Tough Mudder.. advice please :-)

k7n2w3
k7n2w3 Posts: 241 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
So I really want to do the Tough Mudder (toughmudder.com for those unfamiliar). This is a very unique and difficult 12ish mile race having about 25 military-style obstacles (including a field of live wires and swimming through ice water)....

I am wondering what some training tips are, some race tips (like is it better to wear more or less... i've heard less is better for a mud race but i'm thinking the live wires might hurt more if on skin vs a tshirt). How did you deal with some of the obstacles (like dealing w muscle paralysis in the ice, the electric shocks, etc) and how did you train.
I saw the training guide online, but did you use that? How do I know if this race is too much for me to handle? I have done a couple half marathons, one containing 3 straight miles uphill... but this is definitely more difficult! Prob most difficult thing I'll ever do. I have started going to a playground to do some upper body work and there is a long moving balance beam there that will help with the hanging plank walk (with god knows what is under the suspended planks during the race... I can only assume sharks :-P) lol How does one get the strength for the monkey bar obstacle and train to run/jump up the half pipe? I worry about the monkey bars probably the most but then again maybe one of you will have insight on an obstacle I don't know about! Any advice is appreciated :-)
Thanks!!

Replies

  • k7n2w3
    k7n2w3 Posts: 241 Member
    anyone? hehe
  • tarynnmichelle
    tarynnmichelle Posts: 27 Member
    I ran the Texas Tough Mudder last year in October. One of the most important things i can tell you is to eat a big carb filled breakfast before you start. I had a huge bowl of brown rice and about a gallon of water on the way to the event and i felt like that kept me nourished enough to finish the event. Also, i wore a tshirt, sports bra and nylon(ish) shorts. I had no problem with the live wires, although they were the very last obstacle in my event and by then, i just couldnt feel anything. Some people will recommend wearing gloves. My teammate wore them, I did not. It didn't really make a difference either way. There is no way to train for the ice bath ( or chernobyl jacuzzi or whatever it's called.) It doesnt look that bad, but it really is that bad!!! Once I hit the water, i literally lost all brain function. You just have to will your body to move forward and hope there is someone at the end to lend a hand. The suspended planks are higher than they look, but if you're not afraid of heights, it's not a bad jump. I would advise you to eat a banana wherever they are offered on the course and drink water at every stop. I ended up getting a bad cramp in my hamstring over a large rope wall in the middle of nowhere, but some nice mudders offered some extra gatorade and it helped. The mud trench is the most energy zapping thing I have ever done and it was around mile 6 on my course, so the last 6 miles were harder. BEST ADVICE I CAN GIVE is to not be afraid to ask for help from your team and other mudders, and always extend a helping hand where needed! The sense of accomplishment knowing that you now have the orange headband and can call yourself a tough mudder is amazing! Good luck, and I hope you go through with it!
  • k7n2w3
    k7n2w3 Posts: 241 Member
    Thank you so much for the advice! did you do anything special for upper body training before the race?
    I watched a video on the ice part... WHEWWW.. they said you just become disoriented and will need help out of it. The electric part is last in this one too.
    I would love to have that headband and feel like a champ for doing it though...
  • tarynnmichelle
    tarynnmichelle Posts: 27 Member
    PS, talking about it makes me want to do it again!
  • tarynnmichelle
    tarynnmichelle Posts: 27 Member
    I didn't train much on upper body. I did assisted pull ups and some push ups, but you really dont need much upper body strength except for the berlin walls and monkey bars. I made it over the 8 ft berlin walls by myself, but on the ten and twelve ft walls, I had to rely on my teammate for help. We also had two or three obstacles that required crawling through the mud under barbed wire or some type of netting and i found that to be very hard toward the end. So i would recommend you working on low crawls for core strength. And yes, the ice bath is ust completely disorienting. All i can remember was being pulled out of it at the end and not being able to breathe or see or speak for about 2 minutes. Although, I guess that would be a welcomed sight if your event is in the heat of the day :)
  • k7n2w3
    k7n2w3 Posts: 241 Member
    Good on the fact upper body training isn't too necessary.. i'm quite tiny and never have had been very strong no matter how much I train! Unfortunately the race is in NJ in October and last year that was the weekend that we randomly had an ice/snow storm... i HOPE that isnt the case this year. I guess I should prepare as mentally as I do physically!
    You should do another!!
  • blgerig
    blgerig Posts: 174 Member
    I have never done this race (or anything like it) but one of my best friends just did the Tough Mudder in Indiana in June. She has completed one half marathon and does some running and a little bit of weights to workout and she was fine. In fact she said she never wants to do a regular road race again, only these kind! So from your activity level I would say you would be completely fine. She wore a tank top and shorts, said less is better because the mud will just weigh you down.
  • LoosingMyLast15
    LoosingMyLast15 Posts: 1,457 Member
    i've never done tough mudder but i did compete in rugged maniac (smaller version of tough mudder) and i'm doing zombie mud run in september. i have to say no amount of training is going to mentally prepare you for this. with that said clothing wise wear stuff that wisks away water (nothing that will soak it up because it will come down - my pants did in the water obstacle). rugged maniac had barbed wire not electric and it was the one time i truly appreciated being short. you do want some upper body strength and you also want a strong core. again these are more mentally challenging than anything else. good luck!
  • felinasbeads
    felinasbeads Posts: 75 Member
    I did Tough Mudder in Vermont in May of this year. My advice, you do want to have some upper body strength and you want to work on hills/stairs. I guess it varies as not all of the courses are all hills, but for most, hill work is a good helper. In lieu of hill work, you want to do some lower body training. Squats, deadlifts and leg presses help strengthen your legs. I agree with the poster above. REFRESH at EVERY station. You are going to need it. Stop when you're tired. I understand that at the second go at the Mount Snow course, someone went into Cardiac Arrest. If you have a heart rate monitor, I'd advise wearing it so you can keep your pace in your own range and not overwork. Don't be afraid to ask for help, I wasn't. Tough Mudder mentality during the race is amazing. I'm over 200 pounds and wasn't planning on being so heavy and out of shape but I got Lyme earlier this year and I was drained but determined. I had so many people along the 10 miles who helped get me through things mentally and physically. It took me 6 hours. 6! But I finished and I"m doing it again at the Tri State Race in New Jersey. This time I'm determined to be down to 175 pounds at least and in wayyyy better shape. I'm working both upper and lower body and running more to strengthen my legs. I didn't finish the half pipe or the monkey bars and I was dissappointed in myself. Not this time! Best of luck to you. You'll love it and you'll be addicted!
  • k7n2w3
    k7n2w3 Posts: 241 Member
    Thank you guys so much for the advice!! I had my cousin "commit" officially and her BF is flying from Florida to NJ just for this race SOOOO I believe i am FULLY committed... well as long as in the next week my running injury doesn't act up... I am scared and excited and so glad to have been able to gather advice from others. It makes me want to do it even more and a race like this requires tips like the ones you all gave in order to get through mentally and physically. I felt the same butterflies before my first half marathon and that was one of my best races :-)
  • redcon1228
    redcon1228 Posts: 28
    I did the 69-day tough mudder known as the 'US Army Ranger Course' LOL.

    I disagree about no training for the ice bath obstacle. Prior to signing in at the course in February a buddy and I asked the fleabag motel we were staying at if they would mind if we used the pool. The owmer knew the deal about Ranger school so he said that was OK as long as we had a third guy to keep an eye on us. So every day aout 5am we hit the pool, which had a thin skim of ice on it. And although never comfortable or fun, we got used to the feeling of hitting the water over our heads in those temps, and thinking clearly enough to do the tasks required by the Ranger swim test. Thank God I trained, because I could not do the last event (25 yard swim) the first few times. When I started the course and we broke the ice on the pool, I passed with flying colors. Not so for many of my classmates, including 7 allied soldiers from Central and South America... and 2 Navy SEALs.

    So fill up a kiddie pool at least with icewater and plunge into it regularly... so you will know what it feels like.
  • k7n2w3
    k7n2w3 Posts: 241 Member
    haha would LOVE that version but I'll stick with my one day of torture haha but thank you for your military services :-)!

    Great Idea! Well "great" in terms of something NOT fun but necessary. I'm already planning and texted my cousin about it. I'm sure she has a kids pool having the girls. It's in October and with how warm it is out we should probably do that in September as part of the training. What about ice baths in the tub? I've heard they are great for healing the muscles but would that at all help out with the training of coldness or is that too subtle?
    (In case do not know..that is filling the bathtub with ice after an intense training session so that swelling/irritation can somewhat be prevented... I found out about that when i went to take a nice warm bubble bath after an intense training session and site after site said ice bath is a million times better... havent tried that yet though..)
    All these great tips.. I LOVE them guys!! Thanks!!

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