It’s hard to believe as I sit here eating maltesers and quaffing wine that this time last week I was knee/waist deep in mud, swimming in a lake and jumping over fire! I’m so proud I completed it, albeit slowly, especially as Baby D is only 8 months old and still breastfeeding – I felt a little full at the end and I wore a bra and a sports bra on top but it was not really an issue, he is happily taking solids and water so was fine for the duration of the race. I put myself in for it when Baby D was about 4 months old to inspire me to get fit again after having him as I was having trouble with eating too much and not exercising enough! It worked to an extent as I had to train for it and make sure I was eating right. Lets hope I can keep it up. There are different levels of Spartan race you can do, this was the shortest distance of 5k with lots of obstacles and mud! It was a lovely sunny day, the race was held at Ashburnham Place in East Sussex which was a stunning location in itself.
I arrived on my own and was due to meet up with my other team members from my gym at the YMCA. I was so nervous as I didn’t feel fit enough and hadn’t done nearly enough training! I saw this and nearly decided to abandon it and have a cream tea instead:
The atmosphere was great so I braved it and met up with my team mates ready to start. We had to scale a small wall just to reach the starting line which even that was a challenge! What had I let myself in for? Off we headed and soon we were in a trench of waist high muddy water – mind over matter was needed because I didn’t want to think about what was lurking underneath! The race was a mixture of stunning woodland, fields and tracks, water and mud trenches and of course the obstacles! We had rope climbing, weight carrying, wall scaling, scramble nets, barbed wire all in the mix. I stayed smiling through most of it…
The scariest bit of this really long barbed wire crawl was the worms! I hate them and I had to put my actual hand on them, bleurgh. It also smelled of cow dung. The most challenging part of the race for me was swimming across the lake – we were told to only do it if we were confident swimmers – that wasn’t a problem for me as I believe I’m a strong swimmer but I hate thinking about what’s underneath the water and anything that brushed against me sent another shiver (it was pretty darn cold) down my spine. There were helpers in canoes so we were safe, I just tried to go as quickly as I could whilst wearing clothes and shoes, not my normal swim gear! We then had a few obstacles including a spear throw where if you missed the targets you had to do 30 burpees (a hellish exercise) – I missed. Then it was the swim back! I almost wimped out but I knew I’d be disappointed in myself so back in the water I went. I saw the camera at the end and faked a smile.
After that epic swim the rest of it was quite pleasant, I had the company of two lovely ladies and we had some lovely chats on the way round and at the end of it we felt like we’d really achieved something. The last obstacle was three walls to scale of progressing heights, there were burly guys around to help us even though I felt like a sack of potatoes. The last wall I managed to tumble not so gracefully off the top and land on the supporting strut right on my knees, ouch! At least it wasn’t my head. The last ‘hurdle’ was the fire jump. I’d done a Spartan race three years ago (when I was a lot fitter) and I’d chickened out of jumping the fire and did a mini jump at the side of it. I took a run up and leapt over it feeling the heat below but I did it! Someone standing at the sidelines from our team managed to snap the perfect photo for me.
A moment I won’t forget in a hurry. I couldn’t have made it round without my team mates Adele and the lovely Louise who kept me going and made it such a lovely experience. Whether I’ll do it again, mind, I’m not sure, it took me (and my knees) a few days to recover! Here’s me and Louise after the event:
Here’s a before and after, my face says it all:
The state of my trainers at the end:
So, my best tip to get fit after having a baby is to sign up for something crazy and get yourself out of your comfort zone, the world is waiting!
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10 Comments
Thank you!
September 30, 2015 at 10:34 pmWow congratulations for doing that! I feel worn out just looking at your pics haha. Amazing. Gemma xx http://www.jacquardflower.uk
October 1, 2015 at 9:05 amArghhh this genuinely looks like this worst nightmare haha. I hate the thought of all the mud and wetness, honestly I am such a wuss! You look ace doing it though, looks like you had alot of fun.Thanks for linking up to the #bestandworst and hope to see you again! x
October 1, 2015 at 12:49 pm[…] the ultimate test – I recently did a Spartan mud and obstacle race (read about my adventure here) and my trainers were so muddy they need to be washed! I did rinse off the lumps of mud before […]
October 6, 2015 at 5:11 amThis looks amazing, I have always wanted to do an obstacle race but I am not sure i’d make it to the end! great achievement!!
October 15, 2015 at 12:59 pmYou should do it! You can take it at your own pace it’s very freeing getting so muddy and releases your inner child.
October 15, 2015 at 1:12 pmhaha it is a good excuse to get filthy!
October 15, 2015 at 6:05 pmWow well done I am so impressed you did this 8 months after having a baby and still breastfeeding. I have never done an obstacle race, but my husband is a huge fan and has run quite a few this year – they look scary to me! #weighloseorstay
October 17, 2015 at 7:12 pmWell done! This is amazing, you should be so proud of yourself. You’ve got me thinking about doing an obstacle course. Thanks for linking up with #FitnessFriday
October 20, 2015 at 12:01 pmYou should go for it!
October 20, 2015 at 1:25 pm