member spotlight
LAURA BERGER , 41
Why you decided to do the race : I was familiar with Spartan and other obstacle races and had watched my husband participate in a Tough Mudder , but never planned to do one myself . I was concerned about injury , knew I couldn ’ t do monkey bars , and was not confident in my upper body strength . When I read Dina ’ s Facebook post saying she wanted to celebrate her birthday with a Spartan , I was hesitant but didn ’ t want to miss out . She would post the names of people who had signed up , and I wanted to be included and challenge myself to do something I didn ’ t think I could do . I also wanted
It was super cold , the hills were huge , I was wet and muddy , but from start to finish , the race was an absolute blast . to make Dina ’ s birthday the best it could be and help raise money for a great charity .
Favorite aspect of the race : During one of our first training runs , I met Alison . We had been in a number of Dina ’ s classes together but had never really talked much ( Dina limits in-class talking ). I got to know her ( and many others ) week after week . Alison never left my side during the race . She was positive , funny , and always there to jump in if I needed help . There was one moment when she turned around on a giant hill and said “ Oh there you are , you ’ re right behind me .” It was my favorite moment of the race . There was a small group of us that did the entire race together . It was super cold , the hills were huge , I was wet and muddy , but from start to finish , the race was an absolute blast .
How was the journey training for the race ? The journey was even better than the race ( and I loved the race ). Dina sent weekly invitations to meet up with her for hill repeats , long runs , log carries and other activities that would help prepare us for the big day . Attending these training sessions not only helped me get stronger physically , but also helped to reduce my anxiety about participating in an event I wasn ’ t sure I would be successful at . Pushing week after week with the same group gave me lots of opportunities to talk about the race . Very few of us had ever done a Spartan , so we were all trying to figure it out together .
ERIN INGUI , 36
Why you decided to do the race : I am competitive ! A Spartan race sounded perfect ! Plus , I had a ton of amazing friends to have fun training with for it , and I had just had my third baby , so I wanted the extra motivation to get back in great shape fast .
Favorite aspect of the race : Also the scariest aspect – the unknown !
How was the journey training for the race ? Training was so fun . Dina took us to another level , and we knew we were more than
MEGAN LEWANDOWSKI , 36
Favorite aspect of the race : Definitely not the temperature ! I think my favorite part was the teamwork and encouragement that everyone showed – that includes people that weren ’ t even on our team ! Getting your body over and across some of those obstacles would ’ ve been nearly impossible without help . It was awesome .
How was the journey training for the race ? Challenging , but I feel Dina trained us over and above what we needed to do - and that ’ s a good thing ! Burpees , tire flips , pull-ups , farmer carries , monkey bars , running , flights of stairs carrying the Bulgarian bag . Her methods were SUPER helpful in getting us to complete some of the more difficult obstacles . I would ’ ve had to do a LOT more penalty burpees without her guidance and training .
Biggest motivation : At first , I just wanted to have a fun weekend with my friends , but then I started researching what a Spartan Race actually was and what obstacles could potentially be
ready for whatever we were about to face ! I did things I never thought that I was capable of doing , like climbing a 25-foot rope and getting over an 8-foot wall without any help ( I ' m 5 " 1 ').
Biggest motivation : My motivation ( aside from my badass trainer Dina always by my side never letting me quit ) was to get myself in better shape than I had been before having my third child . I also had a personal goal of overcoming my fear of heights !
involved . Then my motivations changed into completing the obstacles . Closer to the race , the Spartan Race TV show came on and my children were really interested in the show and they were impressed that their mom was going to do “ one of those things .” That quickly helped me overcome any fears I had left and push harder than I had been . I wanted my kids to be proud of me . I guess they were , because when I got home , they asked if they could take my Spartan medal to school .
If anyone is considering doing a Spartan Race I say go for it ! Get a group together , encourage one another , dig deep and push hard . You can do it and you ’ ll be glad you did !
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