how to become a professional obstacle course racer

How do I train for an obstacle course race?

Developing self-confidence is the first step to being a successful Obstacle Course Racer. How do you do that? By finding your mental edge … #2 Mind Your Mental Game As with any goal or new endeavor, it takes time to adapt. In sports, the body must adapt and so must the mind.

How long is an obstacle course race?

Developing self-confidence is the first step to being a successful Obstacle Course Racer. How do you do that? By finding your mental edge… #2 MIND YOUR MENTAL GAME As with any goal or new endeavor, it takes time to adapt. In sports, the body must adapt and so must the mind.

How many miles is the Tough Mudder obstacle course?

In order, here is how you should organize your training to become a better obstacle course racer. 1. Running Endurance. In any obstacle course race, most of your time will be spent running. If you can improve your cardiovascular endurance and running skill (economy), you will greatly improve your obstacle course race performance.

What is an OCR race?

RELATED: 50 races to run before you die. Even Brit Jonathon Albon — who made more than $82,000 as an obstacle-course racing (OCR) professional in 2016, including a …

How much do professional obstacle-course runners make?

Even Brit Jonathon Albon — who made more than $82,000 as an obstacle-course racing (OCR) professional in 2016, including a $50,000 one-day payout on the top World's Toughest Mudder team — is getting a part-time job “to give my week some structure and help my Norwegian learning,” he told GrindTV.

How do you get into obstacle course racing?

How to Train for an Obstacle Course RaceSign up. ... Get your gear. ... Mix running and strength training. ... Increase muscular endurance. ... Get grip strength. ... Bring a friend. ... Clean up your diet. ... Pack a travel bag.

Can you make money doing Spartan races?

Few endurance sports offer anyone a shot to make $1 million for 3 races. But Spartan has raised the stakes by offering the Spartan $1 Million Trifecta. Any Spartan in 2018 who takes 1st place in all three Spartan World Championships in the Elite category will take home $1 million USD.Jun 30, 2018

Who is the best obstacle-course racer?

2019 Overall, Men's Top 10RankingAthleteScore1Ryan Atkins9332Jon Albon5933Ryan Woods4854Thomas Buyle4656 more rows

What is the easiest obstacle race?

The easiest obstacle course race is the 5k Foam Fest. This course is great for families and is filled with foam and inflatables. Some other easy obstacle course races are the Terrain Race and Epic series. These races are great for beginners or anyone wanting to try out an obstacle course race for the first time.

What is spartan training?

The Spartan workout is a type of minimalist workout that was named and made popular by the Spartans in the popular movie 300. This weight training method features an intensive ab workout training regimen, a muscle building workout and a variety of strengthening exercises.Mar 27, 2022

What does Spartan elite mean?

At the far end of the spectrum is the Elite category. These athletes are competing to win prize money, test themselves against the best of the best, attract potential sponsors, and rise to the top of the Spartan Race Point Series.

How much do elite Spartan racers make?

Elite Beast Championship (Men & Women's) Total = $100,000. The Top 20 Men and Women will all receive prize money and a Spartan Annual Race Pass.

How old do you have to be to run a Spartan Race?

14 years of ageThe minimum age to race in an adult Spartan event is 14 in the U.S.A, Canada and U.K. The racer must be 14 years of age on race day, no exceptions are provided for anyone under 14 years of age to run the adult race on race day. The maximum age is 99.

What is Spartan Death race?

The hallmark of the Spartan Death Race, which requires athletes to run distances of up to 50 miles on hilly trails in rural Vermont, is the assortment of challenging, quirky, and sometimes absurd tasks required of its participants. The race's tasks center on a theme, and this year's theme was religion.Jul 4, 2011

Is savage race harder than Spartan?

Obstacle Difficulty The Spartan Race has a few obstacles that stand out, including Twister, Beater, and Tyrolean Traverse. When it comes to difficulty, Savage Race obstacles are in another league. Some of the standouts include their ever changing multi-rig, Anchors Away, Battering Bird, Colossus, Wheel World, and more.

Why did Warrior Dash go out of business?

According to a tweet from Warrior Dash, its parent company, Red Frog, decided to vacate the obstacle course industry to focus on “other endeavors.”Aug 1, 2019

What is the best race of your life?

Run the Best Race of Your Life. If you’re able, running simulated obstacle course races with supplemental training to work on weak areas would be the best. Unfortunately, obstacles are not often left behind when the race is over and community playgrounds only have so much to play on.

What to do on race day?

On race day, you’re not going to know if you will be moving atlas stones, climbing rope, hoisting yourself over walls, or all three of those things. Train them all. Be sure to use different objects for your resistance training. That’s not just limited to barbells, dumbbells, and kettlebells.

Why is interval training better than VO2?

This is both because interval training is more similar to obstacle course racing (Spartan Races only have about one quarter to one half mile between each obstacle) and because training for improved lactate steady state is often better than improved VO2 Max (oxygen consumption).

How to improve lactate threshold?

One of the best ways to improve your lactate threshold and lactate steady state is the use of anaerobic interval training with 10-30 second maximal effort sprints on flat or incline ground. Rest intervals should be 2-10 times as long as the work interval. You can work your intervals all the way up to running/jogging intervals.

How to improve balance?

All of these activities improve balance and can be performed nearly as often as you like! 4. Lower Body Strength and Power.

How long should a steady state run be?

Long, steady-state runs should be approximately 60-120 minutes in duration at a pace you would consider moderate or your aerobic threshold. Pay attention to your form and technique and practice breathing. Interval running can take multiple forms.

What to do between sets of back exercises?

Between sets of back exercises, you can run, do some sled drags, or jump rope to keep the training more specific. However, if training to increase maximum strength with high load, low repetition training, it will be in your best interest to actually take the boring rest those days.

What is an obstacle course race?

Obstacle course racing, or OCR, is the sport that mixes running and pre-constructed obstacles to challenge your mind and body in a unique way. There are competitive heats, where you can earn cash prizes or just-for-fun heats ...

How to train for OCR?

If your race is 12 weeks away, divide training into three four-week blocks that each contain days for strength training and days for running.

How to do a bicep curl?

Complete one round of: 1 ¼-mile run 2 Ten pull-ups (inverted rows for beginners) 3 ¼-mile run 4 20 bodyweight squats (place a 30- to 50-pound sandbag on your back to increase difficulty) 5 Three-minute incline walk on treadmill 6 20 dumbbell bicep curls (you can also use resistance bands) 7 Three-minutes StairMaster 8 20 dumbbell squats to presses (aka thrusters)

How to build grip for OCR?

To build your grip for OCR, you’ll need to work on your support and crush grip strengths – we recommend using this. Support grip is the ability to support your bodyweight for a while. Practice this grip strength by hanging from a pull-up bar for five, ten, 15, 30, and eventually 60-120 seconds.

What is a crush grip?

Crush grip is when you hold on to an object for an extended period of time. Specifically, you may have to carry a bucket, sandbag, cinder block, water jug, or heavy stone for a certain distance. To train for these carries, do dumbbell or kettlebell farmer carries.

How many miles to run an OCR?

This one seems simple, but oftentimes people have the idea of trying an OCR in their head but don’t follow through with signup. Pick a three- to five-mile race, and sign up for a non-elite heat.

What is the best way to get rid of OCR?

Get your gear. A compression shirt ( like these) or sports bra is best for OCR because cotton will absorb water, weigh you down, and possibly cause chafing. Compression shorts are ideal for men and women, though men often wear running shorts over compression shorts. Shoes are a critical component of OCR.

How many hours does it take to go full time in OCR?

Boone spends the same amount of time training and rehabbing as Albon, while also balancing a 40-hour-a-week job, but says that to go full-time in OCR, that number should be closer to 35 to 40 hours.

What is the job of Amy Boone?

Boone, who was injured for all of 2016, currently holds down a full-time gig as a corporate lawyer for Apple. Before she was hurt, she had amassed 30 victories, including the World’s Toughest Mudder three times, plus 50 podiums since obstacle racing was officially conceived.

Where does Jonathon Albon live?

Photo: Courtesy of Jonathon Albon. He recently moved to Norway to live with his wife and train for long-distance running events and obstacle racing, which he does between 20 to 25 hours a week. “I’m then planning training, eating and recovering,” he says.

Who is the most decorated obstacle racer?

Don’t give up your day job just yet, says Amelia Boone, considered the world’s most decorated obstacle racer. “While it’s becoming more common, it’s still extremely difficult, and there are very few, if any, that are able to sustain themselves competing full-time,” she told GrindTV.

How many miles are there in an obstacle course?

Ranging from roughly three miles up to 10, obstacle course races, or OCRs, are non-traditional competition events consisting of plenty of muddy water and military-style obstacles designed to test the racer’s resolve to the breaking point.

What is an OCR race?

Most OCRs mix elements of adventure racing, trail running, and gut-throbbing military-inspired obstacles—all of which can offer you a one-of-a-kind fitness experience. Unlike training for a traditional race, the ideal OCR plan touches on every aspect of functional movement.

What is an interval run?

Interval Run Workout. Obstacle race tends to take place in in full-out-efforts or intervals, typically alternating between running and the obstacles. In other words, they are like fartlek training on steroids. Build your explosive power and stamina for the OCR by doing plenty of interval running workouts.

How to build explosive power for OCR?

Here is how to proceed on your (first) interval running workout. Start off the workout with a warm-up for 10-minute. Doing so helps you get prepared for the intense work ahead and prevents injury.

How many obstacles are there in Spartan Race?

So regardless of your fitness level, there is always an obstacle course distance that will fit your current fitness level. Here are the main distances on the Spartan Race series: A three-mile sprint with 15 obstacles. The Super Spartan, an 8-miler featuring 20 obstacles. A 12-mile Spartan beast with 25 obstacles.

How to make it to the finish line of an OCR event?

To make it to the finish line of an OCR event, you are going to have to develop a broad range of fitness skills. For starters, you’d need massive amounts of endurance —most OCR events are running based after all. Not only that, as a racer, you’d also need to increase total body strength.

How does hill training help?

Hill training increases both lungpower and lower body strength. This combo is going to help you overcome many of the obstacles like the steep incline, the stairs and so on. First of all, you need to locate the nearest steepest hill, preferably with a gradient of 5 to 10 percent.

How many obstacles are there in a tough mudder?

The Tough Mudder series feature courses with approximately 25 obstacles spread out over 10 to 12 miles (due to the variability of the event venues it can be difficult to have the exact same course at each different location). This means that a participant can expect to perform one obstacle about every 0.5 mile or approximately 1 kilometer (0.6 miles). If participants are expected to overcome an obstacle every 1 kilometer or so, it becomes more important to emphasize high-intensity intervals for running as opposed to the long, slow distance training typically performed for endurance events.

Who is Pete McCall?

Pete McCall, MS, CSCS, is an ACE Certified Personal Trainer and long-time player in the fitness industry. He has been featured as an expert in the Washington Post, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Runner's World and Self. He holds a master's degree in exercise science and health promotion, and several advanced certifications and specializations with NSCA and NASM.

Can you run a color run on The Walking Dead?

Fans of AMC’s The Walking Dead can even sign up for races that require participants to dodge zombies while running an obstacle course. Creative people with an artistic bent can participate in color runs, where participants wear all white and are splashed with vibrant colors between the start and the finish of the run.

Hire A Professional

We first posted this page back in June of 2013, and since then have received hundreds of requests per year for individuals, groups, or charities hoping to put on their own event.

Create Your Own Event

Let's say you really, really, really want to create an event of your own – it will be extremely challenging but can possibly be incredibly rewarding. Here are some of the things you'll need to be willing to work through or consider:

Don't Worry, There's Help Available

If this seems like a lot of work, responsibility, risk, and expense, it is.

About the Author: Brett Stewart

Brett Stewart is the co-founder of MudRunGuide, creator of OCR Warrior, and author of several popular fitness books in the 7 Weeks to Fitness series.