The Mental Governor

The central governor theory explains how the brain will regulate physical exertion and shut the body down before it can do excessive harm to itself. It’s a protective measure to save us from ourselves.

Ultrarunners spend a lot of time trying to desensitize the central governor—pushing our bodies well beyond what most outsiders think is possible. I think it’s one of the main aspects of what makes our sport interesting.

How far can we go?

So we run consistently, logging mile after mile, with the overall goal of training ourselves to get comfortable with the physical pain of running long distances. It’s these desired physiological adaptations that we are after and attain, as long as we are somewhat smart about how we execute our plans.

But, aside from the physical component and the associated central governor that comes with it, something I’ve been very focused on is the mental governor—a term I first heard said by David Goggins, if I’m not mistaken. He describes what he calls the “40 Percent Rule,” where when we start to hit the wall and feel like giving up, we are likely only exerting 40 percent of what we are truly capable of.

I agree.

The mental governor is similar to the central governor, except, instead of protecting the body from self-inflicted physical overexertion, the mental governor protects our minds from being overloaded.

The brain is a muscle, and it can be trained. It will adapt to regular, consistent stimulus. Similar to how if you keep running regularly over an extended period of time—say months or years—you will desensitize the central governor and increase your capacity to run farther for longer. If you put your mind into uncomfortable and difficult situations often, over time, you will adapt to be more mentally resilient when times get tough.

I’m a firm believer in voluntary hardships, specifically for this reason.

I think there is great value in suffering and learning how to navigate those thoughts constructively. I’m convinced this takes regular practice.

The more we find ourselves saying, “I want to quit,” but committing to finishing regardless, the better.

The more we can say, “This sucks, I don’t want to do this,” but do it anyway, the better.

The more we can willfully put ourselves into situations where we feel uncomfortable or insecure, but we emerge alive and changed on the other side, the better.

The mental governor’s job is to tell us we aren’t capable and aren’t deserving.

Our job is to learn how to prove it wrong.