Run in Mud Obstacle Race Training-2/25/16

I share the running trail at work with other runners. As a courtesy I try to keep to the right and greet other runners with a wave or encouragement. When in the locker room, I like to ask others about their routines.

In most cases and in both situations, there are some really pleasant people out there. However, there are a few that run three abreast, don't return greetings, or are know it alls when it comes to working out.

So, in the locker room (it's a small area at our company) I see someone and greet him and ask him about his work out. He is uninterested in conversation, so I respect his privacy, but soon he starts talking. We talk about running and I mention that I had run the previous day in the rain and he commences to lecture me about how I should not run everyday. I mean, really talking down to me, you know, a "know it all". 

"I guess you are just starting to run to get ready for the spring half marathon." he says, as if to complain that I am a fair weather athlete. I think he thinks this is my first rodeo.

"No," I respond, "I've been doing this for years. In fact, I've been running everyday all winter; snow and ice and all." I went on to explain that I compete in mud runs and how I need to run everyday possible (I do take 1-2 days off)  and mix it up with pull ups, rope climbs, and etc.

That kind of took the wind out of his sails. 

The I asked him, "how is one to increase mileage beyond 25 miles per week if they don't run everyday?"

He responded that I should run three times per week; two long runs and a short run of 6 miles. 

To each his own brah...

Anyway, on to the workout...
Run 4.1 miles
100 pull ups in as few sets as possible
Monkey bar routine of any kind (hand and move)

Keep up the good work and don't let the other get to you (unless it motivates you to crush them on the course)...

Run in Mud Obstacle Race Training-2/24/16

Today is rainy and cold; out of nowhere. It's easy to go inside to stay warm, but you won't get trained that way. Go out and greet that cold with intensity and determination.

Run 5.1 miles on a hilly course. 

Bucket brigade-Fill a 5 gallon bucket with gravel and carry it for .1 miles

Water can-Carry one 25-30 pound sandbag in each hand for .1 miles

100 pull ups in as few sets as possible

100 push ups

Run in Mud Obstacle Race Training-2/23/16

Run 5 miles
100 pull ups in as few sets as possible
30 hanging leg lifts
Carry 30 pound sand bag for 1/4 mile

Run in Mud Obstacle Race Training-2/22/16

Run 4 miles
Do 10 burpees every half mile
20 push ups
50 pull ups

Run in Mud Obstacle Race Training-2/19/16

I was in New Orleans over the weekend. We stayed near the French Quarter, so early in the morning I struck out on a run to see what I could see. I'm not good at urban running so I took it very slowly. I set my goal for 5 miles and here's my route. I ran down 

The rest of the day I put on another 8 miles walking and two hikes up 9 flights of hotel stairs.

Here's my Route:
http://www.mapmyrun.com/workout/1353001699

Run in Mud Obstacle Race Training-2/18/16

Run a 10k at a slow pace

Do monkey bar routing on any surface.

I traversed a with stand and swung between wide bar gaps.

50 pullup in sets of as many as possible.

                        

Run in Mud Obstacle Race Training-2/17/16

This is my self publishing book. Soon I'll write an
Run in Mud Obstacle Racing Book. See my novels and more @
 http://www.redbikepublishing.com

Run a 10k at moderate pace.

Then...

10 pull ups
10 alternate grip pull ups
10 chin ups
10 pull ups using triceps rope
10 pull ups using triceps rope

Then...

Do the following x 3:
34 push ups
50 air squats

Run in Mud Obstacle Race Training-2/16/16

Run a 10k trail route at a fast pace. Start at training pace then  pick up speed and finish at race pace.

Then...

Hike 3/4 mile with 60 pounds. Carry on back, each shoulder and in front, mixing it up along the way.

Run in Mud Obstacle Race Training-2/15/16

Core, arms, and legs workout.

Do the following:

10 pull ups with leg lifts

10 alternate grip pull ups with leg lifts

10 chin ups with leg lifts

10 pull ups

 Then...

Do the following 10 times:

20 push ups

30 air squats

Then...

Do the following 2 times:

10 pull ups

10 chin ups

10 alternate grip pull ups

Sand bag work out:

Sand bag swing-With legs shoulder width apart, bend at knees and waist. Lift and slowly bring sand bag over head x 10 Repeat.

Obstacle Race Home Gym

I really like working out in the open air. My equipment is what ever is available. Sometimes it's a constructed obstacle course at a park or around a running track. At other times I use playground equipment and tree branches. However, I do have some favorite equipment in my back yard that I use regularly to stay in shape and prepare for the Warrior Dash, Tough Mudder, Spartan Sprint, Savage Race, and Battle Frog. Currently these courses are getting more and more technical and strength demanding.

Aside from the regularly run, burpee, run workout, I perform other workouts to prepare for the strength and grip obstacles.  I very rarely use weights. So, here's what I have...

Carrying and obstacles appear in the Spartan Sprint, the Battle Frog and similar races. The bucket brigade was a new obstacle I encountered. We filled our buckets with gravel and carried it approximately 1.4 miles. The Atlas Stones were a similar obstacles requiring strength. Other carry obstacles include the 5 gallon water can, the wreck bag, Hercules Hoist and more.

Here are some obstacles you can put together to prepare for next year's races,
Bucket brigade: I bought a 5 gallon bucket at Lowe's. I also bought a bag of gravel. Total cost, around 8 bucks.

Weight sled-Pulling weights across the land is very difficult. However, replicating the event is easy. I found some old cinder blocks and bought a 10 buck rope. This is a great core, leg, and arm strengthening exercise. I bought a skinny nylon rope to really work my grip strength as well.

Sandbag-I had an old gym bag with lots of handles and a small roller carry on. I bought a 50 pound bag of sand and put 25 pounds of sand in each bag. I also got the sand at Lowe's. Since I already owned the bags, the sand was around 5 bucks.

Backpack carry-I bought a 50 gallon bag of sand from Lowe's for 5 bucks and added some weight from around the house. Make sure you have a decent bag with working shoulder, chest, and abdominal straps.

Rigs and monkey bars appear in the the Savage Race, Spartan races, and Battle Frog. I use monkey bars, various grips, swing sets, ropes, i-beams, 4x4 planks and other surfaces to get prepared.

Rock climbing hand holds require good finger tip grip strength. They hurt like heck at first, but then practice will get you through it. try pull ups and traversing from one to the other.

Cannon Ball grips are awesome. They are round, slippery, and require a strong palm grip. Takes lots of practice to master these.

Triceps ropes like these provide a great opportunity to develop horizontal grip strength. Most pull up platforms are horizontal, getting you ready for monkey bars types of obstacles. However, these ropes are smooth, vertical and easy to slip off; until you get that strength you need. I feel off the rig many times, but now looking forward to kicking it. Swing from one rope to the other or do pull ups. 

                               


Gymnastic rings are good platforms for rig and monkey bar training. I love them.






Finally, nothing beats a good old fashioned pull up bar rig above your door. 

Run in Mud Obstacle Race Training-2/14/16

Rest day workout; no run planned.

Bucket Brigade-Carry 5 gallon bucket filled with gravel for .12 miles
-then-
Sandbags-Farmer carry two 25 pound sandbags for .12 miles
-then-
Backpack-Ruck with 60 pound backpack for .5 miles.

Run in Mud Obstacle Race Training-2/12/16

Run a 5k with 60 burpees. Here's how I did it:

Run .5 miles-10 burpees
Run .5 miles-10 burpees
Run .5 miles-10 spiderman burpees
Run .5 miles-15 spiderman burpees
Run .5 miles 15 spiderman burpees
Complete run (.6 miles)

10 pull ups with leg lifts
10 alternate grip pull ups with leg lifts
10 chin ups with leg lifts
10 chin ups
Pull ups -as many as possible
chin ups-as many as possible

Want to learn some great exercises? Here is the Army 8-count push ups. Just add a jump.

More great exercises here:

This is a great pull up platform to get you ready for the rigs:

Run in Mud Obstacle Race Training-4/10/16

10 pull ups x 3
Run 5.5 miles
At the 3 mile mark do the following:
10 pull ups x 4
5 pull up bar dips (climb to top of bar and with arms extended, touch chest to bar) x 4

20 push ups x 10
10 pull ups x 3

Run in Mud Obstacle Race Training-4/9/16

Run 6 miles at a moderate pace.

Run in Mud Obstacle Race Training-2/8/16

T

oday is a hard run with burpees, squats and pull ups. The run was meant to be easy, however, there was a lot of competition on the running train. Throngs of runners run three abreast on a narrow trail, so I try to out do them, since they don't make room for others lol. I ran 5 miles with 20 burpees each mile (10 burpees every 1/2 mile) followed by the pushups, squats and pull ups. The burpees are equivalent to push ups and squats (minus jump effort). In total, this exercise will result in 5 mile run, 100 pull ups, 200 push ups, and 300 squats. Here's how it went down.

Run 5 miles with 20 burpees each mile.

20 pushups and 20 air squats x 5

10 pull ups and 10 air squats x 10

Vary hand positions with the pushups and grip positions with the pull ups.

 

Run in Mud Obstacle Race Training-2/7/16

This is a beast / active recovery workout. No running and some lightweight exercises to get you ready for the upcoming week.

 

Ride a bike on a 1.5 mile hill course.

Climb rope x 2

5 pull ups on wall climbing hand holds x 5

5 pull ups on vertical rope x 2 (gets grip ready for Spartan and Battlefrog rigs).

4 x on 1 inch wide and 5 feet long balance walk.

Walk 50 yards with bucket brigade set up (5 gallon bucket filled with gravel) Walk .75 miles with 25 pound sand bag. Alternate carrying with left hand, right hand, front, and shoulder carries.

Run in Mud Obstacle Race Training-2/6/16

Run a long slow route.

I ran 9 miles in 1 hour and 20 minutes

Run in Mud Obstacle Race Training-2/5/16

Traveling back home today from Wisconsin. I did not have time for a run, but did have the opportunity to do a great pull up, push up, and squat routine. 

Climb rope x 4
5 pull ups on wall climbing cleats x 10
5 pull ups on 6 x 6 board x 6

Walk 1 mile

Monkey bars x 8

Run in Mud Obstacle Race Training-2/4/16

Run 4 miles.

Run in Mud Obstacle Race Training-2/2/2016

What to do after a long day of flights and travel? -Go for a long work out. Even though you might be physically tired, your body needs fresh air, oxygen and exercise. Here in Wisconsin, the snow is falling and at times, the route is unplowed deep snow. Go out and run, but with some caution. Be on the look out for cars and portable snow plows. Keep your senses and be safe.

This workout includes 200 push ups, 300 squats, 5 mile run, some swimming, and pull ups.

20 push ups and 30 squats x 10

Run 5 miles

Swim doggie paddle or breast stroke for 10 minutes

10 pull ups x 3

Ab workout x 5

Run in Mud Obstacle Race Training-2/1/16

Run 6 miles and incorporate speed work.

Mile 1-run easy

Mile 2- Run 1/4 mile splits

Mile 3-Run 1/4 mile splits

Mile 4-Run at race pace

Mile 5-Run 1/4 mile splits

Mile 6-Run easy