What I learned from a double spartan race

From the age of 4, up until I was 24, I played sports religiously.

You name it and I've probably played it.

Gaelic football, basketball, rugby, football, American football, I've played a lot of sports and I bloody loved it!

When I became a coach and started working as self-employed, I made the decision to stop playing sports as I couldn't risk a nasty injury and not being able to train my clients in the gym.

Stopping sports after 20 years left quite a gap in my life, and it's only in the last few years that I've been able to scratch that itch of competitive sports.

Enter...Spartan races!

Back in May I entered two races in one day and that's what I want to speak about today, so here are the lessons I learned from an excruciatingly tough day!

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What I learned from a double spartan race

If you haven't heard of Spartan races before, they're obstacle course races that include things such as crawling under barbed wire, swimming through lakes, spear throwing, and climbing hills that would make your stomach crawl!

They're not for the faint of heart.

Back on May 5th, I did two races back to back in Madrid.

In the morning I did a 12km+ race which included 25 obstacles, and then an hour later I did a 7.5km+ race which included 20 obstacles.

By the time I crossed the finish line for the second time, I was shattered!!

But a life without challenges would be the most boring life imaginable!

Most of my clients and friends thought I was crazy, but despite this, they all understood WHY I was doing it.

It wasn't for a medal or an ego boost, no, rather it was about proving to myself that I could push my body, mind, and spirit to a place where most will never venture.

I wanted to force myself to dig deep, I wanted to see that when push came to shove, I had the mental fortitude to keep going, even when my body was screaming at me to stop.

It was about being an inspiration to my clients and hopefully motivating them to expand their horizons and push the boundaries of what they thought was possible.

As a coach and an entrepreneur, I see myself as a leader.

And what do the best leaders do?

They lead from the front

If one of my clients wants to run a 10km race (one in Sept), I'll make sure I do a half-marathon.

If they enter a half-marathon (one in Oct), I'll run a 50km ultra race (next year's plan).

If they're deadlifting 100kgs, I'll deadlift 200kgs.

This isn't me trying to be better than them, far from it.

I'm simply trying to be the leader they deserve.

Someone who shows them what's possible.

If you're reading this and you're an entrepreneur, you'll know exactly what I mean.

Strong leadership drives results, and that's what I strive to do for my clients every single week.

And finally, it was about setting an ambitious goal, meeting it head-on, and coming out the other side victorious - minus the blood, bruises, and muscle soreness you can't imagine 😂

That final point is an extremely important one.

See, without the competitiveness, focus, and motivation that sport used to provide me with, I'm constantly on the lookout for ways I can challenge myself to be better.

These races do just that.

They allow me to set myself ambitious goals that force me to push myself both physically and mentally.

Having goals and targets to work towards is an integral part of your health and fitness journey.

Without them, you end up directionless and without much of a purpose.

Now I'm not telling you to enter a race, but I highly suggest you're in a constant process of goal setting and goal SMASHING.

Lofty, ambitious goals help keep you motivated on the days when you just can't be fu*ked!

Yes, you need discipline to be successful, but I can tell you now that there were a handful of days when I didn't feel like running or hitting the gym as hard,

But knowing I had this challenge ahead of me quickly got my head back in the right space and got my ass in gear.

Overall, this day taught me some valuable lessons and by far the main one was this...

As humans, we are capable of so much more than we think!

Physically, mentally, spiritually, and entrepreneurially, we all have so much untapped potential.

Life is too short to waste with 'what ifs', you don't want that on your consciousness.

So, if you are an ambitious entrepreneur or professional who wants to become stronger, fitter, and more energetic while eliminating their pain? Click this link to apply for my coaching program.  

A Quote For The Moment

“Tough times make tough people"

- ??? 

I did those races because I knew that it would help me in other areas of my life, not least my business.

When you are used to doing hard things, suddenly 'hard' doesn't seem so hard after all.

Life becomes much easier when you're 'easy', which is the same as most people's 'hard'.

Go push yourself and have an awesome weekend,

Mark

P.S. Whenever you’re ready, here’s a few ways I can help you:

1. Are you an ambitious entrepreneur or professional who wants to get strong, lean, and boost your energy? Then apply for my 1-1 coaching here.

2. Take my free Professionals Health & Fitness Strength test to uncover the areas needed to take your results to the next level. Click here to start.

3. Grab a FREE copy of my Ultimate Health Guide for Entrepreneurs by Clicking here now.