Obstacle racing for the whimpy, whiny and wusses

Obstacle Course Racing Not for the Whimpy

Before this year, I would say I was all three of those things when it came to working out and any kind of exercise. Since having my first kid over 12 years ago, I had so many excuses as to why I couldn’t work out. I was too stressed out from work. My knee hurt (had a long standing knee injury that required surgery in 2008– long story). Traffic was horrendous so I didn’t get home in time to get to the gym… and on… and on… it went.

Finally, a couple of years ago I decided I needed to start getting into some decent shape so I could fit into a bikini for my 15th year wedding anniversary trip to Puerto Vallarta. David, my amazing hubby, has always looked great and I didn’t want him to be embarrassed by his dumpy, lazy wife. I was able to lose enough weight to wear a bikini. I wasn’t looking like a swimsuit model, but I was able to walk around and not have a spare tire around my waist.

It wasn’t until my husband started really getting in to Obstacle Course Racing (OCRs) approximately 2 years ago that a number of our friends started to get serious about working out and eating better. The guys did a race in February 2013 called Tough Mudder and after that grueling and somewhat crazy experience, I thought this would be the end of it. After all, who wants to keep signing up to get electrocuted? But then my spouse decided to up the ante. He started talking about another big race called Spartan. He showed all of us videos of this race and it looked not only harder than Tough Mudder, but even more physically taxing. At least in Spartan there wasn’t any electrocution, but if you couldn’t complete an obstacle you had to pay a penalty… 30 burpees. Who wants to do that?

He was able to convince a number of our friends to do the Malibu race in December 2015. It was a Sprint (between 3-5 miles). This was decided sometime in October and everyone who joined figured they could get ready in a couple months. It was colder and harder than they thought, but when they completed it, they were so pumped. It got me thinking… Could I ever do something like that? I figured not. Afterall, I thought tennis was a contact sport. How would I ever be brave or strong enough to get over a 6 to 10 foot wall (even with help)?

It wasn’t until December 2014 when our kids signed up and completed their Spartan race that it occurred to me I needed to re-think who I am and the role model I want to be, especially for my daughter. Our son has always been so much more athletic and I knew he would breeze through and boy did he ever… but our daughter, well, I wasn’t sure she would get through it. When she raced, she wasn’t fast or strong, but she powered through and forced herself to face many fears and challenges I didn’t think she could. That was when I realized, I couldn’t be the only non-Spartan in the family.

I signed up for the Temecula Sprint race in January (only 1.5 months away). I had been moderately running and working out and realized I needed to get much more consistent. I took Body Pump classes, ran 2-3 miles a couple times a week, and did weight lifting another 2-3 days a week. My plan was to just get through it without injury and to then gauge if I ever wanted to do another one.

I can proudly say, I am no longer whimpy, whiny or a wuss. Well, I am sometimes whiny, but I try to limit that now. After successfully completing the Sprint, I completed a Super in April in Las Vegas. Although I know my knee still needs more work and I need to get back to consistency, I am proud to say I am a Spartan and an OCR racer. No longer is tennis the only contact sport I have participated in… Now I regularly participate in OCRs.

Signing up for races keeps me focused on exercise and somewhat healthy eating. The qualities I learned about racers also helps me as I continue to seek that next right job. I am using the perseverance, hard work, focus, passion, determination, and the ability to ask for help that I learned during the race. It will pay off both physically and mentally. So don’t be a whimp, whiner, or wuss… consider joining a race yourself.

You will know at the finish.