The Road to Sparta
Reliving the Ancient Battle and Epic Run That Inspired the World's Greatest Footrace
Do you know why we call our modern marathon a marathon? You may think you know the real story behind the very first marathon, but in this captivating, inspiring tale, Dean Karnazes (named by Men’s Health as one of the 100 Fittest Men of All Time) gives us a deeper look at the man who, 2,500 years ago, ran the first ULTRAmarathon and, in doing so, effectively saved Western civilization. :) Big Ideas we explore: a history lesson The Battle of Marathon, why balance doesn’t lead to happiness (and what does), a 24 Hour Fitness with Harvard profs, heroes are ready and how to play the pain game.
Big Ideas
- First, A History LessonBattle of Marathon or Ultramarathon?
- BalanceDoesn’t lead to happiness.
- What Can You Do?Do it!
- Gymnasia24 Hour Fitness w/Harvard profs.
- Are You Ready?Heroes are.
- The Pain GameHere’s how to play it.
“The story you are about to read has waited patiently for 2,500 years to be told. Doggedly persisting within the annals of history for centuries and millennia, the legendary tale of the first marathon has remained resolute in enduring the test of time, untiringly awaiting the splendor of its full revelation.
Anecdotal bits and shards have surfaced throughout the years—most famously the tale of the fabled run by Pheidippides (fye-DIP-ə-deez) from the battlefield at Marathon to Athens—but a deeper, more investigative assessment of what truly transpired during this very first marathon has yet to be told in a single, unifying narrative.
Until now.
The saga awaiting you tells the remarkable journey of a single, inspired athletic endeavor that forever preserved the course of humanity, the means by which this tremendous accomplishment was achieved being something that all humans, despite our many differences and disparities, have shared in common since the dawn of antiquity: our ability to put one foot in front of the other, and run.”
~ Dean Karnazes from The Road to Sparta
Do you know why we call our modern marathon a marathon?
You may think you know the real story behind the very first marathon, but in this captivating, inspiring tale, Dean Karnazes gives us a deeper look at the man who, 2,500 years ago, ran the first ULTRAmarathon and, in doing so, effectively saved Western civilization. :)
The book reminds me of Natural Born Heroes by Christopher McDougall. Both feature incredible human beings performing heroic feats of endurance during times of war. And, both take place in Greece. Natural Born Heroes during the Cretan resistance fighting of World War II and Road to Sparta in 490 BCE at the Battle of Marathon.
Dean Karnazes is a fascinating human.
Time magazine recognized him as one of the Top 100 Most Influential People in the World while Men’s Health says he’s one of the 100 Fittest Men of All Time. He’s competed on all seven continents, including a 350-mile run, a 135-mile ultramarathon across Death Valley, and a marathon to the South Pole in negative 40 degrees. In 2006, he ran 50 marathons, in all 50 US states, in 50 consecutive days, finishing with the NYC Marathon, which he completed in three hours flat. <— Uh, wow.
If you’re into heroes journeys and sports (particularly endurance sports!), I think you’ll love the book. It’s packed with great stories and Big Ideas sure to fire you up. (Get a copy here.)
I’m excited to share a few of my favorites so let’s jump straight in! (Note: Spoiler alert!!! I’ll be sharing some of the surprises in the book so… :)
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Get the BookFirst, A History Lesson
“In fact, historians have called the Battle of Marathon one of the most significant events in the course of human history, for the very shape and form of our modern world depended upon its outcome. Had the invading Persian forces defeated the Greeks at Marathon, the evolution of Western society would have been inexorably altered. The impact of this confrontation cannot be overstated given that it occurred during a most fragile juncture in the blossoming of contemporary civilization. Our very existence hung in the balance. …
If the Battle of Marathon holds such weight, then it may not be overreaching to consider the feat of a single runner the greatest athletic achievement of all time. Indeed, had Pheidippides failed in his conquest, the Battle of Marathon would have almost certainly concluded differently and the history books been eternally rewritten. Few people realize that the footsteps of an ancient Athenian hemerodromos (day-long runner) essentially preserved the fate of modern culture and forever influenced the values and way of life we know today. All of this because of a single runner; and all of this because of a single long-distance run.
The Battle of Marathon is one of history’s earliest recorded military clashes, and the valiant drama of a single lone runner stands enduringly as one of the greatest physical accomplishments ever.”
The Battle of Marathon.
Do you remember any details about this from your history class?
Here’s the super short version: It’s 490 BCE. Athens has created a fledgling democracy. (Note: Socrates won’t be born for another 20 years in 471 BCE.)
The mighty Persian empire has already conquered all the Greek city-states but Athens and Sparta. Hundreds of ships and an estimated 50,000 men have landed at Marathon (25 miles outside of Athens) to finish the job and conquer Greece.
The Athenian army of 10,000 is badly outnumbered and in desperate need of help from Sparta. So, the generals of Athens dispatch a messenger. A hemerodromos [HEE-mer-O-drome-mos] or “day-runner” to run from Athens to Sparta to request their support to hold off the Persians. (Back in the day and over the ancient mountainous Greek landscape, these day runners were the most efficient way to get messages—way faster than a horse.)
Guess how far it is from Athens to Sparta.
25 miles? 50 miles? 100 miles?
How about ~150 miles.
Yep. Our hero Pheidippides ran 150 miles (!!!) from Athens to Sparta in about 36 hours—leaving at sunrise and arriving by the end of the next day.
Now, the historian Herodotus casually documented this fact, but most people believe in the myth that Pheidippides ran the first marathon from Marathon to Athens (a 25 mile jaunt)—announcing victory (Nike!!) and then promptly dying.
Nope. Dean tells us that our first marathon was, in fact, an ultramarathon. Ultra is Greek for “beyond.” Pheidippides ran SIX marathons.
And, guess what? When Pheidippides arrived in Sparta requesting their assistance, they told him they couldn’t quite go yet because they were in the midst of a religious ceremony and wouldn’t be able to lend a hand until it was a full moon. Eek.
So, Dean tells us, our good hero took a little break and RAN BACK to Athens to share *that* news. *rubs eyes*
The news he delivered to the Athenian generals (the fact that the Spartans would be delayed) shaped their winning strategy. Athens was victorious. Western civilization was saved. Given the fact that an Athenian loss at Marathon meant the destruction of democracy along with no Socrates, no Plato, no Aristotle, no Western civilization as we know it—Dean deems Pheidippides’s run as one of the greatest physical accomplishments ever.
The book integrates the history of the Battle of Marathon with Dean’s inspiring re-creation of this epic journey and, ultimately, inspires us to challenge *our* limits about what’s possible.
I’m reminded of Harvard professor Ellen Langer’s great book Mindfulness. She talks about “The Psychology of Possibility” and challenges us to look out for what she calls “false limits”—reminding us that, ultimately, our true limits are simply not determinable.
Spotlight on you: Have YOU put some false limits on your ability? What would your life and the goals you pursued look like if you lifted the lid on your idea of what was possible?
Here’s to exploring the edge of our limitlessness!!!
Balance Doesn’t Lead to Happiness
“People speak of finding balance. To me, that’s a misplaced ambition. If you have balance, you do everything okay. But to excel at your craft, you need obsessive, unbridled fanaticism. Not only does excellence require such a commitment, it demands it. A life worth living is frenetic, disjointed, breakneck and quite fantastic. Balance doesn’t lead to happiness—impassioned dedication to one’s life purpose does.
Some might say that this is the price one must pay for high achievement. But with all high achievers I’ve ever met, none of them speak of such a toll. Instead, they talk of boundless energy and infinite vigor that crosses into every element of their lives. The only time I hear people speak of dreary, exhaustive drudgery is when their daily work is misaligned with their life’s calling.
I know this because this is where my life was stuck.”
Matthew Kelly wrote a whole book on this subject. It’s called Off Balance. In it, he asks, “If you had to choose between balance and satisfaction, which would you choose?”
Well, which would you choose? Balance? Or satisfaction?
Matthew tells us that no one has ever told him they’d prefer balance when faced with that question. We want SATISFACTION.
And, somewhat paradoxically, we get that by being willing to be consciously off balance.
We’re not talking about a manic, workaholic sort of off balance but a deliberate, conscious decision to create our ideal lives while eliminating the distractions that just don’t interest us—going ALL IN 10x style.
As Grant Cardone tells us in The 10x Rule, this obsession isn’t a disease, it’s a gift: “The dictionary defines the term ‘obsessed’ as ‘the domination of one’s thoughts or feelings by a persistent idea, image, or desire.’ Although the rest of the world tends to treat this mind-set like a disease, I believe that it’s the perfect adjective for how you must approach success. To dominate your sector, your goal, dream, or ambition, you must first dominate your every interest, thought, and consideration. Obsession is not a bad thing here; it is a requirement to get where you want to go. In fact, you want to be so fanatical about success that the world knows you will not compromise or go away. And until you become completely obsessed with your mission, no one will take you seriously. Until the world understands that you’re not going away—that you are 100 percent committed and have complete and utter conviction and will persist in pursuing your project—you will not get the attention you need and the support you want. In this context, obsession is like a fire; you want to build it so big that people feel compelled to sit around it in admiration. And as with a fire, you have to keep adding wood to sustain the heat and the glow. You obsess over how to keep your fire burning—or it will turn to ashes.”
Back to Dean and this great line: “Balance doesn’t lead to happiness—impassioned dedication to one’s life purpose does.”
Back to you: Are you passionately dedicated to YOUR life purpose?
How can you add some fuel to that fire today?
What Can You Do? Do It.
“As a boy I remember one summer attending basketball camp. I loved the game, though I was never very good at it. I was just too compact and short to be a very effective player. I couldn’t get rebounds around the taller boys, and my shooting wasn’t very good, either. I wanted to help my teammates, to contribute in some meaningful way, but it seemed impossible to do much of anything. I felt helpless and didn’t know what to do.
The camp I was attending was named after the legendary basketball coach John Wooden, who had led UCLA to 10 national championships in a 12-year period. Coach Wooden personally attended the camp. He saw what was going on and pulled me aside. I’ll never forget what he told me. ‘You’ve got talent,’ he said, ‘but you’ll never be good at getting rebounds, but don’t let what you can’t do discourage you from doing what you can do. You’re a scrappy defensive player and quick with the ball. Do what you can.’
This made sense to me. I took Coach Wooden’s advice and started hustling like crazy. I made a lot of steals and was like a hornet in the backcourt, buzzing around endlessly, impossible to swat. After Coach Wooden’s pep talk I changed my approach, focusing only on doing those things that I could do. At the end of the camp I was awarded the Most Inspirational Player prize by Coach Wooden and given a commemorative plaque of his ‘Pyramid of Success.’ Basically, I won this award because I took two or three steps for every other player’s one, running around chasing the ball down, never slowing to catch my breath. That was something I could do, and that is what I did.”
Love that story and always love Coach Wooden’s wisdom.
—> “Don’t let what you CAN’T do get in the way of what you CAN.”
Reminds me of Tom Rath’s wisdom in Are You Fully Charged? where he tells us: “If you spend most of your life trying to be good at everything, you eliminate your chances of being great at anything. Unless your goal is to be mediocre at a lot of things, starting with what you are naturally good at is a matter of efficiency. Focusing on strengths is in many ways a basic time-allocation issue. Every hour you invest in an area where you have natural talent has a multiplying effect, whereas each hour you spend trying to remedy a weakness is like working against a gravitational force. Yet many people spend years or even decades working on weaknesses in hopes that doing so will make them well-rounded.
Do everything you can to avoid falling into this trap. While well-roundedness may be helpful for acquiring the basic tools in any trade—such as reading, writing, and arithmetic—it loses value as you get closer to finding a career. At that point, what’s more important and relevant is what sets you apart. If you want to be great at something in your lifetime, double down on your talents at every turn.”
What are you good at? Are you letting the things you can’t do get in the way of the things you can? Let’s double down. Every time.
P.S. I’m also reminded of some great basketball stories in Malcolm Gladwell’s David and Goliath. See those Notes for more.
24 Hour Fitness w/Harvard Profs
“The Greek ideal was that sport should be preparation for life. Athenians viewed intellectual education and physical education as inseparable equals, both necessary preparation for a citizen to develop into a contributing member of the growing demokratei (democracy, or self-rule by the people). In early Greek society there was no separation between the government and the people, because the people were the government. Over time, these facilities advanced into a combination of liberal arts colleges and sports training centers, known as gymnasia, from which the modern word gymnasium is derived (think 24 Hour Fitness, only staffed by Harvard professors).”
Imagine that: A 24 hour Fitness with Harvard Profs. (My kinda place!)
Alas, that’s not going to happen again any time soon so it falls upon us to CREATE it.
How are you strengthening both your MIND *and* your BODY?
Me? It’s 6:40 AM and I’ve been cranking on this Note for a couple hours (post meditation + 5 min yoga + 50 burpees). Time for my sunrise trail run + burpees. Catch you on the other side!
… And we’re back. (Amazing sunrise, nice breakfast, fun time with the little man. Here we are. :)
Back to our inquiry: How’re you doing with developing BOTH your mind and your body?
As a guy who spends as much time in my head as I do, I’m excited to lean into my physical practice more next year (which will include some Spartan Races I’m excited about).
What’s one thing you can do to optimize your mind and body so your spirit can soar?
P.S. Aristotle’s Academy was the model of the gymnasia. He also liked to conduct his classes while walking around. Hence, his students became known as the Peripatetics or “wanderers.” Dean quotes Nietzsche here: “Only those thoughts that come by walking have any value.”
P.P.S. For those curious souls, my efforts at a Masterpiece Day began yesterday evening shutting down early, enjoying dinner with the fam and our normal night-time routine. In bed at 8pm. Up at 4am. :) —> How about you?! How’s your Masterpiece Day optimization progressing?!
Are You ready?
“What sort of condition might Pheidippides have been in at the time of his departure? Could he have been nursing an injury? Did he get a good night’s rest the evening prior? Was he at the top of his game, or had his training been slacking off prior to being called to duty? These things will never be known with certainty, though we can assume that as a trained professional and the chose one to undertake this critical mission to Sparta, Pheidippides was in a constant state of readiness and fully prepared to carry out his duties at any time should the need arise.”
As we learned in Natural Born Heroes, the hero is a protector.
She has strength for two.
And, not knowing when the moment will arise when she is called to duty, she is *always* ready. Are you?
How to Play the Pain Game
“‘Does it hurt?’ … ‘It used to, but the pain’s gone away.’
Over the years I’d developed a means for overcoming pain. Instead of attempting to suppress the pain or trying to cast my mind elsewhere, I delve into it headlong and focus with all my concentration on the point of pain, trying to decipher the origins of the sensation at its core. Pain is ephemeral and fleeting, and the more I focus on the impulse at its roots, the more it dissipates and dissolves away. …
People think of pain purely in terms of a physical sensation, but there is also a very deep emotional connection to pain. Pain makes people uncomfortable. It hurts and is therefore viewed as a negative thing, as something that must be mitigated and cured. I’ve shifted that viewpoint and instead assigned positive feelings to the sensation of pain. Pain is good. I welcome pain, because it makes me feel alive. I like feeling alive, though I can’t lay claim to being the first to play the pain game. After all, Odysseus’s name in ancient Greek means ‘man of pain.’”
As an ultradistance athlete, Dean knows a thing or ten about how to handle pain. I love this case study in applied mindfulness + the art of reversing desire a la The Tools.
Rather than flinch and try to avoid the pain, he brings his attention TO the source of his pain. Approaching rather than avoiding it. He’s redefined his relationship to pain as a sign that he’s alive and exploring his potential. He’s mastered the S = P x R equation (a la Kristen Neff’s wisdom in Self-Compassion). His suffering is reduced because he’s able to handle the plain cleanly without any resistance.
What pain are you experiencing? Can you step back and observe it without emotion? Can you see that the pain (whether it’s physical or mental) can be good if you allow it to be? Let’s practice that. Let’s be comfortable being uncomfortable.
One more ultracrushing it gem to wrap this up: “My world was slowly deconstructing, until there was nothing left except the primitive act of putting one foot in front of the other and repeating that action over and over again. Remain on course, I told myself, and just keep putting one foot in front of the other, one foot in front of the other. There are two ways to cope with the pain. One is to put your head down and grunt through it. I didn’t know the other way. With my head lowered, I trudged forward. I didn’t have to go fast, I just had to go.”
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