I was lucky enough to get sent a preview of the new book Spartan Up!: A Take-No-Prisoners Guide to Overcoming Obstacles and Achieving Peak Performance in Life. From what I’ve read so far, I’m definitely looking forward to its release date on May 13th. As someone who prides themselves on ancestral cooking and eating habits, I am intrigued by the concept of leading a lifestyle and philosophy similar to the Spartans . Although my nerve pain prevents me from pushing my body physically, I am grateful to learn this wisdom vicariously through the real-life stories offered in this book. I believe this wisdom can also be applicable to any endeavour requiring an extraordinary amount of will power, whether it be related to diet, health, money, or relationships. Since the Spartan Races are essentially extremely brutal obstacle courses, there is a very obvious and effective metaphor for overcoming difficult obstacles, and coming out stronger, and more focused (and thus happier) at the end.

I am especially looking forward to gaining more insight into such motivated individuals. When taking your health into your own hands, it can be difficult to motivate yourself to step outside what are considered “normal” habits. It can be especially difficult after encountering one scary setback after another, only to be faced with debilitating fear and doubt. My favorite part of the preview was when it briefly mentioned how much easier it became to make decisions and handle the stress of work and family, especially after facing a difficult race where food, water and shelter were your only concerns. This trial by fire, is essentially giving its participants amazing perspective that lets them better able to handle the difficulties and surprises in their own lives. Although, I’ve never been in a Spartan Race, dealing with constant chronic nerve pain has given me similar perspective about what is really important in my life. Once I was able to prioritize what matters the most to me, it became much easier to steer clear of temptations and distractions, especially those of the dessert variety.