The unbelievable transformation of Theodore Roosevelt
October 23, 2024
Theodore Roosevelt was president, war hero, and hallmark of American fortitude. From hunting to boxing, politics, warfare, and more, he was a man who seemed to do it all.
You might think this came naturally to Roosevelt — but nothing could be farther from the truth. As a child he was bedridden with sickness, and debilitating asthma attacks were an everyday occurrence.
So how did he overcome adversity to rise to the heights of American politics? Keep reading to find out…
From the day he was born, Theodore Roosevelt was plagued with chronic asthma, headaches and toothaches. The asthma ravaged his lungs, leaving him sickly and bedridden — and it wasn’t helped when doctors suggested Teddy smoke cigars and drink whiskey to cure his other symptoms.
All of this, compounded by his small stature and poor eyesight, meant Teddy was bullied — and at times even physically beaten — by his peers. Finally, Roosevelt’s father came to him with blunt advice.
He told Teddy that he had two options: either fall victim to his condition and be harassed all his life, or rage against it and find a way to push through.
Fortunately, Roosevelt chose the latter.
While on a hiking trip with his family, Teddy discovered that physical activity somehow helped improve his asthma, not worsen it. By gradually expanding his lung capacity through exercise, his asthma attacks became less and less crippling.
This was the spark that ignited the flame on his journey to greatness. By embracing this counter-intuitive insight, he slowly increased his level of activity — long hikes, rides on horseback, push-ups, swimming, wrestling, boxing, and even judo soon became staples of his life.
Roosevelt would later refer to this transformation as his “strenuous life” philosophy. It led him out of his sickly youth, and into a position where he could seize opportunity.
And seize it he would…
After graduating from Harvard University, Teddy began a career in public office. He enjoyed a meteoric rise to power, quickly progressing from New York Assemblyman to Police Commissioner to Assistant Secretary to the Navy.
Though Roosevelt flew up the ranks, he didn’t care to be a bureaucrat. So when the Spanish-American war broke out in 1898, he did the unthinkable — he resigned from office and went to fight in the frontlines.
To outsiders, it was career suicide. But for Roosevelt, it was an answer to the call of duty. He founded a volunteer cavalry regiment, and inspired over 1,000 men to join him. His hodgepodge group of hunters, miners, cowboys, Native Americans and Ivy-League athletes became known as the “Rough Riders” — and they would soon go on to change the course of the war.
The Rough Rider volunteer soldiers traveled to Cuba, where the first land battle of the war was fought on June 24, 1898. The Battle of San Juan Hill took place one week later, and it was here that Roosevelt and his men immortalized their legacy.
On the day of battle, the Spanish were entrenched in strategic positions on the various hills of the San Juan Heights. Seeing that it would be impossible to take the heights by foot, Roosevelt determined that the only way to dislodge the Spanish was to overrun their positions in a cavalry charge.
The American troops — and even their captains — were nervous. Roosevelt realized the only way he’d get them to act was by leading the charge himself. So he mounted his horse Texas (yes, it was named “Texas”) and took off up the hill, waving his hat in the air with his hand and yelling like a madman.
Seeing their leader charge up the hill, the Rough Riders sprang into action. The rest of the American troops were moved by how unhesitatingly the Rough Riders followed their leader, and they too joined the fray.
The first hill was taken in 20 minutes, and the rest of the heights were cleared within the hour. Roosevelt returned home a national hero — the formerly bedridden child had become the beacon of American Exceptionalism.
Theodore Roosevelt refused to let his weaknesses define him. Rather, he used it as the very conduit to his flourishing, forging a life of activity and discipline in order to keep his asthma under control. What nearly killed him as a child turned out to be the greatest driver of his future success — all Roosevelt had to do was learn to harness it productively.
To most of his peers, Roosevelt’s decision to abandon his political career and join the war looked like political suicide. For Roosevelt though, it was anything but. He knew he wasn’t made to be a bureaucrat — he was made to fight on the front lines of life.
By following the great philosophical commandment to know thyself, Roosevelt had the confidence required to stay in his lane. Doing so led him to become a war hero, which paved his path to becoming Governor of New York, and later President.
Roosevelt gave a speech in which he famously summarized his life philosophy:
“I wish to preach the doctrine of the strenuous life, the life of toil and effort…the highest form of success does not come to the man who desires easy peace, but to the man who does not shrink from danger, hardship, or bitter toil. This is the man who wins the splendid ultimate triumph.”
Greatness isn’t an accident, and neither is fortitude. By actively striving to live the strenuous life, Roosevelt cultivated everything he needed for success — danger, hardship, and bitter toil were what carried him on to the “splendid ultimate triumph.”
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Ad finem fidelis,
Evan
