Most of you reading this will know I’m a big fan of Obstacle Course Racing. Covered in mud, climbing over weird shit, jumping over fire — what’s not to love? But this year, I’ve also thrown some big running goals into the mix. A 24-hour ultra and a 65-mile monster are both looming on the calendar.

Now, for a bit of context — I’m still rebuilding after a full hip reconstruction last year. So while I’ve been getting the runs in, I haven’t been logging the sort of mileage most ultra plans recommend. But you know what? It’s about managing what I can, without trashing the hip again. Playing the long game.

Last weekend, I took on the Spartan London West Weekender — all three races back-to-back over Saturday and Sunday. Sprint, Super, Beast. Boom. Normally, this kind of thing would get me buzzing, but this time around, my mindset was... off.

Three Training Runs. With Obstacles. What Could Go Wrong?

I told myself from the get-go that this weekend wasn’t about racing. I’m not aiming for podiums right now (not that I get near them anyway) and with the ultras in mind, I figured I’d treat the whole thing as a solid training block — three runs with some obstacles sprinkled in. Seemed smart. Logical. Sensible.

And honestly? It completely backfired.

Saturday morning, I lined up for the first race and reminded myself that it was just a training run. Stick to your pacing. Think about ultra time goals. Focus, Pete.

And the result?

I fucking hated every single minute of it.

When Mindset Kills the Magic

I wasn’t present. I wasn’t enjoying it. I was thinking about pace, splits, distances, recovery windows — all the stuff I should’ve left behind for the actual ultra training runs. I turned something I love into a clinical chore.

Instead of feeling alive and playful and gritty (like I normally do mid-race with a face full of mud), I just felt disconnected. I wasn’t in the moment. I wasn’t having fun.

And to make matters worse, I stacked it. Battered and bruised, I crossed the finish line on Saturday thinking, “What the hell am I even doing?” I started questioning whether I even wanted to keep going with the big race plans. Was I going to pull out of the going back and beating the Desert later this year?

My head was fully fucked.

The Power of a Reset (and Pizza)

After sulking and feeling sorry for myself, I did what any seasoned racer-slash-grumpy bastard would do: I dissected the whole thing. I realised I’d gone into Saturday with the wrong mindset. I’d tried to force the race into a box it didn’t belong in. It wasn’t a long run with some fun bits — it was a Spartan. I hadn’t respected the event for what it was.

So I made a decision: Sunday would be different.

I reset my head. Got back to why I do this stuff in the first place — the grit, the chaos, the community, the fun. I decided to treat Sunday’s race like a proper OCR, not a checkpoint on the way to something else.

Then I did something even more important: I stuck to my pre-race ritual.

Pizza and a cold beer. Saturday night carb loading, Foxden style. I didn’t do it the night before Saturday’s race and look what happened. Sunday? Pizza. Beer. Boom.

Sunday Was Still Painful… But it Was Worth It

Don’t get me wrong — Sunday still hurt. I was already injured, I’d faceplanted the day before, and my body felt like it had been through a tumble dryer set to “Fuck the old guy up.”

But my mindset was completely different.

I enjoyed it. I laughed. I soaked it in. I cheered others on, smiled through the grim bits, and actually felt proud to be back out there again. It reminded me why I love this mad world of obstacle racing so much.

The lesson wasn’t about performance or pace or data. It was about presence. About being there for what you’re doing — not constantly looking ahead to what’s next.

Final Thoughts from a Muddy, Bruised, Slightly Wiser Bloke

Here’s what I learned running around that field:

1. Your body can do way more than your mind lets it believe.
   We talk ourselves out of shit way too easily. Sometimes you just need to switch your head on, put one foot in front of the other, and crack on.
2. Mindset is everything.
   Whether you’re racing, training, or just trying to get through the day — how you frame it makes a massive difference. Respect the moment you’re in. Stop looking so far ahead that you forget to live the now.
3. Don’t try to turn everything into something it’s not.
   A race is a race. A training run is a training run. Don’t blur the lines so much that you ruin the things you actually enjoy.
4. Stick to your rituals.
   Pizza and a beer the night before is science. Don’t mess with the formula.

Wrapping Up

Whether you're training for a marathon, an ultra, or just trying to get through the next bootcamp class, remember this: the goal isn’t always at the end of the path. Sometimes, the good stuff is happening right in front of you — in the mud, the pain, the camaraderie.

So train smart, race hard, and don’t let your head talk you out of the joy. And for the love of all that is sacred in OCR… never skip the pizza.