I signed up for a Spartan Race. My upper body had some concerns.
As a long time runner, I don't spend a lot of time thinking about what my arms are doing. They're just there, doing arm things, while my legs do the actual work. That approach has served me fine for decades of road racing and early morning miles.
Then I looked at the obstacle list for the Spartan Super 10K I signed up for. Twenty-five obstacles. Rope climbs. Monkey bars. Carries. Things that require grip strength and upper body endurance I had never once trained for.
Here is what I am learning getting ready for it.
Why A Runner Signs Up For A Spartan Race
My friend and his daughter signed up, and I thought it would be a great thing to do with my daughter. Simple as that. It wasn't a performance goal — it was a shared experience goal. Show up, do something hard together, see what happens.
As a long time runner, the challenge also appealed to me. I've been intentional this year about pushing into uncomfortable territory — the Grindstone 50K is the headline act, but it's not the only thing I'm chasing. The Spartan felt like a natural companion: different kind of hard, same spirit.
What I assumed going in: my running fitness would carry me through. Cardio wouldn't be a problem. I'd probably struggle a bit on some obstacles but figure it out.
What the reality check was: there are entire muscle groups I have essentially never used.
Where Running Fitness Actually Transfers
More than I expected, honestly.
The cardio base is a genuine advantage. Most people on a Spartan course are managing their breathing and their legs at the same time. Runners only have to manage one of those. That frees up a surprising amount of mental bandwidth for the obstacles themselves.
The mental toughness transfers directly. Long runs teach you to keep moving when everything in you wants to stop. That skill doesn't care whether you're at mile eighteen of a training run or hanging from a rig wondering if your grip is going to hold. Suffering is familiar territory. That familiarity is worth something.
Where It Doesn't Transfer
I couldn't do a single pull-up at the start of the year.
Not one. That made me really nervous. I've been running for thirty-plus years and my upper body had apparently decided it was along for the ride but not required to contribute. When I started my Spartan prep in January, that was the humbling reality check.
The good news: trust the process. Following a structured approach and staying consistent, I've worked up to around ten pull-ups without issue. The progress has been real and it's come faster than I expected. The body adapts when you ask it to.
What I'm still nervous about: the monkey bar style obstacles. The ones where you're hanging and holding your entire body weight while moving laterally. Grip strength in isolation is one thing. Grip strength while fatigued, on wet bars, is another. I genuinely don't know if four months of training will be enough. I will find out soon enough.
The burpee penalty is also real. Thirty burpees for every failed obstacle in the Spartan format. As a runner, I've spent essentially zero time doing burpees. I've spent the last few weeks adding them to my routine. They are humbling in a specific and personal way.
How I've Been Training For It
Since January, my week has looked roughly like this alongside my regular running:
One day of upper body strength — dumbbell work with Fat Gripz for added grip resistance. One day of lower body strength. One day of functional strength — farmer's carries, burpees, pull-ups, goblet squats. Four days per week with a specific focus on grip strength and pull-up progression; this was an easy 5 minutes per session. Kettlebells have become a routine tool for all my strength training.
The balancing act has been real. I'm also in the early stages of Grindstone 50K training, which means the running mileage is going up at the same time I'm adding strength work. Some weeks it felt sustainable. Some weeks it felt like a lot.
The key has been treating the strength days as training, not extras. They're on the schedule, they have a purpose, and they don't get skipped because the legs are tired from yesterday's run.
The Mindset Going In
Low expectations. Full presence. Have fun with my daughter.
That's genuinely the whole game plan. It is the same mindset on long runs — one step at a time. It is also the same mindset I have been using for burpees — it is going to suck, but I’m just going to do one at a time. I'm not going into this trying to podium or hit a time. I'm going in hoping to get through the obstacles, embrace the challenge, and see what my daughter is made of. That last part I'm most excited about.
What makes me nervous: how fatigued my upper body will be by mile six. What happens when grip strength meets a wet rope and twenty-four other obstacles worth of accumulated fatigue. I'll let you know.
What This Has Done For The Rest Of My Training
Unexpectedly good things.
As a 45-year-old, adding consistent strength work to my routine is something I know I need — not just for racing, but for the long haul. Running is hard on the body. Strength training is the maintenance work that keeps you running for decades. I knew this intellectually before. Spartan prep has made it a habit.
More practically: I've just felt stronger. Not necessarily on runs — the benefit there is subtle and longer term — but in daily life. Carrying things, moving furniture, keeping up with three kids who have no concept of slowing down. There's a version of fitness that exists off the road, and I've been neglecting it for years.
The variety has also been genuinely good for the head. Running is the anchor. But anchor plus something else is more sustainable than anchor alone.
Have you crossed over from running into obstacle racing? What surprised you most — and what do you wish someone had told you going in? Drop it in the comments or reply to this email. And check back soon for the full race recap.
