A Gristle King product

Real World Stress Inoculation

Master Thyself: Holiday 2026 · live course

Master your holiday stress, from Thanksgiving to New Year’s

Last course of 2026. Registration closes Sunday Nov 15 and the doors stay shut until next year.

Holidays can be hell; small talk, big stress, no way out of a family argument.

I’ll teach you the techniques of stress management I’ve taught to pros, including Red Bull athletes and Navy SEALs.

Let’s make this holiday season your best ever, a time of an unflappable you, whether it’s managing the Thanksgiving dinner fiascos or figuring out how to handle the endless holiday party small talk.

Under 6 hours to master 30+ days of holiday stress.

15 minutes a morning. 23 live sessions. That’s under $10 a day for a calmer December.

Closes Nov 15 · last course of 2026

$299 23 live sessions
Recordings for a year

  • Live weekdays 6am Pacific, Nov 16 to Dec 16
  • Recordings up by noon, yours for a year
  • Full refund any time before Day 1

Secure checkout by Stripe. Card, Apple Pay, Google Pay. Includes Pain to Power, the $49 PDF course, free. Full refund any time before Day 1, Monday Nov 16. No refunds once we start.

Details

Pricing
$299 Includes Pain to Power, the $49 PDF course One payment. Registration closes Sunday Nov 15 at midnight Pacific.
When
Monday Nov 16 through Wednesday Dec 16, 2026. Weekdays only.
Live
Every session is live at 6am Pacific and usually no more than 15 minutes.
Recordings
Miss the live? The recording is up by noon that day. You get one year of unlimited access.
Thanksgiving morning
A special early session on Thursday Nov 26 so you walk into the table already set.
Refunds
Full refund any time before Day 1, Monday Nov 16. Reply to your receipt and it’s done. No refunds once the course starts.

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Why now

Thanksgiving is Nov 26. New Year’s Eve is five weeks later. There is no version of this course that starts after the holidays and still helps you with them.

Nov 16 is the start date because it’s the last one that works. Registration closes Sunday Nov 15, and this is the last course I’m running in 2026. The next chance is next year, after the season you’re worried about is already over.

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Nov 16 to Dec 16

Four weeks plus a bonus half-week. Weekdays at 6am Pacific. Thanksgiving morning included.

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4 Weeks + Bonus

  1. Week 1 · Who are you? Laying the foundations
  2. Week 2 · Preparing for Thanksgiving Tools, schedules, special morning session
  3. Week 3 · Reinforcement and deep work Raising the bar with techniques and standards
  4. Week 4 · Advanced Tools Prepare for the big holiday with these new skills
  5. Week 5 · Bonus Course review, community, next steps

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What we’re building

My goal is to radically improve your ability to manage and handle stress so that this holiday season is enjoyable, valuable, and actually sets you up for an amazing 2027.

We’ll cover the basics of your foundation for stress management, including the deep work most people skip. This sets you up as an iceberg of stability, where nothing can knock you off course and you float serenely through the storm.

We’ll walk through the holidays, day by day, including a special morning session early on Thanksgiving Day to make sure you are prepared to be the hero of the holidays this year.

I am so excited to share what I know about stress management with you, and to make sure that the 2026 holiday season is the best one you’ve ever had.

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Who’s teaching this

I’m Nik Hawks. I joined the Navy out of high school, became a SEAL and deployed overseas. I competed on the US Navy Pentathlon team at Worlds and placed 5th in both swims. Later I taught swimming at BUD/S, made the open water test harder and raised the pass rate about 20% at the same time.

Red Bull brought me in to talk about assessment and selection, and that turned into building stress inoculation camps for their athletes. I’ve run this stuff with 8 year olds at summer camp, D1 soccer players and some of the most extreme performers in the world.

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What people say

public comments on IG

  • “10 hours in. Found many alligators. this technique is working for me. Thanks”

  • “I listened to this so many times. I took this: you don’t control the storm. You control how you stand in it. Powerful.”

  • “The way he breaks ‘overwhelming stress’ down into one small, visible action is powerful.”

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Questions

What if I can’t do 6am Pacific?

Every session is recorded and up by noon that day. You have one year of unlimited access to the recordings. Live is better when you can make it; the recording still works.

How much does it cost?

$299, one payment. If you got a code by email, it’s applied automatically when you arrive from that link and the discount shows on the Stripe checkout page. Codes expire Monday Nov 9 at 6am Pacific. Registration closes Sunday Nov 15 at midnight Pacific.

What if I change my mind?

Full refund any time before Day 1, Monday Nov 16. Reply to your receipt and I’ll send the money back, no questions. Once we start, no refunds; the live sessions are the product and you’ve had the seat.

What do I need?

A quiet place for about 15 minutes on weekday mornings if you’re live, or time later that day for the recording. A notebook helps. No special equipment.

How do I join the live sessions?

You get a welcome email the moment you pay, and the join link lands in your inbox Sunday Nov 15, the night before Day 1. Same link every morning. Recordings go to the same place.

Do I get Pain to Power?

Yes. Your welcome email includes the download links for Pain to Power, the $49 seven day PDF course. Start it this week if you want a head start.

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You’ll be at that table on Nov 26 either way.

The only question is which version of you shows up.

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$299 · closes Sunday Nov 15 · full refund before Day 1 · last course of 2026