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Learn the inner secrets of

Navy SEAL Mental Toughness

and develop a Warrior

Offensive Mind-set

You may have heard of SEALFIT, CrossFit’s

cousin on steroids, famous for culminating

determination and physical threshold of its

participants. Elite athletes and warriors

hard work. The center, located on an idyllic

strip of Encinitas beachfront, consists of

a breezy courtyard, which separates a

meditation studio and weight room.

surround the open area, and when empty,

the grounds feel downright relaxing.

It might be hard to imagine that serious,

gut-wrenching, mind-altering work happens

here, and on the deceptively calm adjacent

Picture that beach crawling with camo-clad

athletes and soldiers throwing weight

around while eating sand with a salt-water

chaser. If you want to feel like your WODs

are child’s play, watch the video of CrossFit

studs like Kristin Clever and Greg

Amundson struggling through the grueling

SEALFIT Academy. (Search CrossFit

SEALFIT Intro on YouTube.)

Commander Mark Divine, founder of

SEALFIT, has a history of pushing himself

11 | WODTALK.COM | September/October 2012

beyond the edges of his physical and

mental boundaries. He has proven himself

not only capable, but exceptional, in

a complex list of realms. His ability to

thrive as a businessman, Navy SEAL,

and athlete make him a man whose

advice on setting and achieving goals

is often sought. Fresh out of college,

Divine began his career as a Wall-Street

CPA before making the decision to join

the military. He spent twenty years as a

Navy SEAL, nine full time active duty and

eleven more as a reservist during which

he was mobilized twice and deployed to

Iraq during Iraqi Freedom. He retired as

a Commander in 2011. During his time

in the reserves, he began the process

of pursuing a Doctorate in Leadership,

but was deployed before completing his

between assignments and discovered that

the pace of higher education was not for

him. He made a calculated and potentially

risky decision to quit his PhD program

and create SEALFIT.

Divine’s eclectic professional journey is

mirrored by a similarly diverse athletic

journey – he has practiced Karate for

decades, was an endurance athlete, and

is an avid yogi. Combine this background

with his SEAL Physical Training, and

the foundation for SEALFIT was born.

SEALFIT is a physical gauntlet. Only the

most mentally and physically able manage

to complete SEALFIT Academy, which has

become a sort of benchmark for the most

gnarly of athletes. Its only downside?

SEALFIT is geographically and temporally

limiting; it only exists in Encinitas, and

So, what is the athlete, the business

owner, the entrepreneur, the organizer,

the soldier, or the student who is trapped

pocketbook to do?

Enter Unbeatable MindUnbeatable Mind is Divine’s latest

program, designed for anybody who

wishes to kick ass in any domain.

It’s a self-help system for the extremely

motivated that can be applied to all areas

of life, not just athleticism. It is well

organized, and best of all, is accessible.

Divine’s premise is easy to get behind.

The Unbeatable Mind, the book that

serves as the base curriculum for the

program, is organized as a series of

stages, skills, values, etc., all stemming

from Divine’s foundational Two Primary

Disciplines: Self-Mastery and Service.

Under each of these categories lie

admirable, albeit daunting, sub-sets.

Self-Mastery includes methods for

practicing simplicity, contentment,

seriousness, dedication, introspection,

and authenticity. Service covers lessons

on fostering generosity and compassion.

What’s interesting about Divine’s process

is that this list of disciplines, which

sounds like an anthem of peace, is

effectively used to train warriors. But

warriors who train according to Divine’s

principles do so with clarity and calm

by mastering the connections between

mind, emotion, and body. One list that

shows up over and over again in the

curriculum is The Five Mountains: the

physical, mental, emotional, awareness/

intuition, and kokoro (heart spirit).

The Five Mountains appear frequently

for a reason; they’re the practical core

of Divine’s premise, and although he

does not explicitly state it, there appears

to be no real hierarchy of importance.

That’s to say; somebody who is very

physically able but lacks emotional

control is no better off as a whole person

than a morbidly obese couch potato who

has mastered the skill of awareness and

intuition. To be the best human you

the Mountains.

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You might think this all sounds well and good, but a

little abstract. How do I practice intuition, you ask?

What’s contentment really look like, and what does it

have to do with my workouts? If this material sounds

presented applicably in the lessons. Should you register

for the program, you’ll receive login information for The

Unbeatable Mind Academy Member Site. Here you’ll have

access to the two books that comprise the base curriculum

– Unbeatable Mind and Unbeatable Mind Workbook – as

well as multiple videos narrated by Mark Divine. These

cover theory and practice, and include a conceptual lecture

stemming from the book, as well as a guided meditation

session. Each monthly lesson has its own page on the

Member Site. What does a lesson look like? Lesson One

consists of 8 videos: 1 overview, 3 demonstrations, and

4 lectures/lessons. There are also 3 separate worksheets

dealing with realistic goal-setting and planning for the

program as a whole. Most of the videos are also available

as MP3s.

We might have trouble admitting it, but CrossFitters

like being told what to do, to a degree, and having

accountability built into our lifestyle and regimens is

only helpful. Divine’s program is user-friendly; if you

commit to reading and performing the disciplines, Divine

will hold your hand through the process. There are

models, examples, and guided videos for nearly every

tangible step in the Unbeatable Mind process. The book is

supported heavily by the Work Book, and the Work Book is

supplemented by handouts.

There is something in this program for everybody, but

not without a true commitment. For people who are

interested in accomplishing their goals without journaling,

meditating, and practicing yoga, this is not your program.

For those who are interested in the self-analysis and

emotional control techniques developed by this program

but cannot bear imagining any practical manifestation of

this discipline ending violently, this is not your program.

This program is for the Peaceful Warrior: if you fall too

far on either end of that spectrum, you might not love

the curriculum. If you are willing and able to tap into the

complexities of your mind and body, Unbeatable Mind will

help you in achieving your goals, whatever they may be.

To learn more about Mark Divine’s UNBEATABLE MINDS

program you can visit: www.UnbeatableMind.com.

Divine’s Unbeatable Mind - Learn the Secrets of Developing Mental Toughness