The desire to train for a touch mudder event

NASAwife13

Good day all, I am wanting to try to get in better shape to complete a tough mudder event this next year. In the past like a few years ago I use to workout a lot but have gotten away from it unfortunately. Now I want to get back into the best shape of my life but I am kind of at a loss where to start since I dont have the money for a fitness trainer and dont have the most like minded support at home. Anyone welcome to please advise!!!!!

iamworthy14

Go for it....its a blast! Walk.... run..pushups...squats... walking lunges..you dont need a trainer just start slow and go for it:-)

EvgeniZyntx

Run. Get your endurance in place.
Do upper body workouts. Have fun.

The tough mudder site has a few workout hints.
There is also a obstacle course training book.

ltworide

I agree check the tough mudder website they have workout ideas for all obstacles. Push-ups, pull-ups, lunges, squats, crawls. I'd also suggest focusing on conditioning circuits, strength & cardio endurance work. At the end of the day though it's about helping others & leaving no one behind. If there's an obstacle your not comfortable with and/or could pose a health hazard you can always bypass it. It's meant to challenge you but at the same time listen to your body. If you can get to some obstacle training camps/gyms it could help you out. Best wishes.

DopeItUp

Touch Mudder sounds a little too personal for me.

samhennings

EvgeniZyntx wrote: »

Run. Get your endurance in place.
Do upper body workouts. Have fun.

The tough mudder site has a few workout hints.
There is also a obstacle course training book.

This is what I was going to say!

I did a Spartan race earlier this year and took away a few big lessons
1) Upper body strength is required. At least, the ability to pull yourself up a wall etc
2) STAMINA is most imporatant of all, so run, a lot
3) Look into apprpriate gloves/shoes. I didnt, I wish I did...

Sued0nim

Is it true they send electric shocks ?

jgnatca

I prepared for my first tough mudder by running. Stamina is the first goal. I will be ramping up my upper body strength this coming year so I can do more of the obstacles next time.

I puzzled for many months last year how to train for such an event and it dawned on me, duh, the muscles will develop for what we demand of them. So if there will be balance beam, do a balance beam. Do stairs. Do body weight exercises, climb, and run through tires.

jgnatca

Oh, and register! Nothing like a commitment to ramp up the preparation.

jgnatca

@rabbitjb I did not get any electric shocks. I got very, very muddy.

http://www.zoomphoto.ca/viewphoto/19622-110-25138401/12/

ceckhardt369

rabbitjb wrote: »

Is it true they send electric shocks ?

Yep there are shocks!! This is the last obstacle in the race, there was another one that sent electric shocks but I didn't get hit at that one.

EvgeniZyntx

rabbitjb wrote: »

Is it true they send electric shocks ?

Yep, done three got shocked a few times. The shock dropped me the first time. But it is scary for some. Jumping off high things is what required more will power for me.

A team mate got shocked to the head (north west UK) and passed out for a few seconds. We ended up checking in with the emergency tent. He was fine.

Last time I skipped it. (Veterans mudder gets a freebie.)

If I do another it will be with the objective to skip very few obstacles.

EvgeniZyntx

jgnatca wrote: »

@rabbitjb I did not get any electric shocks. I got very, very muddy.

http://www.zoomphoto.ca/viewphoto/19622-110-25138401/12/

Mud hero events seem to be another type of obstacles course. Different distances, timed and obstacles vary.

There are a lot of different obstacle course races but Tough Mudders seem to always include a shock segment. Not to worry, any obstacle that is too much can be skipped without penalty. Other races are timed or have penalties for skipping obstacles.

dbanks80

I did the tough mudder this past May. I had a blast. You need strong upper body strength and cardio endurance. Do lots of cardio the course I ran was 11 miles. And do lots of upper strength training. Also you can check the tough mudder website as others say and you can look at the obstacles.

ew_david

samhennings wrote: »

EvgeniZyntx wrote: »

Run. Get your endurance in place.
Do upper body workouts. Have fun.

The tough mudder site has a few workout hints.
There is also a obstacle course training book.

This is what I was going to say!

I did a Spartan race earlier this year and took away a few big lessons
1) Upper body strength is required. At least, the ability to pull yourself up a wall etc
2) STAMINA is most imporatant of all, so run, a lot
3) Look into apprpriate gloves/shoes. I didnt, I wish I did...

All of this. However, I had gloves and they were useless the second they got wet (which was at the first obstacle).

jgnatca

For Mud Hero, dress light and tight, no more than one layer. Leave your gadgets and glasses at home. Tie your shoes tight. Some of my running mates (permanently) lost a shoe.

Loose clothing and layers means extra layers of mud to carry around. It builds up like wax on a string. Ever seen candle dipping?

samhennings

_dracarys_ wrote: »

All of this. However, I had gloves and they were useless the second they got wet (which was at the first obstacle).

I did a bit of googling at the time, "OCR gloves" or something like that, apparently there are extra grippy ones out there which Id look at if i do another.

Also, it seems lots of people take a belt/pouch to keep things like gloves in and keep them dry - though that seemed a bit serious for me!

dbanks80

samhennings wrote: »

_dracarys_ wrote: »

All of this. However, I had gloves and they were useless the second they got wet (which was at the first obstacle).

I did a bit of googling at the time, "OCR gloves" or something like that, apparently there are extra grippy ones out there which Id look at if i do another.

Also, it seems lots of people take a belt/pouch to keep things like gloves in and keep them dry - though that seemed a bit serious for me!

I started out with gloves and they got so muddy and heavy they were useless. I threw them to the side and kept going.

maranarasauce93

I am probably repeating what others have said, but you should build up to tough mudder with other ocrs in preparation as TM is an 11 mile race. Get practice with both running and body weight exercises such as pull-ups, push-ups, bearcrawls and burpees. Also I recommend you do some sort of strength training as many OCRs have you do some sort of object carry. Ex: the sandbag. To cover all of these elements, I did crossfit but that is not for everyone. And while I have not done the tough mudder myself, I have done a rugged maniac and a spartan sprint-- both 5ks but both very intense yet fun! Hopefully I can do a a spartan super--6 mile race--at some point-- but I am going to have to train longer running distances-- I typically do 2 mile runs-- in preparation for this. So key points: build strength, and build endurance and over time you will be prepared for TM.

jjaujero

Just finished a Spartan Sprint race this past Sunday. A lot of fun, it was a father's day gift which I ran with my boys (15) & (12). Spent six months working up to it. I could have do more, but now we are hooked. Thinking of a trifecta in 2016

esjones12

Steps to running an OCR:
1- Sign Up
2 - Work on your running
3 - Build strength
4 - Have Fun

That is it in a nut shell. Signing up is the biggest hurdle for most people. Running is a large part of most OCR's so you can start following a couch to 5k or 10k running program that can be found online. Body weight strength is a huge help. So things like burpees, lunges, squats, pull ups and pushups will benefit you. There are workouts on most major OCR websites you can try out (Spartan, Tough Mudder, Savage Race, etc). Those will help give you an idea of the general training. In all honesty, people train in various ways for OCR. Depends on your natural abilities.

Most of all go and have fun at the race. I've completed two TM's and they are a blast. I have completed many types of OCR's and I can promise you will have no issues finding people to help lift you up and over obstacles. If you don't want to do an obstacle you can simply walk around it. The OCR community as a whole is super fun and encouraging. You have an 85% chance of being hooked into an obsession hahaha.

OCR is a great motivator and has helped me lose 60 pounds and I'm currently focused on eating and training like a real athlete. I've competed at the top level of the sport (OCR World Championships) and now I am determined to become one of the top competitors. I can get into tons and tons and tons of details. Feel free to add me or send me a message.