"他挑战了自我" 可以用英文表达为 "he challenged himself"。这个短语的来源可能源于人们通常会挑战自己去做一些认为自己不能做到的事情，从而取得进步或成长。

例句：

He challenged himself to run a marathon, and he trained hard for months to prepare for the race. 他挑战自己去跑马拉松，为此他训练了数月。
She challenged herself to learn a new skill, and she spent hours every day practicing until she became proficient. 她挑战自己去学习一项新技能，每天花费数小时练习，直到熟练掌握。
He challenged himself to cpmb the highest mountain in the world, and he finally reached the summit after months of gruepng training and preparation. 他挑战自己登上世界上最高的山峰，经过数月的艰苦训练和准备，他终于登上了山顶。