What being a “Tough Mudder” really means to me

“I do not whine – kids whine.” ~ Exerpt from Tough Mudder Pledge

Last week I enlisted to take part in my first competetive athletic event of my adult life.  I enlisted to be part of the “Tough Mudder” competition, which will take place here in Wisconsin on September 8 and 9.  I will not be alone, thankfully, because I know some other people who are going to be taking part in the event.  It feels nice to know that I will be training and preparing for an event with others who will be going through the same process.

Am I fearful?  Am I worried?  Heck yes!  I never climbed a 12-foot-high wall before; I never jumped off a 15-foot-high plank into cold, muddy water; I have never run through a network of live electric wires; I am going to be running through flames; I am going to have to confront my claustrophobia, climbing through pipes into cold water.

I have six months to train — I am not in “bad” shape, but I am guessing that my muscles are a bit weak throughout my body.  I do a lot of running, but I don’t do much full-body training, so the preparation will be a challenge.

I’ve faced worse obstacles before.  I used to weigh eighty pounds more than I do now, and I worked it off, so I am not afraid of a challenge.  However, any challenges I face, and any fears I have to overcome still require work.  I will have to overcome physical and mental tests to get there.  In the end, I will be running, crawling, climbing, and grunting through what I predict to be the most challenging physical event I have ever taken part in.

My subconscious mind is comfortable with me right now — it tells me that I am safe and well off just like I am.  I don’t need to change my routine; I don’t have to exercise more, eat differently, or work out differently.  I am safe and comfortable, so why should I ever put myself in harm’s way?

My conscious mind is telling me it’s time to challenge myself again.  It’s telling me it’s time to get more active, exercise more muscles, and start changing the way I eat.  My conscious mind is telling me I have become too comfortable, and I need to put my neck out there and try something new.

Over the next six months, my conscious mind has to beat my subconscious mind into submission, to the point where it not only accepts the changes, but buys into them and adopts the changes as the new “normal.”  In the end, I will have grown in many ways — and most of all, my subconscious mind’s interpretation of what is “safe” or “comfortable” will include things that it today feels “unsafe” and “uncomfortable.”

I’m okay with that.  It’s just a wimp anyway.  It needs to grow a pair…

Here’s to a new “safe” and “comfortable!”  Tough Mudder, here I come (whether you like it or not, subconscious mind).

Have a great day!

-Victor

Photo source: thingstodoinlandempire.com