Run in Mud Obstacle Race Training-8/5/13

This exercise will knock the wind out of you, literally. I know, some of you tough mudders will argue that it is too easy, and in a month, I will agree with you. But for now, with the weather as warm and humid as it is (even at 5 am) this stuff is rough. I know that plowing through it can only get me ready for the Great American Mud Run in November. Bring it!

Warm up:

Push ups to muscle failure

Sit ups to muscle failure

10 burpees

Stretch

Rotate

Main set:

Run 4 miles

5 burpees after every .25 miles

That's 16 sets of 5 or 80 total

pull ups with leg lifts to failure

chin ups with leg lifts to failure

alternate grip pull up with leg lifts to failure

Now, run and tell that!

Run in Mud Obstacle Race Training-8/22/13

Run 3.5 miles in a hilly area if possible. Sprint up the hills.Do 5 burpees every quarter mile.Finish with 18 pull ups or chin upsSound easy? It does sound easy, but it's a tough workout. I'm getting ready for the Great American Obstacle Race. What are you working on?

Run in Mud Obstacle Race Training-8/21/13

This workout lets you focus on the run. Once finished, you can then focus on a good ab workout. This will allow a little recovery time while maintaining fitness required for the Spartan Sprint, Warrior Dash, Great American Mud Run, and other obstacle race events.  Have fun:

Warm up:

rotate neck, shoulders, hips, knees and ankles

Walk a short distance

Run 4 miles

Stretch

40 sit ups

40 flutter kicks

20 bicycles

40 crunches

10 crunches left side

10 crunches right side

20 leg lifts

20 bicycles

40 crunches

30 flutter kicks

20 bicycles

10 leg lifts

Run in Mud Obstacle Race Training-8/02/13

Half Murph Blaster
Not quite a full Murph, but more than a half, and the run is twice as long. Enjoy...

This is a 4 mile run with 100 burpees worked in. Each burpee counts as 1 push up and one squat. Hence, a half Murph. The burpees mixed in the run will help prepare you for the obstacle and run interchange during those Tough Mudder, Spartan, Warrior, Great American, etc. mud races

Run 4 miles
Perform 100 burpees with push ups en route at your pace

50 body weight squats
50 pull ups

Stretch

Run in Mud Obstacle Race Training-7/9/13

It's time for the block party. As a reminder, chose a distance around your neighborhood that will allow you to run a loop. The intent is to run a lap, do three obstacles and repeat four times. When done, you'll have finished a 5k route with 12 obstacles.

Bear crawl 15 yards

Climb an obstacle with a rope (I climbed the wall of my children's swing set with a rope tied to the top.

6 pull ups with leg lifts

Run 1 lap

Bear crawl 15 yards

6 pull ups with leg lifts

10 burpees

Run 1 lap

6 pull ups with leg lifts

10 burpees

Monkey bars or hand over hand obstacle. Try to go 20 feet (I used the swing set)

Run 1 lap

Carry 40 pound back pack with arms in the curl position up and down driveway

10 burpees

Monkey bars or hand over hand obstacle. Try to go 20 feet (I used the swing set)

Run sprints between mail boxes to finish your run. This time carry a 1 gallon jug filled with water.

For example, my block is .96 miles. I ran three laps and finished with about a half mile worth of sprints to make it a 5k.

Don't forget, more exercises are here:

Obstacle Race Training and the Hot Days

Is it feeling hotter at 6 am than it did during the long winter? Some of you following may already know that my chosen time to train as been in the late mornings. However, I've had to change to running after work because of new job requirements. Now, I've changed my workout schedule again because of the oppressive Alabama heat and humidity. Now I wake up at 5:15, drink water, spend about half an hour reading and thinking, then begin the slow process of warming up. My warm ups are typically slow stretching and rotation of joints from my head to my ankles.  Then I go for a walk, do 20 jumping jacks and 10 push ups and hopefully I'll be warmed up for a run. After drinking more water, I begin my main part of the workout which usually consists of a minimum 3 mile run and obstacle strength and endurance training.

My goal is to fulfill my expectations to finish my next race at 34 minutes or less. I've signed up for the elite heat of the Great American Obstacle race. Apparently athletes finish with an average 50-55 minute time and winning time is around 32 minutes. I'm 48 and have raced two obstacle races; Moonshine Mud Run near Chattanooga  TN and St. Claire Obstacle Scramble near Birmingham, Al. Both races were tough, challenging and had about 300 athletes. I'd finished second overall. Unfortunately the races did not award individual placement other than the overall winning time. No 1st, 2nd or 3rd. No age group, no nothin. The Great American Obstacle Race does offer an open men's and women's 1st, 2nd and 3rd place awards.

The next goal after that is Warrior Dash and Spartan race. Both of which I will have to travel considerable distance to get to. Needless to say, I am training hard to finish well. However, the heat is taking its toll and my training times are slower and distances shorter. Hopefully it is weather related and training will only improve my performance. Is anyone else experiencing the same symptoms?

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