Eating really hot foods has never really been my thing. I mean I can handle basic hot sauce but nothing too advanced.
However, I’ve always been extremely competitive. This put me in a pickle when a friend invited me to his house for a “Hot Ones” wing challenge.
He had 9 men coming to his house to eat wings drenched in consecutively hot, hot sauce.
After each wing, a question is asked and a discussion takes place.
If you’ve never heard of this, Google “Hot Ones” challenge and you can see celebrities like Shaq taking part in this.
I hadn’t heard of it until I was invited to one.
At first I figured I would just go for some male bonding and not participate but when I got there my competitive juices got the best of me. I decided to give it a go.
I was pleasantly surprised when I made it through the first 7 wings without too much difficulty.
#8 was a different beast. It was called “Mad Dog” and it did quite a number on me. Before officially tapping out my entire face went numb and I had to run out of the house and down the block, it was burning so bad.
I wasn’t sure it would ever get better. Thankfully it did.
While I immediately regretted my decision to eat the “Mad Dog” drenched wing, there was a surprising benefit.
Since that day, I have extreme confidence in eating hotter foods. If my wife makes something that’s a little spicy I’m not worried at all. In fact, since the “Hot Ones” challenge, I’ve almost become a snob.:0
It reminded me of an important concept.
It’s crucial to make yourself uncomfortable at times.
Whether it’s lifting heavier weights than you’re used to, running a little longer, or sacrificing your favorite foods in the short time, you’ll be better for it all.
Human nature causes us to like comfort. The problem with that is that success often lies right outside our comfort zone. It may be a difficult conversation, a new workout program, or making different foods. You certainly don’t have to enter a “Hot Ones” challenge.
What do you need to do get uncomfortable in today?