This past weekend, I had the opportunity to run a Spartan race with my brother down in Florida. It was perfect weather and the course resulted in one of my fasted finish times. Since I was diagnosed with GBM, I have participated in at least 10 obstacle course races, most of them with the Spartan brand. Each time I complete a race I am left with a new level of motivation. This community of runners, many facing their own personal challenges, inspire me to keep going.
Spartan is one of the leading obstacle course races–a growing national sport—which has been growing over the past several years in the United States and countries abroad. The mindset of the Spartan brand is very similar to what #Can’tHurtSteel stands for and it is based upon the training and life practices of the ancient Greek City State, Sparta. The Spartans were a warrior culture with a tenacity that the races exemplify through a testing of your mental toughness and perseverance.
This weekend, I finished with a personal best coming in 19th out of 791 runners. But something else makes this finish truly special. Just 2 days before the race I was sitting at Memorial Sloan Kettering in New York City receiving a several hour infusion of immunotherapy into my arm. It is part of my second brain cancer treatment. Only 2 months ago, I found out that my glioblastoma (GBM) had returned. Based upon my last MRI, there are currently 3 tumors growing in the left side of my brain.
Physical fitness has been a major part of my approach to fighting GBM but, unfortunately, in the few months before this recurrence I had fallen away from my fitness and nutritional plan. I believe this is part of the reason my cancer returned. Since then, I have doubled down on many of the approaches that I have taken to fight GBM and hopefully it will help others in their own personal battles.
The best thing that fighting cancer has taught me is to remove many of the distractions we experience in life and focus upon what it is important. When fighting cancer, the mindset that #Can’tHurtSteel represents is forced into practice. Never give up hope. Give each day everything you have. All any of us have is today.

If you ever feel like joining me in an upcoming race, I will post some of the races I plan on running. To share the Spartan Race moniker, “You will know at the finish.”