Let's run 10 miles but stop 15-20 times to complete obstacles with varying degrees of difficulty...and lets's do it all in the mud! Sure...sounds like a great plan....was NOT my response when my physician assistant asked me if I would be interested in doing a Tough Mudder. It was 2013 and I had just started distance running again after a long break. I was training for a half marathon in September and this event was in August. My PA who had been in the military had already done several Tough Mudders. He sold it pretty hard and was trying to get a team together. It is a very cool event in support of The Wounded Warrior Project, and there are many which happen around the country every year. He eventually convinced me to do it. He got a team together which also included my medical assistant at the time. We had 5 people total on the team, 3 guys and 2 gals.
My PA taught us as much as he could about what to expect and how to train for the obstacles. Many of the obstacles require a team effort, and especially as a woman, there are certain things that would be tough to do (climbing walls, etc) without some help no matter how strong you are. I wasn't worried about the running since I had been already training for a half marathon, but I will admit the obstacles had me a little concerned. It is possible to just go around any you feel you can't do, but of course my "strong woman" mentality would kick in, and I was determined to do them all. I was thrilled to have another strong woman on the team who was also my good friend, and I knew we would push each other to get it done.
It was quite an experience! It was challenging but so much fun and so rewarding to complete. It is very motivating to be part of a team, and it was the first Tough Mudder for all of us except my PA. We did it together as a team from start to finish and had such a great time. We were already talking about doing it again once we crossed the finish line. There's nothing quite like enjoying the finisher beer and headband with the team you just spent the better part of 3-4 hours running, jumping, climbing, crawling and getting muddy with! We made plans to do it all over again the following year and some of the team even did one more in between!
Here is the team getting ready to start the same event the following year. We added one more strong woman to our team and had a great time. I would say this was definitely something a bit out of my comfort zone, and I was hesitant at first. Once I committed to it, I was so happy I did, and I really enjoyed the experience both times.
My takeaway from this is don't be afraid to try something new. It can be a challenge, but the result can be a great sense of accomplishment and hopefully a lot of fun as well. In this case, we got to showcase our results in the office the Monday after the events with our headbands and finisher shirts. We wore them with pride all day! Hoorah!!🔥
