So, You Ran a Half Marathon...Now What? Part 2 (Giveaway now closed)

How's everyone doing today?  I'm excited to continue with you the series I started on Monday that will hopefully help you deal with any post-race blues.  If you missed up, catch up on Part 1: Rest and Reflect.

Part 2: Try a triathlon or an obstacle course/mud run race.
After reflecting on your race, you may have realized that a road race doesn't excite you that much.  Maybe you like to run a little bit, but you were bored out of your mind just running those 13.1 miles (or even 3.1 miles during a 5k).

If that sounds like you, then you have some options.  One thing you could look in to is a triathlon.  The standard distance is a 1 mile swim, 25 mile bike, and 10k run.  These take a lot of training, but it could cure your boredom with a plain old road race.

Another option is to try an obstacle course race (or a mud run)!  These races are 3+ miles long and feature mud pits to get through, ropes to climb, nets to low-crawl under, and walls to scale.  This could be a lot more exciting for some of you, as you never know what exactly is around the corner after a brief run!

Sometimes, the obstacles in these races can seem intimidating.  If you are interested but feel nervous, make sure to read the race information and any warnings they may put out regarding fitness level.  Luckily, most of the obstacle race series can be completed if you are in moderate physical condition.  One such series is the Reebok Spartan Race series!

The Spartan Race has been running since 2005 and was voted the #1 obstacle race series by Outside Magazine!  According to their website, the races are designed for all people of every fitness levels to be able to complete.

Spartan Race has three different levels: the entry level Spartan Sprint (3+ miles/15+ obstacles), the intermediate Super Spartan (8+ miles, 20+ obstacles), and the advanced Spartan Beast (12+ miles, 25+ obstacles).

On February 15, the Special Ops Spartan Race will take place in Tampa at Raymond-James Stadium!  If I wasn't running the Daytona Beach Half Marathon the very next day, I would certainly be there.  Even though I enjoy road races and usually prefer not to be muddy while running, the Spartan Race series seems like one I'd actually want to try out.  There's a lot more to it than just getting as muddy as possible.  Maybe next year!

Now, here's the fun part: One of you will have the opportunity to WIN a free entry into ANY open heat Spartan Race!  They have races around the country, so go to their website, see if there is a race close to you, and enter the giveaway for your chance to win!!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

***Disclosure: I was contacted by Spartan Race to talk about their race series and give away a race entry.  All opinions are my own.***

Question for you: Have you ever run a mud race/obstacle course race?