The HARDEST Part of BUD/S

About this video

A former Navy SEAL recounts that being cold was the worst part of BUD/S for him overall. He describes struggling significantly with running after Hell Week, going from never failing a run beforehand to being unable to keep a 12-minute mile pace. He was rolled back to a later class (skipping the second Hell Week) and gradually rebuilt his running ability, finishing in the top quarter or third of runners by graduation.

Key takeaways

• The speaker identifies being cold as the hardest aspect of BUD/S training
• The speaker experienced a dramatic decline in running performance after Hell Week, despite never failing a run before it
• Being rolled back to dive phase with a slower-paced class allowed the speaker to gradually rebuild his running capability

Episode details: published January 24, 2026 · 3.5K views · 1:07 long. Summary written by Self Growth Videos from the episode itself. Stories told by Mike Ritland’s podcast guests are the guests’ own accounts, attributed to them — not independently verified. Commentary is Ritland’s, presented as his analysis.

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