How 1 Man’s 12-Hour Endurance Walk Unbelievable Feat Achieved, Shattered Records and Inspired World

Colin O’Brady’s incredible true story of pushing past pain and exhaustion on a record-breaking 12-hour walk across Antarctica’s brutal terrain will amaze and motivate you. Consider taking up endurance walking to explore your own limits of determination and gain perspective on challenges large and small.

In this riveting memoir, Colin shares how he became the first person known to traverse Antarctica alone, unsupported and unaided in a remarkable 54-hour solo trek. Against subzero winds and icy terrain, his success relied on extreme mental and physical fortitude during grueling 12-hour daily walks.

Readers experience the isolating beauty of Antarctica and life-threatening weather through Colin’s eyes. Flashes of despair and pain are met with resilience and problem-solving. Throughout, a spirit of curiosity, optimism and challenging limits inspires.

By exposing vulnerabilities while achieving athletic greatness, Colin models overcoming fears through small steps and community. His story stimulates imagination for adventures near and far, proving the potential within when facing incredible feats or everyday obstacles. Most stunning is the simplicity behind record-breaking – one foot in front of the other.

Genres

Autobiography, adventure, exploration, fitness, motivation, self-help, travel, endurance sports, history, geography

Recommendation

Explorer Colin O’Brady climbed the highest peaks on every continent and crossed Antarctica on foot. He accomplished these feats in the face of incredible odds, including coming back from a devastating accident that left him with burns so severe doctors warned that he might never walk again without great difficulty. O’Brady wants to inspire you to replace self-limiting beliefs with a growth-oriented “Possible Mind-Set.” If you shift your perspective, he says, you can achieve your biggest dreams. He invites you to trigger this inner transformation in less than a day by taking a “12-Hour Walk” – a thoughtful if challenging way to embrace positivity and connect with your authentic self.

Take-Aways

• Achieve your biggest dreams by developing a “Possible Mind-Set.”
• Start your “12-Hour Walk” at your front door.
• Shift your mind-set in only a day.
• Effort, pain and discomfort are your path to euphoria, joy and greatness.
• To overcome a fixed mind-set, believe in your ability to grow and heal.
• Failure, a necessary element of success, can be your greatest teacher.
• Stop telling yourself you lack the resources to achieve your dreams.
• Use the silence to train your mind and resolve inner conflicts.

Summary

Achieve your biggest dreams by developing a “Possible Mind-Set.”

Record-breaking explorer Colin O’Brady was on a beach in Thailand when he made an impulsive decision that changed his life. He saw a flaming jump rope and tried to leap over it. The attempt left him with third-degree burns. When doctors told O’Brady he’d never walk normally again, he vowed to prove them wrong.

In the years after his accident, O’Brady defied expectations, scaling the tallest mountain on each continent and setting speed records for the Explorer’s Grand Slam and the Seven Summits. He became the first person to cross Antarctica on foot, pulling a 375-pound sled behind him.

O’Brady cultivated what he calls a “Possible Mind-Set,” which he explains as a mode of thought and self-appraisal that enables him to connect to his full potential.

“Is your song still inside you? Are your dreams unfulfilled?”

To develop a possible mind-set, ask yourself, “What’s my Everest?” Think about something you have wanted to achieve since you were a child, an authentic dream that offers fulfillment if you pursue it. Give yourself permission to imagine your dream life, disregarding any perceived limitations.

How do you want to spend your time on Earth? Perhaps your goals focus on specific achievements or tests of endurance or strength, or perhaps you want to focus on family, travel or career. Write down your dreams by finishing this sentence: “My Everest is ________.”

Start your “12-Hour Walk” at your front door.

To cultivate a possible mind-set and gain clarity about your dreams in just one day, take a 12-hour walk. Walking for hours, unplugged from distractions, creates mental space for reflection. It enables you to tap into the inner strength you need to start living your best life. The best place to start your walk is your own front door. Step out and start walking. Despite any ambient noise or traffic, you can still cultivate inner silence.

“Are you ready to overcome the limiting beliefs that are holding you back and unlock your Possible mind-set?”

Stay safe while on your 12-Hour Walk. Dress in bright clothing to ensure visibility. Pack a headlamp and bring spare batteries. Carry your phone in case of an emergency. Tell a friend or family member your planned route and expected return time. Carry spare cash. Walk on trails and sidewalks. Avoid roads without a shoulder. If you must walk on streets without sidewalks, walk on the side of oncoming traffic, so drivers can see you, and you can see them.

Shift your mind-set in only a day.

To start your 12-hour walk:

• Commit – Choose a day to walk for 12 hours straight. Make a commitment to carry it out.
• Record – Record yourself describing your intentions. Reflect on any limiting beliefs you hope to overcome. Describe how you hope to feel after your walk.
• Unplug – Put your phone on airplane mode before you start walking to stifle distractions such as music, email, social media, podcasts and texts.
• Walk – Choose your destination to ensure that you’ll be outdoors for 12 hours straight. Walk alone, remaining silent.
• Rest – Take breaks, eat and drink. Your walk is not a race.
• Reflect – Record yourself at the end of your walk, reflecting on how you feel, what you discovered about yourself, what limiting beliefs you overcame and what new possibilities you sense for yourself.

Effort, pain and discomfort are your path to euphoria, joy and greatness.

Nobody can feel amazing all the time. Life moves like a pendulum, swinging between highs, lows and covering everything in between. To experience your highest highs, you must also experience your lowest lows, which requires leaving your “zone of comfortable complacency.”

If you rank how you feel on a scale of one to ten, with one being the worst and ten being the best, you’ll find you spend a lot of time in your comfortable four-to-six zone. If you stay in this zone, you won’t experience your life as fully as possible. Many people opt to stay in their comfort zones, perhaps by working a boring but safe job, depriving themselves of the opportunity to experience adventure. That is no way to learn your true capabilities. You might fear the pain or discomfort that comes with taking risks, but not living your life to the fullest is even more frightening.

“Feeling alive in moments of pain is far more interesting than just existing in the numbness of the middle.”

Stop settling for “good enough.” Ask if you can achieve greatness. Walking for 12 hours straight will get you out of your comfort zone and help you develop the possible mind-set you need to persevere. You’ll be physically uncomfortable. Perhaps you’ll suffer muscle cramps in your legs and pain in your feet, but if you endure those discomforts, you’ll shatter your limiting beliefs.

Don’t focus on your dislike of discomfort. To support your new possible mind-set, remind yourself that leaving your comfort zone will instill new strengths.

To overcome a fixed mind-set, believe in your ability to grow and heal.

Developing a possible mind-set requires being willing to grow. If you have a growth mind-set, you easily can envision the future version of yourself that you hope to achieve. Those with a fixed mind-set, on the other hand, tend to focus on their perceived limitations without seeing that positive change is possible.

Your internal voice may load you down with fixed mind-set statements that start with words such as, “I can’t…” and “I’m not a…” Instead, adopt the belief that you can do or be anything you set your mind to doing or being. Replace fixed mind-set statements with affirmative statements, that start with “I am” – such as, “I am a musician!” Write these affirmations down and say them aloud until you internalize them.

“Stop looking in the mirror and being disappointed with who you are right now, and start seeing in your reflection the limitless possibilities of who you can become.”

Perhaps setbacks have left you feeling so weak – or even broken – that you can’t imagine achieving your dreams. Shift your perspective. Realize that you can heal and grow. Close your eyes and visualize yourself in a healed state. Keep that vision in mind.

Draw from inspiring stories of people who have overcome seemingly impossible odds. For example, think of the athletes in Paralympic games, such as swimmer Jessica Long who won 16 gold medals despite being born without legs. Your new possible mind-set recognizes that you can heal your broken places and get back up after setbacks knock you down.

Failure, a necessary element of success, can be your greatest teacher.

Young children don’t fear failure when they learn to walk. They fall down often, experiencing momentary failures as part of the natural process of learning and growing. The most successful adults haven’t always been winners. For example, 12 publishers turned down J.K. Rowling before one agreed to publish her first Harry Potter book. Oprah Winfrey’s first job was being a television evening news reporter – until her boss fired her.

Failure teaches valuable lessons about how you perform under challenging circumstances. Remember that setbacks set you up for success.

“The road to success is paved with failures.”

The only true failure is failing to try. The 12-hour walk will teach you that when you overcome your fear of failure, triumph is possible. It will bolster your resilience, as you resist the temptation to quit when the going gets difficult, showing yourself that you can persevere in the face of adversity.

If people criticize you — or you fear they will — when you announce your plans to tackle the 12-hour walk or achieve your broader life goals, remember that people who remain stuck in their comfort zone are avoiding the opportunity of challenging themselves and experiencing a true victory.

Stop telling yourself you lack the resources to achieve your dreams.

Stop making excuses for why you can’t achieve your dreams. Overcome these limiting beliefs.

• I don’t have enough time – Each week has 168 hours, and it’s your responsibility to set clear priorities on how best to use that time. Eliminate bad habits, such as scrolling social media for hours. Replace thoughts that reflect feelings of time scarcity with, “I have enough time and I spend it wisely.” If you tell yourself you don’t have sufficient time to walk for 12 hours, remind yourself that prioritizing the walk is an act of self-care that will help you serve others and unleash your full potential.
• I don’t have enough money – Shift from a financial scarcity mind-set to an abundance mind-set by focusing on opportunities, not constraints. Write down the specific financial goal you need to execute your vision. List your assets – such as your network and experience, not just money. Clarify your “why,” or personal reason for wanting to achieve your financial goal. Take small action steps toward your goal as you visualize yourself achieving it. Internalize the belief that money is everywhere and that you can realize your share.
• I don’t have the right friends – Proactively surround yourself with friends who travel their own growth journeys and inspire you to reach for success. Audit the people in your life and in your online interactions. Spend less time with people who trigger your feelings of self-doubt; unfollow them online. Aim to build a positive, supportive community that helps you thrive. Note which friends support you when you tell them about your 12-hour walk and which ones tell you it’s silly or stupid. Consider joining the online community of people who have taken their own 12-hour walks.

Use the silence to train your mind and resolve inner conflicts.

The 12-hour walk functions as a walking meditation. As you embark, the lessons you’ve read about this practice will become clearer in your mind. You are investing this full day in “mental training” to enable you to become the person you want to be. As you walk, you will connect to your intuition, which will help you resolve your inner conflicts or confusion.

If you wonder what your next big step should be or how to make a difficult decision, walking will reveal the answer. It will remind you that the answer was within you all along though you may not have had the quiet time or clarity to discern it.

“There’s tremendous power in knowing that you have the answer — it’s in your hard-wiring! Even if it pulls you from a hoped-for outcome. Even if it changes the way others might see you. Even if it takes you someplace entirely new.”

You may tell yourself that you can’t achieve your dreams or conquer your version of climbing Everest. Think of the 12-hour walk as your own “personal Everest,” because committing to your walk will show you that you can accomplish something that seems out of reach. Use it to prove to yourself that you can achieve bigger goals.

When you develop a possible mind-set, you won’t delay living your best possible life. O’Brady’s newest Everest is to “inspire ten million people” to take a 12-hour walk. He believes this would fill the world with purposeful people who have learned how to align their actions with their values, including empathy, courage, love and community.

About the Author

Colin O’Brady is the New York Times best-selling author of The Impossible First. His TEDx talk Change Your Mind-Set, Achieve Anything has been viewed by more than 2.9 million people. For more information on planning your long walk, see 12hourwalk.com.