was like bro this is next
level cuz it's through sand it's through
dirt it's through
uh it's same thing same exact thing same
mile just the course is 10 times harder
and he last time he did it it was a
competition so you kind of have that
like let me Chase you feeling this time
he's just chilling he's smoking his
cigar drinking his whiskey calling the
walkie-talkie guy next to me talking
[ __ ] and I'm like I I told him I said I
will finish this and this goes back to
my like almost stupid belief in myself
to where I do things that hurt myself
because I'm like I'm not going to fail I
I'm not going to stop so I psychotically
do this for like
let's say three4 of the mile and I get
to the sand it's like first half just
gravel and dirt and stuff hard but not
the worst sand at like
last4 miles and I uh I get to this point
where I'm now fullon having a heat
stroke I'm freezing it's 112 degrees
outside makes no sense I've sweat all
water out now I'm covered in white
because like my uh like electrolytes are
just on me and I'm like I'm like I'm
dying I at their their producers and
stuff I'm like bro I'm done were you
allowed water I was allowed to drink
water they were pouring a ton of water
on me but like nothing was working and I
look at their producer and I'm like I'm
done I'm I'm going to they said if you
uncp you're done I'm about to uncp and
they're like don't do it and I'm like
I'm stupid I'm good at being told that
what to do like and still doing it and
I'm like okay you said don't do it I'm
not going to do it I'm GNA keep going I
go I go next Heat stroke on the ground
laying there for 30 minutes I'm I'm like
my soul has left my body I know I don't
have sweat left in my body I'm covered I
lick my lips it's salty like I needed
some of this stuff great plug yep but I
get to a point where I'm like I'm like
dude I I have 015 left of a mile like I
have to just finish this same thing in
the marathon like if I don't I'm just
gonna be pissed once I feel better I'm
be pissed Y and I I somehow slug my way
to the end five steps drop five steps
drop five steps drop I'm like dead in
the face I get there I cross the finish
line I just collapse on the ground and
he's
like yeah there you go brother and he's
like yeah yeah boy he says that so he's
like uh he's like let it the [ __ ] he has
all these sayings they're just psychotic
and I'm laying
there and safe to say it took me four
hours four hours to go a mile and that
was the most painful thing I've ever
done in my life so when I did the
marathon I just kept thinking about that
and I was like that was 4 hours of way
more pain this is 4 hours of a different
pain my legs have never had so much
lactic acid in my body but my upper body
is perfectly fine my mind can push
through this but with liver King it's
like your arms are tired your legs are
tired your soul you can't even feel your
soul because you're so
dehydrated was a crazy experience what
have you learned about resilience to
physical discomfort from the challenges
and things that you've done I've learned
that you can push your body so much
farther than you'd ever think something
that I that I learned at Lehi uh we had
a Navy SEAL course come to us and so I
hated everything about Lehi School uh
the guys were cool the coaches were
always nice to me but like the program
didn't want to do it all that stuff
sucked when they brought in Navy Seals
and made us stay up for 50 hours
favorite thing I was I was depressed at
the time [ __ ] loved it way better
than whatever hell we were doing before
so it's like this weird everyone else
hated it I was like I don't know why
that was the best part of my month and
we do this oh dude I'm like remembering
this [ __ ] it's crazy okay I'm like 18
we're I'm like I'm like 180 lbs right
now I was probably almost 200 just meet
dick bro [ __ ] 4,500 calories a day
and they make us do perfect jumping
jacks perfect situps perfect push-ups
one person messes up everyone is
required to call that one person out
basically make make them feel like [ __ ]
and then everyone runs because of it we
do that for four hours straight they say
go home get one hour of sleep we go home
we [ __ ] lay down we get right back up
we're in a pool at 3:00 a.m. they say
put your sweatsuits on full crew neck
full sweatpants these sweatpants are
like double XL that we're wearing and
they're like jump in the pool and I'm
like what the [ __ ] and and and they're
like if you can't swim go to the shallow
end like dead ass they said this to us
and I was like someone's going to die we
go in and they're like okay we're going
to do the push-ups the sit-ups to
everything on the outside of the pool
we're soaking wet we're doing them we're
calling out people for not doing it
right and you're you're held accountable
if you don't if you if they see you see
someone and say and you don't go hey
Johnny over here didn't do his push-up
right now you're [ __ ] now you get
called out so it's everybody's calling
out each other and just saying like you
suck you're
horrible very traumatizing for some
people you should see the faces on these
people were I'm gonna die and then we go
to the pool and we're like okay now
we're going to do basically like a deep
end simulation thing where you have to
take off your sweatshirt you have to
switch with somebody and then put it on
it's a it's some Navy SEAL training um
don't know the name of it but wild
experience that you tread you're
treading and you're in like picture like
so much resistance on your legs and
you're like 40 lbs 20 pounds heavier
with this like weighted clothes on you
and you're trying to swim and everyone's
like every you're trying to like hey you
got this you got this you're talking to
each other up and they're like all right
everyone take off your sweatshirt and
you have to go on a ready ready attack
call so like everyone's on the exact
same page and you take it off and you're
treading you're treading at one arm you
have to hold it up with one arm until
everybody is ready you know and it takes
two minutes at least to get these things
off it's like stuck to you kids don't
know what they're doing some kids
literally are being held up by other
people I shouldn't say kids we're like
adults at this time and we're treading
we're treading and then it's like ready
ready attack switch with somebody you
switch now ready ready attack put it on
so think of like a wet bag like stuck
together and you're like trying to like
find the opening and you're treading
still for like we're at like minute
eight of treading and then we put it on
and we're like all just dying some kids
are near drowning like genuinely there
two people holding their arms up and
they're like their head is barely above
the water and if they don't complete it
restart we did like four rounds of this
thing and they would they look at the
team captain go how quick can you do it
they want to push the hell out of us and
the team captain says something like two
minutes okay do it again they look at
him again you didn't you did it 150 how
quick can you do it 130 they're like all
right 130 you did 125 how quick are you
doing all right 120 we do it we get all
the way down to like 1 115 120 and we're
all we've been treading water for like
40 freaking minutes cuz in between maybe
you get like a quick put the shoulder on
something but you're back crazy
experience and that is pre-youtube
challenge so like doing that uh
definitely showed me like you're capable
of so much those seals that day were
like listen when you think you're done
when you think you're done not just like
oh I'm tired I'm done when you think
you're truly done you have 40% left in
the tank and you need to tell yourself
that every single time when you're on
the field when you think you're done 40%
left keep pushing and I was like damn
I'm G to live by that and like obviously
I'm not an Navy SEAL by any means or
anything but like that that that stuck
with me and when I get in those moments
I think there's still 40 like that still
sticks with me 40% left when I'm at my
marathon and I'm at Mile 24 still 40%
left sadly yeah I
wonder again how many people would
benefit from really formative
experiences like that you know it's such
an opportunity for you to do it as a
college athlete but most people get out
of that you know I hear about um these
Alpha boot camp things that are
happening I know the owners and there's
a bunch of them bed Ross has been on the
show kulan if you know him uh and
there's it's kind of easy to mock online
because the story line tells you too
much it's just way too easy of a
headline where someone says uh man pays
$10,000 to have dude with beard and full
sleeve shout at him while he doesn't
sleep you know it's a funny headline but
when you actually look at what those
kinds of formative experiences maybe
teach you and the fact that you got to
learn that at 18 yeah the reason that
it's a bit that people think it's a bit
cringe and it might be cringe I'm not
too sure the reason that people think
it's a bit cringe is why are you at 45
needing this you go well what if you've
never had it before what if you've never
pushed yourself to that place before
normal person at what point in your life
are you going beyond that 40% line that
you think is your normal one you even
someone that runs a marathon if they're
preparing for six months or a full year
for it it should be a relatively sure
thing unless you've got some sort of
weird pathology and your heart blows up
halfway with it's a
difficult and impressive but relatively
and then you go okay what about an Iron
Man well okay even with that the point
is that you're training to be able to do
the thing yeah it would be almost like I
see what you're saying you doing doing
something that you're almost not
prepared for to torture yourself so much
that you will gain a much more valuable
lesson than if you prepared for it yeah
of course which is crazy yes and going
through that I'm very great this is
where the moments where I I then look
back at my dad setting me up in these
situations where I'm like thank you so
much for even though it was Rocky at
times thank you so much for making me go
do this because there's a reason I'm in
the position I am there's a reason I can
handle so much and there's a reason that
I can push myself so much and it all
falls back to being in the Rain the hail
the snow him throwing the ball a million
times and I'm like why are we doing this
it all makes sense now and the way liver
King is is is why're it's why I respect
him so much and yes he has had his
scandals but as a man and you could
argue this because he lied whatever as a
man that I know as he's like a friend of
mine I see his sons and then I see the
way he is with them and how it was
similar to my father and the way that he
pushes them and the way that my dad
pushed me and I'm and I look at I looked
I told them and I said I said I know it
might not make sense now what your dad
is doing and how you got to do the
Barbarian you got to you know be strict
with your diet or whatever I'm like it's
going to make give it 10 years you're
gonna thank him and I and I promise I
promise they will I I won't say I
promise but 99% there might be 1% chance
that they will and that's like one of
those things where doing hard things is
so necessary and I think even if you're
45 Ian what what age did Warren Buffett
become a billionaire or or a millionaire
wasn't like 40 or 50 it took a long time
oh let's make fun of his freaking self
for for why weren't you a millionaire
younger bro like no he's a billionaire
now like it doesn't matter what time you
start what age you start I think the
fact is that not everyone has the
opportunity to go to a D1 lacrosse
program on a scholarship and have a dad
push them and care for them that much
that he wants to put him in that
scenario where you end up going do those
things and learn those lessons at 18
it's unrealistic some people do have to
learn lessons in adulthood that they
should have learned in childhood and we
all do there's a million lessons to
learn and it's kind of it is very
strange in a world where we want people
to be more resilient there is an odd
amount of sort of teasing and pity uh
and mocking for people that take stuff
seriously when they get into later life
and you okay it's a it it's not far off
the developmental equivalent of mocking
a fat person going to the gym y you go
the exact thing that they need is the
thing that they're trying to do yep
trust really is everything when it comes
to supplements a lot of Brands may say
that they're top quality but few can
actually prove it which is why I
partnered with momentus they make the
highest quality supplements on the
planet they're literally unparalleled
when it comes to rigorous third party
testing what you read on the label is
what's in the product and absolutely
nothing else three of my favorite
products that I've been using to support
my brain body and sleep are Omega-3s
tonat Ali and magnesium l38 that all
help to support cognitive performance
optimal hormone function and better
sleep they don't just claim thirdparty
tested like a lot of other brands what
you read on the label is what you're
putting in your body and absolutely
nothing else best of all they ship
internationally and offer a 30-day money
back guarantee so if you're not sure you
can buy them try them and if you do not
like them they will give you your money
back right now you can get a 20%
discount off everything sitewide by
going to the link in the description
destion below or heading to liv.com slod
wisdom using the code modern wisdom a
checkout that's l i v m o n us.com
wisdom and modern wisdom a check
out thank you very much for tuning in if
you enjoyed that clip with Jesse you
love the full length conversation right
here go on