I definitely dont do that.
The thing is, Im pretty comfortable being comfortable.
(And Im guessing you might be, too.)
The same pattern goes for my workouts.
Going to the gym every day is cool, but what was I really working for?
Shrug, Im only human.
I dont know about you, but Id heard some things about Spartan Races.
Oh, and the punishment when you fail an obstacle: 30 burpees.
Im sorry, who are the people who willingly put themselves through this?
Probably only super elite athletic specimens.
Def cant do that.
I mean I thought I was in fairly good physical condition, but seeing these photos had me reconsidering.
Maybe I should stop being scared of trying something I might be bad at.
The Spartan website promised that a Spartan Sprint is three miles that will change your life forever.
Well, here goes nothing.
The Spartan Sprint and Stadium Series are the shortest distances with approximately three miles of racing and 20-plus obstacles.
As a beginner, these felt like the right fit.
Although these were both the shortest distances, the race day experiences would be very different.
Full disclosure: The two races were comped by Reebok.
These are both undeniably compelling reasons to do the race.
The workouts all included a mixture of mobility, endurance, and strength moves.
And it wasnt even until race day that I understood it all.
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My hands didnt always appreciate this, but Im so glad I knew what to expect on race day.
I also did a sh*t ton ofburpees.
More than I ever thought possible.
There would be times when Liles would just randomly insist: Okay, 10 burpees!
Yep, simple but super effective.
Arms shaking, heart pumping, internally cursing, I forced myself to remain positive.
My go-to phrase: you could.
Before the race even started I was soaked from head to toe just from my commute.
Is this too hard for you?
What if you dont finish?
I can do this.
Sigh, all the feels.
As you might imagine, it wasnt going very well for most.
People were slipping and falling everywhere, but most importantly they were laughing at themselves and having fun.
Okay, phew, maybe this wasnt as intense as I expected.
I even tried to do the harder variation when I couldwhy not Im a Spartan right?
Im 56 for reference and this was my nightmare.
However, watching other people struggle over sparked confidence within myself.
Hanging there kicking my feet frantically I heard from behind, Need a boost?
A random racer saved the day and helped push me up and over the wall.
Was this a sign from a divine Spartan god?
But, it was a reminder of how warm and welcoming the Spartan community really is.
And on race day you could definitely expect tons of high fives, positive vibes, and inspiring teamwork.
Instead of being down on what I couldnt do I focused on being proud of what Id already accomplished.
The most important thing was that I kept going and pushing through.
If you cant do it now know there will always be opportunities to improve and do better.
And during my second race that was my main objective: Do something I couldnt do the first time.
And let me tell you, I crushed those damn monkey bars the second time around.
In six weeks I got stronger physically, but it was actually my mind Im most proud of.
Sometimes your thoughts are your own biggest obstacleand when youre doing physical obstacles tootheres just no time for both.
If youre not being encouraging with yourself, youre only making the challenge even harder.
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