The good, the bad, and the ugly (photos, videos, and stories from the race)

Where to begin?  I guess I can start by saying that despite six months of preparation I had not the slightest clue of what I had signed up for.  This was by far the most nitty-gritty, tough, and dirty, physically draining thing I have EVER done. 

But I did it!

 

THE GOOD

The best part of the race definitely was getting to run with my husband.  He was incredible. He ran earlier in the morning just to see how fast he could do it, and then he ran alongside me. He helped me through some of the worst parts of the race, but mostly he just encouraged me and worked alongside me.  That's what marriage is! My husband could have sped up and left me by myself, he's definitely stronger and faster than me, but instead he chose to run beside me.  He knew that I could make it through any challenge, and that if I felt I couldn't I'd simply ask for help.  He never treated me as though he were there just to help me "get through it". Nope. He just wanted to enjoy the experience with me. 

What a guy.

Muddy kisses.  You know that's got to be love.

Oh, and also, out of 3000 + people, Shawn came in 27th place. I'm so proud of him!

We also had a bunch of friends from church who were running with us.  It was fun getting to hang out with them as we eagerly awaited the race! 

Here we are before the race:

aaaaaaaannnnnndddd  after the race:

THE BAD

I quickly realized where my training had fallen short: RUNNING.  In all the strength training I had done, I guess I forgot that first and foremost the Spartan Race was, well, a RACE.  It took place in a hilly mountain terrain.  I had been doing a hill workout once a week, but what I didn't realize was that I should have been practicing endurance running on hills.  I LOVED almost every single obstacle (Except for 2, which I will tell you about in the next section THE UGLY) but I was shocked when there would be long stretches without anything but running.  The obstacles would be sort of clumped together after long stints of windy hills. 

The uphill portions were drastically steep.  When we got to the downhill portion I was excited because I thought a nice downhill jog would help pick up my energy levels. I quickly realized that as steep as the inclines were, the declines were probably steeper.  I watched beefy dudes try to power through and jog the downhill portions only to slip and slide down on their butts.  One guy wiped out pretty bad, he tripped and fell and slid on his side for about ten feet on a gravel path.  Shawn caught him and helped him up. He was taken off the course immediately as his knee was already visibly swelling. YIKES!

For all the pain that was in the actual jogging portion, the view made it worth it.  It was incredible to see all of the mountains! It also made me realize how large Calamingos Ranch is. (that was the location of the race) We wound up one hill and saw that below, a wedding was taking place! Crazy to think of the drastic difference between the two!

THE UGLY
There were approximately 25 obstacles to get through during the race.  Out of those, there were two obstacles that made me want to quit.  I contemplated it quite seriously.  They were by far the most hellish parts of the race. 

Obstacle one: THE LAKE CROSSING

My first step into the lake brought the water up to my knees.  That was enough contact for my breath to leave my body.  If I had to guess, I would say that the water was below 40 degrees.  My next two steps brought the water up to my chin.  Now, for those of you who have ever invited me to a pool party, you know that once I'm in water deeper than 4 feet, I'm pretty much useless.  I don't really know how to swim, and in that freezing water I couldn't even remember my name, let alone how to swim. 

Panic set in as I frantically tried to kick my legs.  The mesh on the tops of my shoes made it feel like water was just whizzing through my feet and my kicking wasn't doing a thing. 

I. FREAKED. OUT.

It wasn't too far of a distance to go, maybe 50 yards, but the cold, mixed with a feeling that I wouldn't be able to get out soon due to drowning made me start to panic bad.  I started saying in a frantic high pitched tone "I can't swim! I can't swim!" That turned into a noise I've never heard myself make before.  Shawn said I was starting to hyperventilate.  I was squealing and trying to catch my breath at the same time. 

Luckily, this was a challenge that my husband was well prepared for. He used to swim competitively.  He simply picked me up and pushed me across the rest of that lake.  I had never been so happy to see dry muddy land.

The next challenge was a fun one, in fact, probably my favorite, so that helped the panic I had just experienced wear off.  The challenge was to lift a cement bucket on pulley up into the air and then slowly lower it.  I know that this one was by far my best challenge!

What I did not know was that around the corner was the second worst obstacle in the race:

Obstacle two: BARBED WIRE CROSSING

I would have liked to be in the meeting where the Spartan Race creators decided to make this challenge. I think it would have gone something like this:

"Hey, you know what's too easy? Crawling under 75 yards of very low spiky Barbed wire. What can we do to make this tough??"
"Oh! I know, let's lay the barbed wire down over a terrain that is cover in tiny sharp rocks so people will have to drag themselves across spiky gravel!"
"Oh! I have another great idea! I know that they just got out of freezing water. Let's try to make sure they don't get too warm.  Let's spray them with a fire hose as they cross!"
"BRILLIANT! That way it'll also be muddy, slippery, sharp, and tough!"

Yes.  That has to be how that conversation went, because that is what I endured.

I found myself wondering if it would be better to just cut myself on the barbed wire rather than to continue to pull myself across that sharp gravel! Once they started spraying us with fire hoses, I had to restrain myself from squeezing through the barbed wire to stand up and punch the guy spraying us.

But eventually I found the trick was to barrel roll across the gravel! It required less strength and didn't hurt my elbows and knees so much.  It did result in EPIC bruises all over my body though!


SUMMARY
All in all, I felt incredible crossing the finish line. Well, I mean, I was exhausted, but it felt great!

Here's a video of me and my husband running across the finish line.  Please notice how I get double bumped on the butt by a mean Spartan!

Here are some more fun pics from the race:

My friend Phil about to jump over the second to last challenge... Fire

We had to throw a spear and make it stick into the hay, otherwise 30 burpees! I didn't land it, but I only had to do jumping jacks on account of my bum wrist!

Yup. Didn't land it, but don't I look cool??

They had put TONS of soap on this wall!

I think what I was thinking here was this "Someone PLEASE talk me out of doing this again next year!" 

Overall, I had a blast! I felt so good about finishing it! During the race, my arm didn't hurt, but I think that was simply the adrenaline rush.  I'm feeling the reprocussions now, but all in all I'm doing alright.

That night I came home and after cleaning up I sat on the couch. As I did, I noticed I was a pale white color. My skin had completely flushed. I looked in the mirror, I looked like a ghost.  Why? Because I had never put my body through that kind of physical effort before.  I took it as a sign to go to bed. and I did! I slept for almost twelve hours!

I think that's a good tell that I really pushed myself :-)

and I'm so happy I did!

I DID IT!!

I FINISHED THE SPARTAN RACE!

It was hands down the most difficult thing I have ever done! It feels great to have completed it! I don't yet know exactly how long it took, but I do know it was just a little over an hour. And I feel: Pretty. Darn. Good. about that :-)

Pictures, video, and all the wonderful details will be trickling in over the next few days.

In the meantime, here are just a few photos!

Before Shawn Ran

After the race in my very warm comfy-clothes

Love that girl. So happy Stevie was able to come out and support!

THE RACE IS TOMORROW!!!

Okay, first things first:

If you want to come to watch the race here are the details:

I will be running at 2 PM 

SPECTATOR TICKETS

Last year there was no charge for spectators... but ... this year they have changed that.  Here are the details they sent:

 

Spectator tickets are $10 and sold on site (please bring cash, limited Credit Card services are available). Spectators receive:    
* $5 in Spartan Bucks at the merchandise tent    
* A course map    
* Access to Spartan Race Festival Ground Areas. Activities include food vendors, live music, spear throwing, raffles, and watching your friends and loved ones slip and slide through the Spartan course!

LOCATION

327 S. Latigo Canyon Road, Malibu CA 90265.

PARKING:  

Parking is $10. Spaces are limited, so please carpool!

WAHOO! I cannot wait! 

Okay, onto how I'm feeling and what-not. I AM SO EXCITED!  

This week has been a crazy emotional roller coaster, and I can easily say that that roller coaster ride has left me a bit queezy...  At the start of the week I was so anxious I was sick.  That was followed by a round of "moody-ness". (That's code for I was a total B****) Yesterday I was back to feeling well and feeling excited! Today, I'm just simply excited.  

Part of the reason I'm excited is because I have received so much encouragement from my friends! One amazing co-worker (HOLLY!) actually decorated my desk in support!

Look at this sweet sign she hung on my desk!

Fun!

 She left me protein bars wrapped in a ribbon as well as a loving little encouragement note (pictured above) saying "Heather is more than a conqueror!"

Awesome!

My wrist is feeling better, but not completely healed.  I'd say it's at about 80%. I'm going to wear my brace tomorrow as well as have my husband help me through some of the more strenuous obstacles. 

Now all I need is a good night's sleep... which might be tough to get! I had anxiety dreams last night about the race that were so bad that I woke up in the middle of the night and dry-heaved. YUCK.  Hopefully tonight I'll be feeling more calm and prepared!

I can't believe that after SIX MONTHS of training the day is finally here! 

Pictures and video will be posted on the blog as soon as I can process them.

Oh, and in case you forgot what I'm in for... here's a video to remind you!

SPARTAN RACE. I AM SO READY FOR YOU.

AROOOO! AROOO! 

 

Getting Close-The verdict

SPARTAN RACE COUNTDOWN

Well, there it is.... Tick, tick, ticking away....

The race is just around the corner and I am getting more and more scared!

The past few weeks have been interesting for me.  My arm is getting slightly better, but it still hurts.  It has been a daily struggle not to feel discouraged!

 I cannot even begin to write down all of the things I have been going through since I hurt myself.  This has been a very hard process.  Everyone keeps asking me, "Are you still going to do the race?"  "How many days until the race?" "Do you think you can do it?"

All right arm. Whatcha gonna do? You gonna heal up in time for this race??

I found myself satisfying my sadness with peanut butter cups and fast food.  The combination of no exercise with a sudden decline in diet created a wonderfully negative emotional bomb for me.

One night I was driving home and I had a full-on emotional breakdown.  I began to cry as I realized that I might not actually be able to compete in this race.  Another thought that I had was that even if I do compete I won't be able to do some of the obstacles, and it will definitely take me longer to get through than the time I had originally planned to finish in.

I was definitely having a pity party for myself.

The next day at work a couple girls were asking me about how my arm was and I told them the truth, that I was really struggling with it. One of the women in the conversation pulled me aside afterwards and lovingly, but firmly said this,

"Heather. I want you to really pray about this race.  Pray about whether or not this is something God wants you to be doing, because if He is trying to slow you down and you keep fighting Him, eventually He will let you go... and believe me, you do not want that. Make sure that this isn't about you, or your pride."

I was dumbfounded.  I stopped and took a moment to think.  I realized that if God Himself were standing in front of me telling me not to do this race I think I would have thrown a fit and told Him that I knew better.  That's when I realized that I had made this race into an Idol.

I took a good thing, a goal for being healthier, and made it an ultimate thing.  Originally I started this whole process as a way of loving my body, but somewhere along the line it became about 'look what I can do'. My pride has definitely kicked in, and this race was going to be all about me and my glory.

I have had many conversations since then, and I have been doing a lot of praying.  I realized that even being upset that I won't be able  to run it as fast as I had originally hoped is proof that this race has become about my pride.  Haven't I been saying all along that this isn't about how fast I run it, rather just COMPLETING the race???

Another revelation hit me.  This whole race had been my goal to help me work towards eating well too, and the second I was no longer in control of my exercise I decided to stop being dilligent in what I was eating as well. The self-medicating I was doing with food should have been a warning flag!

I have been praying about it, and I have been asking God to give me the correct perspective.  With only days to the race I need to be positive that I'm not running it for my own glory, but for His.  It is because of the love that Christ has for me that I am even capable of taking care of myself.  That should be ever-present in my mind.

Since then, my attitude has shifted.  It's been a hard lesson to work through (and I'm definitely still working through it) but I realized that ultimately, I am still so blessed. I have a minor injury on a fully functioning body.  There are so many people who don't even have that!

Also, I must keep EVERYTHING in perspective.  I was reading some old blogs on here where I was talking about how much I wasn't disciplined and how much I hated exercise.  It rocked my world to realize that part of the reason I've been so upset over the past couple of weeks is because I haven't been able to exercise... that's mind boggling to me.  I used to be upset because I needed to exercise... now I'm upset when I don't get to exercise.  PRAISE GOD FOR THE TRANSFORMATION HE HAS BEEN WORKING IN MY LIFE.

So.  Here's the verdict:

Yes.  I will be running this race.  Yes. It will be the most difficult thing I have ever done, now moreso than even before.  But I am going to take my time and remember this is a fun goal that I have been excited for for months.  This isn't about how fast I can run it, or how awesome I am at each of the obstacles, no.  This is about praising God for having blessed me with a body.  This is an act of worship to Him.  May it be to His glory alone!

Feeling Discouraged.

The race I have been training almost 6 months for is 18 days away, and in a matter of days i went from feeling pumped and prepared, to feeling like i may not be able to run at all.

When I had my little 'garage door fight' (you can read about it by clicking here) I genuinely did not expect such a huge stall in my training. To be honest, I'm a klutz and a hypochondriac. I assume that every little accident I have in a day (and I have many accidents in a day) will leave me scarred for life. When this accident happened I didn't genuinely believe I'd be in pain for more than a couple of days.  Even still, when the doctor told me I had sprained my forearm and elbow, I did not understand the full ramifications of what that meant.

I was foolish and continued to exercise and use my arm mostly as normal. As the first few days passed I noticed the pain and swelling increased.  I definitely was not heeding my doctors instructions of "Do not use your arm for anything for at least a week".  Fortunately my loving husband put his foot down and demanded I put my arm in a sling so I would be forced to stop using it.

Its hard to make slings look good, but so far I've at least had them match my outfits :-)

So, as it stands here on day 6, my arm still hurts and I have decided to not work out at all until I can get through a day without it hurting.  I'm having such a hard time not feeling discouraged and reminding myself to be patient.

Ultimately I can't just 'will' it to be better, and I have to remember that loving your body is truly about doing what is best for it every day.

So today I rest.

Damages

So, for those of you who are just tuning in, I hurt my hand/wrist on Wednesday. (check out the blog on it When Garage Doors attack: A stall in my training?)

On Thursday more of my arm hurt.  The pain and stiffness extended from my wrist to just past my elbow.  I was having a hard time using my hand for anything, so I decided to call the doctor.

Sure enough, my doctor started examining my hand and noticed a lot of tension in my arm. So, it was off to the lab for x rays!

After they took my picture I came back to my doctors office and had a mini-melt down.  I knew that if my wrist was broken I wouldn't be able to compete in the Spartan race

My nerves were on edge! I didn't know what to expect, and I played out the various scenarios in my head.

Shortly after my mini freak out my doctor came back telling me the good news:


MY ARM WAS NOT BROKEN!!

Here's the not-so-great side of this story though: I do have a sprained wrist.  However, the doctor said that after about a week I could begin slowly easing it back into use.  In the meantime, I have to wear a wrist support band (It looks like I'm ready for some intense bowling). 

I also have to ice my wrist every hour for 15 minutes, along with taking Ibuprofin.  I'm practicing some range of motion exercises too.

I'm sad because the race is about 3 weeks away and I didn't realize how much I use my wrist in almost everything I do! I couldn't jog on Thursday night because the jarring motion hurt my arm and wrist!

It's also crazy how much it affects everything.  The pain has now spread from my wrist to my shoulder. OW.

Never in my life have I had a physical goal that I've been trying to work towards.  When this accident happened I didn't realize what that would mean for my training.  It's going to be a cut back, but hopefully I can strengthen myself enough to get through it! As I said in an earlier post, it's good to be reminded that no matter how strong I try to make myself, my body is ultimately weak, vulnerable.  It's a humbling reminder to keep life balanced.  It's good to be healthy, but keep in mind that ultimately your life is not yours to control!

Queen of the HILL!

Welp. Despite the early morning injury I was still able to do my 'hill' routine after work! I did the entire routine 8 times in 48 minutes! WOWZA!  A month ago when I started this hill routine I only did 5 rounds and it took me 60 minutes. I have cut my time in half!!!

I am still concerned about my hand, specifically my wrist. It's hurting worse, and I am getting to a point where it hurts with almost any movement. I might go in for an x ray tomorrow.

Prayers would be appreciated!