Google searching “Spartan Race vs. Tough Mudder” brought you here, and we’re over the moon because of that. We might not be ready to sign up for any of these two incredibly interesting and physically draining obstacle races.
But, we’re more than happy to share everything we know about them to make your decision that much easier. Now, what are Spartan Race and Tough Mudder? With the staggering popularity of CrossFit came the emergence of adventure and obstacle races.
While there was nothing wrong with running a marathon, some people thought these races weren’t challenging enough and decided to enrich them with a bunch of mud, man-made walls, barbed wire, and other demanding obstacles to overcome.
Of course, Spartan Race and Tough Mudder didn’t emerge out of the mud overnight. Right off the bat, most people were scared to sign up for something of the sort without years and years of training.
But, those same people probably love a good challenge because it didn’t take long before they started signing up, showcasing enormous physical and mental strength, and overcoming the extreme challenges they were presented with.
Need we even comment on the fact that most of these races feature what can only be described as Medieval instruments of torture?! We’re kidding, but you might not think we’re kidding when you’re faced with monkey bars, two-story slides, barbed wires, and electrical wires aplenty.
When we’re talking about obstacle races, as you might have guessed, two of them seem to have managed to stay on top: Spartan Race and Tough Mudder.
From the moment they were funded (around 2010) to date, millions and millions of people have mustered up the courage to sign up for both Spartan Race and Tough Mudder. Hence, we’re bringing you a rundown on both before you decide.
What’s the deal with the Spartan Race?
The whole thing started with an endurance athlete named Joe DeSena. Now, Joe was known for the fact that he was obsessed with these types of races.
He used to attend them all the time. He even went as far as to attend a couple of them in the same week (which, as you might have guessed, can be dangerous).
But, Joe was hooked on the thought of creating a race that could be available to a wider audience. Beforehand, he created the 24-hour Death Race, but he wasn’t happy with the fact that most of the audience couldn’t even dream of attending.
Come the year 2010, Joe comes out with the Spartan Race, which was exactly what he wanted. From the very beginning, the core values of the Spartan Race were (and are) challenge, competition, and endurance.
Of course, the race was meant to be fun – as fun as running through mud, evading electrical wires, and dodging gladiators can be.
But, what started as mere five hundred people who managed to finish the race the first year turned to millions and millions that keep coming back for more every year.
Turns out people were obsessed with the thought of entering one of the most demanding and most competitive obstacle races in the world. We don’t know what Joe would think of the whole “Spartan Race vs. Tough Mudder” thing, but we know he would appreciate the challenge.
1. What are the levels of the Spartan Race?
Straightaway, the Spartan Race might not be that frightening when you figure out the whole thing consists of numerous lengths of the race depending on your running/fitness levels.
For example, you can start from the bottom and work your way up to the more challenging levels. Now, there are too many levels to count.
But, some of the most common ones are Spartan Sprint, Spartan Super, Spartan Beast, and Spartan Ultra Beast. While the names might make you laugh, there’s nothing laughable about the challenges that await you from the moment you enter the race.
First off, the Spartan Sprint’s a beginner-level race that consists of competitors racing for three to five miles with approximately twenty obstacles for each race.
Spartan Super’s a little more challenging and consists of competitors racing for seven to eleven miles with twenty-four obstacles for each race.
Spartan Beast appears to be the most popular one among competitors and consists of competitors running for twelve to sixteen miles with almost thirty obstacles for each race.
Spartan Ultra Beast, as you might have gathered, happens to be the most extreme out of the bunch with competitors racing twenty-eight miles with almost seventy obstacles. Don’t chicken out now, there’s more to learn about the Spartan Race.
2. What are the obstacles of the Spartan Race?
Now that you know that there are heaps of obstacles for each race, you might be trying to figure out what obstacles might await you. Given that you bite the bullet and sign up.
Some are more common than others which means you might not get your money’s worth on the off chance that you’re looking forward to a specific obstacle.
Before we forget, you should keep an eye on the fact that the course, the levels, and the obstacles depend on the location.
The organizers of the Spartan Race make sure to use the advantages of the venue. The organizers scout the venue, construct the course based on what they encounter and build the race organically.
Signature obstacles are Over Under Through, Gauntlet, Rolling Mud, Fire Jump, Rope Climb, Pancake Carry, Bucket Carry, Atlas Carry, Hercules Hoist, and Sand Bag Carry.
Others might be Tire Flip, Log Flip, Memory Test, Medicine Ball Slam, Dip Walk, Tire Swing, Pole Traverse, Water Jug Carry, Hawaiian Squats, and Slip and Slide. Truth be told, that sounds pretty freakin’ fun!
What’s the scoop on the Tough Mudder?
Moving on with your “Spartan Race vs. Tough Mudder” question, what’s the scoop on the Tough Mudder? Oh, the Tough Mudder might be even more challenging and dangerous than the Spartan Race considering the fact the race features a whole lot of mud.
Started by the British Special Forces veteran Will Dean and his Harvard Business School buddy, an attorney that goes by the name Guy Livingstone, the race quickly because one of the most talked-about obstacle races out there.
The very first race was held in Pennsylvania around the same time as the Spartan Race, but these two were quite different from the get-go.
While the Spartan Race focused on the each-man-for-himself strategy, the Tough Mudder was more about comradery and teamwork which was at the forefront of the way the race started, anyway.
Not only that, but the duo created the course to ensure that the competitors had to work together to complete the race and made sure to underline that the goal wasn’t to win, but to finish.
And, like they needed to be even more admirable and respectable, the duo decided to raise funds for wounded veterans with each race – raising millions and millions of dollars to date. Nonetheless, the Tough Mudder competitors endure some of the most exhausting fitness challenges each time they compete.
1. What are the levels of the Tough Mudder?
But, the Tough Mudder might not be as tough as you think! There are different degrees of difficulty assigned to different levels that the Tough Mudder race offers. That means that you can start from the bottom and work your way up, the same way you would when we’re talking about the Spartan Race.
Therefore, the Tough Mudder offers numerous challenges depending on your running/fitness levels. They even offer some easier challenges for children to make sure nobody’s left out.
As for the levels, the most common ones are Half Mudder, Tough Mudder Classic, Tough Mudder Night Version, and 24-Hour Tough Mudder. First things first, the Half Mudder consists of five miles and numerous obstacles to make things more challenging.
Tough Mudder Classic consists of eight to ten miles, while the Tough Mudder Night Version consists of ten to twelve miles (at night, of course). And, the 24-hour Tough Mudder emphasizes how long you can race for, rather than the number of miles you can race for.
2. What are the obstacles of the Tough Mudder?
We’ve already touched upon the fact that most Tough Mudder challenges require teamwork, but we haven’t mentioned what those challenges look like. And, we actually have the same situation as with the Spartan Race where the challenges and the obstacles are created based on the venue.
None of the courses are the same, but there are a couple of things that seem to reoccur depending on where the race’s taking place. More often than not, the competitors have to race with fire, electric shocks, scaling walls, barbed wires, and freezing-cold water.
Some of the most common obstacles are Arctic Enema, The Block Ness Monster, Electroshock Therapy, Mud Mile, Castaway, Black Widow, Gauntlet, Funky Monkey, Texas Hold’Em, Berlin Walls, Ladder to Hell, Lumberjacked, Pitfall, Devil’s Beard, and Hero Carry.
Fun names, but that doesn’t mean that the obstacles are fun, too.
Spartan Race vs. Tough Mudder: What to consider and what to expect?
Now that you’ve learned everything you need to know to answer the“Spartan Race vs. Tough Mudder” question, take a moment before you decide which one’s better for you.
What are the similarities and differences between the two, and how do they work with your fitness levels? What type of training are you supposed to do beforehand? And, what kind of wounds, aches, and problems can you encounter as a competitor? Read more here.
1. Spartan Race and Tough Mudder are similar, but not the same
We brushed over the fact that these two races kind of have the same energy. First things first, they’re not strangers to holding hundreds of races across the world each year.
They’re great at creating obstacle courses based on the venue, varying fitness levels of their competitors, and other challenges their competitors might be looking forward to.
They’re consistent with offering different race options, with a 5-mile option for more novice athletes and a ten/twelve-mile course with a bunch of obstacles for others.
They’re excellent at challenging the masses with 12- and 24-hour races that are guaranteed to make waves and push everyone to go big or go home.
But, they’re not the same event. One of the biggest differences seems to be the fact that the Spartan Race focuses on getting the competitors to play dirty and stick up for themselves, while the Tough Mudder emphasizes teamwork as the (only) way to go.
Other than that, the competitors that have attended both races argue that the Tough Mudder obstacles are more creative and fun, while the Spartan Race obstacles are more challenging. Which one’s better depends on what you prefer, basically.
2. Training’s the key
We know what you’re thinking. Both the Spartan Race and the Tough Mudder race organizers argue that anyone can attend any of the races.
Oftentimes, they even underline the fact that they offer races for varying fitness levels, from beginner to elite, and races for children as young as four years. Of course, that’s great. But, that’s not to say that you can enter one of these races without any training whatsoever.
As a matter of fact, Spartan CEO Joe DeSena recommends you follow appropriate training and nutrition plans before and during the race to ensure you come out of the race happy and healthy.
While these races are “appropriate for the entire family,” they’re designed to be mentally and physically challenging. They’re meant to work your entire body because they feature exercises that could only be described as HIIT, strength, and cardio exercises.
Therefore, you might want to achieve the best shape of your life before you sign up for the Spartan Race or the Tough Mudder.
Nobody’s stopping you from signing up without working on yourself beforehand, but you should understand that you’re setting yourself up for failure and potential injuries. Actually, that brings us to the next point we were meaning to make – most injuries are preventable.
3. Injuries are preventable
We can’t talk about the positive without the negative, right? Turns out the Tough Mudder has gotten tons of bad press because of broken bones, heart attacks, hypothermia, a variety of orthopedic and head wounds, and even deaths that happened during the race.
That’s the case with most obstacle races, but Tough Mudder seems to have attracted a lot more comments than the others.
And, these things happen because the atmosphere, the camaraderie, and the experience of “we’re all in this together” often drive the competitors to do things they’re not physically capable of doing.
Not only that, but sometimes the competitors decide to overlook the existing health problems they might be dealing with for the sake of winning or finishing the race. That’s why these races often end on a bad note and attract even more competitors willing to prove they’re “better than that.”
With proper training and nutrition, there’s no reason why you wouldn’t be able to sign up for any of these races. But, you need to make sure you’re aware of what you can and can’t do, and that you don’t end up pushing yourself too far.
Spartan Race vs. Tough Mudder: Which one’s the right for you?
Alright, what do we think about the “Spartan Race vs. Tough Mudder” battle? Which one of these planetarily popular obstacle races would be appropriate for whatever you’re looking for? While we would love to offer you a straightforward answer, the answer depends on what your preferences are.
On the one hand, the Spartan Race appears to be much more challenging, and much more serious for competitors willing to push themselves further and further. On the other, the Tough Mudder seems to bank on a whole team of competitors willing to work together, build trust, and finish the race (rather than win).
One of these races probably speaks to you, and that’s the one you should go with.
