The How Tough Are You meme originates from the 2002 SpongeBob SquarePants episode titled No Weenies Allowed. In the scene, a bouncer named Reg stands outside The Salty Spitoon, the toughest club in Bikini Bottom, and challenges potential entrants to prove their toughness before they can enter. The format usually features a dialogue where a character makes a boastful claim, leading to a punchline about an absurdly tough feat, such as eating a bowl of nails without any milk. It has become a staple of internet culture for satirizing fake machismo or celebrating minor daily victories as if they were legendary acts of bravery.