Striding to the stage in Las Vegas, David Goggins made very clear as soon as he started speaking what the overriding message of his speech would be. “Never underestimate what you’re capable of doing in life,” said Goggins. “Too often we get held back by our lack of courage.”

Goggins, a retired Navy SEAL and accomplished endurance athlete, shared his life’s story of overcoming and smashing obstacles with the PPAI Expo audience on Tuesday morning in Las Vegas. Growing up with an abusive father and then an overworked single mother after she left his father, Goggins detailed how his upbringing determined his approach in life as an adult. “My foundation was severely broken as a kid,” said Goggins, wearing a black, long-sleeved T-shirt and black pants. “My insecurities grew. And, I didn’t know how I’d ever live a life, or basically survive.”

The military, though, created the internal motivation that Goggins needed to thrive. He first joined the Air Force and then continued his military career by training to become a Navy SEAL. “That training was impossible, and because of injuries, I had to start and complete Hell Week three times. It was ridiculous,” said Goggins in his PPAI Expo speech, titled Stop Talking Yourself Out of Being Great. “But, I knew that to achieve success and to get to my goals, I needed to get my mind right. I needed to ensure that I never stopped finding reasons to get it done, instead of looking for excuses not to get it done.”

Ultimately, Goggins shared stories from his training to become a Navy SEAL -- and to now run ultramarathons (100 miles in 24 hours), which he’s done more than 60 times. “I had no idea what I was doing when I started running these races,” said Goggins, 43. “I hated running. But, I wanted to raise money for families of injured SEALs, so I had an important motivation. But it was brutal. My mind didn’t think I could really do it. Our minds create checks on what our bodies are capable of. So, sometimes you need to redirect your brain.”

Goggins, author of Can’t Hurt Me: Master Your Mind and Defy the Odds, which was released in December and quickly became a best-seller, sure did that. In one recent year-long period, he ran 7,000 miles and raised more than $2 million for his charity.

“You need to have the will to get where you want to go,” Goggins emphasized to the PPAI Expo audience. “We forget how bad-ass we really are. We’ve overcome so many obstacles. When things feel overwhelming, stop and remember the times you’ve overcome certain instances. Go into the sewer of your life to realize how you can overcome your current situation.”

The PPAI Expo runs through Thursday in Las Vegas.