Tough Mudder Electric Shock Therapy...

hazellac

I'm hoping to do this next year too.

I'm sure I read on their website that you can skip any obstacles that you don't feel comfortable with. I'm putting the obstacles to the back of my mind, if on the day I feel I really can't do one I'll skip it - no shame. I think if I started to over think it all I'd build it up into something much bigger in my head than it actually is.

CharRicho

I can't say enough... Cardio Cardio Cardio.

Forget about electric shocks, I was worried about them too but barely noticed them. They really won't be the worst part. (agree with others, Arctic enema was horrible)

The biggest thing is the distance, and the hills (I suppose that depends on the course you do but I think they try to work some crazy hills in to most of them). Definitely do hill running as part of your training.

Strength is important too because there are some obstacles you will really struggle with if you don't have the upper body strength, I definitely couldn't do the monkey bars at all... but still... nothing is bigger than cardio. Just make sure you can get through the distance and you will be fine.

ThickMcRunFast

The electric eel wasn't so bad, the secret is just to go through as fast as you can. The worst was getting stuck behind someone and then having a wire shock you repeatedly while you can't move.

I didn't find the Arctic Enema to be bad at all, but I suppose its harsher on the men. I saw most people cramp up from lack of trail run training, rather than the obstacles.

shawnakrebs

Whatever you do DO NOT WEAR METAL BARRETTESI had my hair up and for the electric eel I was fine, but a charge hit me right on top of my head where my barrette was in the Electro Shock Therapy and knocked me out for a few seconds. I face planted in the mud and had visions I was at the Mud Mile . I came too only to realize I was still in Electro Shock Therapy and crawled my way over the bail of hay and out. Took me a few minutes to gain my legs....and no one even realized what had happened. I plan on doing one next summer in NorCal and that will be my biggest fear to overcome...again! Good luck...it is a lot of fun!!

taeliesyn

The electric eel wasn't so bad, the secret is just to go through as fast as you can. The worst was getting stuck behind someone and then having a wire shock you repeatedly while you can't move.

I'm going to be an *kitten* if I get stuck behind someone in the electric eel and grab their ankle, sure I'll still get shocked, but they will get a shock too.

walterm852

Went this weekend in Pittsburgh:

I had fun, I was tired Sat night but by Mon am, I really wasn't sore and had a great crossfit workout.

How I trained- Tues Thurs Sat I ran 3-5miles (8miles the weekend before), every 1/2 mile I dropped and did exercises like 50 push ups, next 1/2 50 burpee variations, next 1/2 150 abdominals, pull ups at home. My advice, run run run and get good trail shoes with trend. Guys with wrong shoes were sliding and wiping out all over. You have to be able to run 10-12 miles

I got some great advice, it worked for me, here it is:
Artic Enema- dont waste time preparing, jump in, get under barrier, get out, do not pause at all. Its ridiculous/awesome but get out before your body reacts

Electric eel, find an empty, or near empty line, so when you hit it, you can fly through. I dont think I got shocked. I waited a sec for the guy in front to get toward the end and I just whipped thru it

Funky Monkey- go slow and 1 bar each hand, then to the next one, strong armed guys rushed it and slipped on the wet muddy metal bars.

Everest- make eye contact with someone on the wall that will pull you, jog thru the mud, accelerate when passed the mud and reach for the persons wrist, not hand

Research clothes- absolutely no cotton

Bring a washcloth, soap and shampoo for the shower at the end

Its fun, the camaraderie is awesome. Everyone is so friendly, well done event and spirit is fantastic

,

LonelyPilgrim

I did it last year and didn't find any of it as "big of a deal" as some people make it out to be. I was on a team with 8 girls-- of all different fitness levels. We went through it to have fun, not in "total competition mode". Only 2 of us (myself included) actually did every obstacle, some people had various fears and they just went around the obstacle.

I thought arctic enema was a blast. Yes. it was the f*ing coldest thing I've ever experienced, but I didn't hesitate, just did it, and next thing i knew, I was out. getting out was an amazing rush as my entire body was pins-and-needles tingling, but it was exhilirating and laugh/shriek-producing, not miserable.

all the walls you have to climb over and the everest etc.. I found there were plenty of guys there who are more than willing to lend a hand to the ladies! I have very little upper body strength, and would not have made it over these things on my own, but with a helping hand or a boost.. they are managable.

about the shocks? i didn't find them to be a big deal. reminded me of touching an electric fence. electric eel--at least in tahoe, if you stay low enough in the water.. just nose above water to breathe, then you really only risk getting zapped when you're entering or exiting the water. my butt got it as I climbed out.. it more "stuns' you than hurts.

I got zapped at the end too, but our team ran through holding hands and no one fell or anything.

my husband hated the shocks.. he said they were making him black out in the electric eel part... but he was part of the elite start wave and finished in the top 10 overall... when he went through electric eel he was the only person in the whole pit.. I think that maybe that means he got ALL the electricity every time it zapped him? whereas when the slower people like myself went through, there were a couple of dozen people in the pit so the energy was spread out? maybe that doesn't make sense... but that's my theory.

for me, the part I'd least like to do again is that part where you have to jump off the high platform into the cold water... forget what that one's called, but I dont' like the falling feeling.. I'm not a big "let's jump off those high rocks into the river" person...so that was my least favorite part.

MSeel1984

I did it last year and didn't find any of it as "big of a deal" as some people make it out to be. I was on a team with 8 girls-- of all different fitness levels. We went through it to have fun, not in "total competition mode". Only 2 of us (myself included) actually did every obstacle, some people had various fears and they just went around the obstacle.

I thought arctic enema was a blast. Yes. it was the f*ing coldest thing I've ever experienced, but I didn't hesitate, just did it, and next thing i knew, I was out. getting out was an amazing rush as my entire body was pins-and-needles tingling, but it was exhilirating and laugh/shriek-producing, not miserable.

all the walls you have to climb over and the everest etc.. I found there were plenty of guys there who are more than willing to lend a hand to the ladies! I have very little upper body strength, and would not have made it over these things on my own, but with a helping hand or a boost.. they are managable.

about the shocks? i didn't find them to be a big deal. reminded me of touching an electric fence. electric eel--at least in tahoe, if you stay low enough in the water.. just nose above water to breathe, then you really only risk getting zapped when you're entering or exiting the water. my butt got it as I climbed out.. it more "stuns' you than hurts.

I got zapped at the end too, but our team ran through holding hands and no one fell or anything.

my husband hated the shocks.. he said they were making him black out in the electric eel part... but he was part of the elite start wave and finished in the top 10 overall... when he went through electric eel he was the only person in the whole pit.. I think that maybe that means he got ALL the electricity every time it zapped him? whereas when the slower people like myself went through, there were a couple of dozen people in the pit so the energy was spread out? maybe that doesn't make sense... but that's my theory.

for me, the part I'd least like to do again is that part where you have to jump off the high platform into the cold water... forget what that one's called, but I dont' like the falling feeling.. I'm not a big "let's jump off those high rocks into the river" person...so that was my least favorite part.

Such helpful advice....

The last event you mentioned is "walk the plank"-that's the event where someone died.

Now the main reason I've been thinking getting used to cold water is a good idea is not necessarily for the "arctic enema" I know nothing can prepare me for that aside from actually doing it (which may just create more fear than anything), but I think for things like walking the plank and some of the other events that involve cold water, it may help.

If I can just get accustomed to that cold water feeling it may help.

I'm getting so excited and so nervous just reading this. It may not seem as big of a challenge to some than others but...I've never even done a 5 k, so this is a big deal for me-I'm super excited.

I did running today and worked on upper body (assisted pull-ups, etc) and I've got the beginnings of an awesome team together. SO stoked!

mikeholloway

Hey,

I've signed up for a TM later this year, in the UK.

I'm interested to know what you thought of the event in hindsight as it sounds like you started off pretty much how I am now (with the mind games)

I'm a skinny guy who feels the cold and the event that most bothers me mentally is the Arctic Enema. I intend on just getting in and out like everyone suggests, but I fear that when I plunge in (after being hot from the run) my body will go into shock and not function. How did you find it?

Also, did the fact that someone died in Walk the Plank weigh on your mind? How did you find that? I have visions of my feet getting stuck in mud at the bottom and getting trapped; the guys that should have been in the water helping him out really let him down in my opinion.

Finally, the Electric Eel - what was your experience of that, as it seemed to be a worry of yours from the start.

Thanks for your time.

MSeel1984

Hey,

I've signed up for a TM later this year, in the UK.

I'm interested to know what you thought of the event in hindsight as it sounds like you started off pretty much how I am now (with the mind games)

I'm a skinny guy who feels the cold and the event that most bothers me mentally is the Arctic Enema. I intend on just getting in and out like everyone suggests, but I fear that when I plunge in (after being hot from the run) my body will go into shock and not function. How did you find it?

Also, did the fact that someone died in Walk the Plank weigh on your mind? How did you find that? I have visions of my feet getting stuck in mud at the bottom and getting trapped; the guys that should have been in the water helping him out really let him down in my opinion.

Finally, the Electric Eel - what was your experience of that, as it seemed to be a worry of yours from the start.

Thanks for your time.

So I guess we'll be finding out together. I decided to sign up last year-give myself a year to train and join in the race this fall (in 2014). I am worried about both of the events you mentioned...particularly the arctic enema. The walk the plank does make me nervous, seeing as that happened out here in the Mid Atlantic race...

I'm still working at mileage for the running, and I'm working even more lately on upper body strength for some of the events (Berlin walls, monkey bars, etc)...pole dance and rock climbing for that...since that's the only way I can enjoy strength training LoL.

taeliesyn

Hey,

I've signed up for a TM later this year, in the UK.

I'm interested to know what you thought of the event in hindsight as it sounds like you started off pretty much how I am now (with the mind games)

I'm a skinny guy who feels the cold and the event that most bothers me mentally is the Arctic Enema. I intend on just getting in and out like everyone suggests, but I fear that when I plunge in (after being hot from the run) my body will go into shock and not function. How did you find it?

Also, did the fact that someone died in Walk the Plank weigh on your mind? How did you find that? I have visions of my feet getting stuck in mud at the bottom and getting trapped; the guys that should have been in the water helping him out really let him down in my opinion.

Finally, the Electric Eel - what was your experience of that, as it seemed to be a worry of yours from the start.

Thanks for your time.

I know this wasn't aimed at me, but I've done two Obstacle Courses now and fortunately for me both have been rather warm days. I have a colder (forecast for 21C/70F) run next week.
Babbling aside, I found the Ice bath to be refreshing both times. Yes it was fecking cold, yes it took my breath away and on my Tough Mudder I spent WAY too long in there (helping someone about to freak out about putting their head under the water). I'll update after a colder run next weekend.
I had no worry about the walk the plank. Though the death happened and is a tragic accident, TM definitely learnt from it and have taken many steps to help prevent it happening again.
Of course you can never moron proof an event like this, at the TM I did last year I heard a couple of people saying they couldn't swim, yet they still did Walk the Plank (GGGGRRRRRRR)
I've got no comment on Electro shock therapy/electric eel. I am not overly phased by the electric shocks.

mikeholloway

Thanks both for the replies and good luck MSeel1984!

One more thing, what do you wear on your feet?

mikeholloway

I should qualify that as it sounds a bit weird

I'm interested in knowing which shoes you will be / have been running in.

taeliesyn

I should qualify that as it sounds a bit weird

I'm interested in knowing which shoes you will be / have been running in.

My First OCR was Western Mudd Rush (around 9km long) I wore some old hikers I had. Excellent traction through pretty much all the course, but they got heavy, really heavy really fast.
Second was Tough Mudder, I wore my Brooks Cascadia 8's which were pretty good and cleaned up great after the run. Didn't have as much mud in Tough Mudder as I was hoping, so it is hard to see what grip levels they had for truly horrid stuff.

My run next weekend, I will be wearing my Inon-8 Trailroc 245's which I think will be even better than the Brooks, though being a minimalist shoe with only 3mm drop, I'm hoping I've conditioned my feet enough to hold up.

sjm1200

Hi both,

I completed my first Tough Mudder this weekend at the London West event. Our course was 12 miles long with 20 obstacles through a hilly country estate. There were so many hills to climb / descend that we found we could only jog about 7 miles of the course for risk of sliding down the hills. There was never really more than 3/4 of a mile between obstacles so as long as you can do lots of short jogs then the cardio is a breeze but it will work your calf and thigh muscles if like me you're used to flat road running.

For the obstacles the main training I'd recommend is lifting your body weight as there is a lot of climbing up / over things that are above head height. Whilst I'm ok at chin ups and could pull to that height I wish I'd trained more for the next stage where you have to push yourself over your hands.

Clothing wise I just wore my normal running shoes. Some people seemed to be wearing specialist trail shoes but they do checks to make sure you don't wear any spikes etc. as they are dangerous to others. My main advise would be to wear tight man made fabric under armour clothing. Long legs and sleeves help protect from minor scrapes and will keep your body warm as they dry quickly. Whilst the Arctic Enema is the coldest it is over pretty quickly and I warmed up really quickly running to the next obstacle. For me the hardest by far was the cage crawl. Although warmer than the AE you are in it a lot longer and practically fully submerged as you claw your way 20 metres under metal fencing. Some people recommend ear plugs for this one.

I've signed up for next year already and the only thing I'd change would be my choice of gloves. I went for Polyco Mad Grip which were great for protection from rocks etc. as they have thick rubber palms but, once wet & muddy, couldn't grip at all so I had to take them off for the Funky Monkey and Hang Tough obstacles. I'm tempted to go with two pairs - one as above and then some material gym gloves which whould grip better.

I managed to avoid being shocked in the Electric Eel but took a few big hits in ElectroShock therapy which almost knocked me down when my whole right side contracted at once.

I wasn't concerned with Walk the Plank as it's a 12 foot drop and they said the pool was 4m deep so it would take a lot to hit the bottom. The marshalls were really good at counting people in and out and making sure everyone took turns. The most dangerous for us was the Mud Mile (6 mounds / dips of mud about 6' high that you have to scramble over) as these were really slippy and there was loads of flint under the mud so lots of people were getting cut. I think they may have closed the obstacle just after we went through as it looked empty when we looked back.

If you have a good buddy / team to run with then just have a laugh and go for it. Everyone taking part was so nice it was like being part of a 1,000 strong team - I lost count of the number of strangers I hugged / high fived throughout the event.

ekz13

great thread...tagging for later ... I still need to sign up eventually... life keeps getting in the way..

GillianMcK

You can go past the obstacles if needed, I know that the ones I've been to they have always advised at the start that if you can't swim, don't get in the water (I know that the person that drowned could swim, but if you have issues with jumping into the water you don't have to do it).

Our guys have always loved it and they also love Dirty Weekend which is the worlds biggest obstacle course (20 miles, 200 obstacles).

Mixed comments from our guys about the electric shocks, I think that the electric shocks are intermitten/random so depending on where the shocks are depends on how many times and how hard you get hit, running through like a ninja swatting flies seemed to be quite effective for our guys and they also took a run and slide at the electric eel.

It's a great excuse for adults to play in the mud:)

mikeholloway

sjm1200: Thanks for your post, I found it very insightful and useful.