Spartan sprint

cheflaurawalke

running in my first Spartan race this weekend. Any advice from people who have done them? I have been training for this for a couple months now so I feel fairly prepared. One of my teammates is volunteering today and sent me the list of obstacles..I don't know what half of them are.

lilawolf

Well, I'm definitely to late to help you, but do you have any suggestions for me? My first SS is this Saturday.

wilsonm2014

Go check out Green Beret Challenge on FB. It rocks.

CSARdiver

YouTube - If not directly from the official SpartanRace page, then search out other athletes. I believe NBCSports broadcasts some of the races as well, so you can see what you're getting into and pick up some great training tips. Are you signed up with the 30 day challenges?

lilawolf

I've been training pretty hard (trail/hill running, weight lifting, and martial arts), and my conditioning certainly won't get any better in the two days I have left lol. I guess I meant the other detail things, like: You need these kind of socks, or when you throw the spear aim up at ??? angle, or x brand of gloves would be way better than y (or maybe no gloves is the way to go), that sort of thing.

CSARdiver

@lilawolf Is your race indoor or outdoor? Now that the sport is gaining popularity there are some great tailored products out there with better traction in mud. I use old running shoes which I've about cycled out on. I don't use gloves. For the spear aim high at first and adjust. You'll have time to review other participants form. Talk to your fellow racers and they will help you - it is quite possibly the most helpful sporting community out there. Try to get all the obstacles, but if this is your first, just finish. Set your next goal to complete all the obstacles and go burpee free!

Enjoy! You'll have a great time.

oh_happy_day

I found it useful to watch some of the technique videos on YouTube. For example climbing the cargo nets - stay toward the A frame where the net is tighter, push your feet out to stabilise yourself etc. I was able to try most of the obstacles during training. I ended up having trouble with things like the balance beam as I fatigued. So don't rush! It'll just earn you 30 burpees! I wore light shoes with grips on them (ino-v8 talons) which were helpful.

lilawolf

@lilawolf Is your race indoor or outdoor? Now that the sport is gaining popularity there are some great tailored products out there with better traction in mud. I use old running shoes which I've about cycled out on. I don't use gloves. For the spear aim high at first and adjust. You'll have time to review other participants form. Talk to your fellow racers and they will help you - it is quite possibly the most helpful sporting community out there. Try to get all the obstacles, but if this is your first, just finish. Set your next goal to complete all the obstacles and go burpee free!

Enjoy! You'll have a great time.[/quote]

Outdoor on a BMX track. Lots of hills and lots of mud. I've done a much easier 5k obstacle run there, so I'm somewhat familiar with the track, and comfortable with my shoes in the mud, but I know that there will be more and more strenuous obstacles on the spartan sprint than on the fun run. How would they do one indoors?

I was under the impression that I only got one shot at the obstacles before having to do the burpees. Do I get multiple tries? If so, I'm a LOT less worried. I can definitely figure it out.

I'm super excited!

oh_happy_day wrote: »

I found it useful to watch some of the technique videos on YouTube. For example climbing the cargo nets - stay toward the A frame where the net is tighter, push your feet out to stabilise yourself etc. I was able to try most of the obstacles during training. I ended up having trouble with things like the balance beam as I fatigued. So don't rush! It'll just earn you 30 burpees! I wore light shoes with grips on them (ino-v8 talons) which were helpful.

How many obstacles did you fail? I took your advice and watched some vids. I think that was helpful! I was thinking about the speed thing too, especially with people waiting, I am really going to have to watch trying to go too fast and failing because of that.

cheflaurawalke

You only get one shot at an obstacles and then it is burpee city. My biggest suggestion for training would be upper body strength, grip strength, toughen up your hands and trail running. I did no gloves. I would suggest investing in a pair of trail shoes, I got inov8 shoes and they were amazing!!! Wear skin tight clothes so they don't get snagged on anything. It is not just physical strength but mental strength also. I'm doing a Spartan Super next at Wintergreen in VA.. Then the South Carolina beast.. It is addicting

lilawolf

cheflaurawalke wrote: »

You only get one shot at an obstacles and then it is burpee city. My biggest suggestion for training would be upper body strength, grip strength, toughen up your hands and trail running. I did no gloves. I would suggest investing in a pair of trail shoes, I got inov8 shoes and they were amazing!!! Wear skin tight clothes so they don't get snagged on anything. It is not just physical strength but mental strength also. I'm doing a Spartan Super next at Wintergreen in VA.. Then the South Carolina beast.. It is addicting

Thats what I thought... I picked up a pole out of the scrap pile thats probably not long enough but about the right weight to get the motion down. Yeah, I'm already imagining a super and I haven't even finished the sprint yet! You are super awesome. Good luck on your trifecta!

wkwebby

Can you do pull ups? How many burpees can you do? DO you have a team or at least one other person who can help you through some of the obstacles?

I've done Tough Mudder, Spartan Sprint, and Warrior Dash (this was a joke though). The SS is a great little OCR, but it is challenging. Upper body strength is a must! The rope climb becomes all muddy and really slippery so use the legs! Also, take a careful look at the various ropes that they have, the knots are placed differently and will work (or not work) better for shorter people. I didn't realize this on my SS and tried to climb up the wrong one (meant for a tall person) and didn't have enough hand strength to muscle up the last 2 ft to catch the bell.

CSARdiver

lilawolf wrote: »

cheflaurawalke wrote: »

You only get one shot at an obstacles and then it is burpee city. My biggest suggestion for training would be upper body strength, grip strength, toughen up your hands and trail running. I did no gloves. I would suggest investing in a pair of trail shoes, I got inov8 shoes and they were amazing!!! Wear skin tight clothes so they don't get snagged on anything. It is not just physical strength but mental strength also. I'm doing a Spartan Super next at Wintergreen in VA.. Then the South Carolina beast.. It is addicting

Thats what I thought... I picked up a pole out of the scrap pile thats probably not long enough but about the right weight to get the motion down. Yeah, I'm already imagining a super and I haven't even finished the sprint yet! You are super awesome. Good luck on your trifecta!

I'm sorry - In editing my post I removed some key parts.

Yes, even on the spear throw you get one shot or bang out some burpees.

What I meant to say is in practice - grab anything resembling a spear and practice throwing at a target - hula hoop, hay bales, rug, etc. Grab the spear at the center balance point and practice your throw. Not nearly as difficult as it appears, but a good percentage overthink this and miss.

oh_happy_day

cheflaurawalke wrote: »

You only get one shot at an obstacles and then it is burpee city. My biggest suggestion for training would be upper body strength, grip strength, toughen up your hands and trail running. I did no gloves. I would suggest investing in a pair of trail shoes, I got inov8 shoes and they were amazing!!! Wear skin tight clothes so they don't get snagged on anything. It is not just physical strength but mental strength also. I'm doing a Spartan Super next at Wintergreen in VA.. Then the South Carolina beast.. It is addicting

Totally agree. Upper body strength, grip strength, get your hands tough and run some hills in the mud. Skin tight clothes, no cotton (you'll be saturated in no time), I found it helpful to protect my forearms and shins with sleeves. I failed the rope climb - I never managed it in training though, I just couldn't get the foot lock right. I swear having tiny feet doesn't help! I struggled with anything that required a longer reach with the upper body because I'm really short. If only the whole race was carrying heavy things around... The spear throw seems to be the most failed obstacle from what I saw. Practice, practice, practice. Balance the spear, aim, pivot your hip and follow through.

And practice burpees to get your form as ergonomic as possible - it's helpful to be able to bang them out mindlessly.

CSARdiver

@lilawolf So....how did it go? Are you an addict?

esjones12

Here is a cheap and easy way to make spears: http://www.pushinglimitsocr.com/blog/how-to-make-a-spartan-spear .....there is definitely a LOT of technique that goes into getting a high hit percentage, especially after you just climbed a massive mountain for an hour or two and are exhausted. Practice, practice, practice.

@cheflaurawalke I will be at VA as well. I guarantee that will be 5x harder than your SC Beast. SC is a great fun course. So just make it through VA and it will be smooth sailing to your trifecta!

Shoes you can go with Inov8's, Ice Bugs, All Terrains, or Salomons. They all have their pros and cons. A solid pair of trail shoes will get you through your first race or two if you aren't willing to put out $120+ for a pair of shoes.

Training wise you should definitely work on all around fitness. You will use your legs, your arms and your cardio. I always recommend people just train hard and then do a race and then start training your weaknesses. You will realize what you need to work on during the race.

Races are fun and addicting. If you can't find anyone to run with you, I highly recommend running anyways. I promise you will find new awesome friends on course to chat with and/or help you over obstacles! I have started running competitively and actually have to avoid starting conversations so I can focus on getting a good time haha. Spartans rock. I also give two thumbs up to all the other OCR's I've tried.

I just completed my 10th Spartan Race. Not sure how many OCR's all together I've done. I've competed in a HH12HR (12hr Spartan torture event), will be getting my 3x trifecta this year and have qualified and will be at OCR World Championships. So I have a good bit of experience (definitely not elite though haha)....feel free to PM or friend me with questions or to chit chat about anything OCR.