UNLEASH YOUR INNER CAVEMAN
Historians out there will know of Leonidas, the Spartan king who held back the might of the Persian army with fewer than 300 soldiers. Time can distort history, so who knows how accurate or apocryphal the account was, but few societies valued discipline and mental toughness like the Spartans. The Greek city of Sparta grew famous for its warrior-like status. Children as young as seven were enrolled in military training while fasting was common, not through lack of food but to build ‘hunger endurance’ for long battles.
Fast-forward to the 21st century and we’ve perfected the art of comfortability. Want to change channel? Reach for the control. Want to eat? Order a Deliveroo. Feel a minor pain? Pop a pill. The desire and commercial gain in making life easier has made us weaker. But there’s a counter-movement who’ve grown itchy feet from modern life and yearn to push their limits. It’s fuelled by endurance athletes such as Ross Edgley who, in his book Art of Resilience, calls it “healthy hardship” – by leaving behind western ways, we become stronger, live longer and, through a tri lens, race faster.
“It’s the idea of stoic sports science, which was inspired by ancient Greek philosophy,” Edgley tells us. “It’s teaching you to be in charge of your emotions in
