how to train for an obstacle course

How to properly prepare for an obstacle course race?

How to Train for an Obstacle Course Race 1. Sign up. This one seems simple, but oftentimes people have the idea of trying an OCR in their head but don’t follow... 2. Get your gear.. A compression shirt ( like these) or sports bra is best for OCR …

How to set up an obstacle course in your backyard?

If not, then the following obstacle course training ideas will help get you physically and mentally ready for your next obstacle course race. Train for Crawling Crawling helps build strength while you move across the ground. How to crawl: Get down on all fours. Keep your hips low to the ground. 'Walk' a distance of 20 to 50 yards, depends on your fitness ability. Repeat two to three …

How to make a pool noodle obstacle course?

Aim for three to four workouts a week, increasing training volume gradually from one week to the next. If you are a regular runner and have ample total body strength, then give yourself at least 4 to 8 weeks of specified obstacle race training. As an intermediate or advanced athlete, aim to train 5 to 6 times a week.

How to create your own obstacle course run?

May 18, 2015 · The most important things to keep in mind: 1. Ask yourself where you’re at, and where you want to be. Before starting to train, assess your starting level of... 2. Give yourself enough time to train. If you’re an active runner or strength athlete, give yourself about 6-8 weeks of... 3. Run a lot. ...

How do obstacle course racers train?

When training for an obstacle course race, try to incorporate some of the “fun factor” into your training plan. Rather than doing a four-mile run, go on an “adventure run” by adding activities like burpees, walking lunges, push-ups and curb walks for balance.

What do you need for an obstacle course race?

The 5 Skills Needed to Crush an Obstacle Course RaceGrip and Upper Body Strength. Spartan Races are known for their tough challenges. ... Crawling. If you have done some research on the Spartan Race, you know there will definitely be some activity that requires you to crawl. ... Hill Work. ... Endurance. ... Teamwork.

What is the best obstacle race for beginners?

The 5k Foam Fest is the easiest, all the way down to Spartan Race Sprint as the hardest “beginner-friendly” races. If you're looking for a good reason to get muddy and experience a challenging obstacle course race (the cool kids say “OCR”), our best suggestion is to start with Warrior Dash or Rugged Maniac.Sep 15, 2015

How long does it take to train for a mud run?

If you've already tried a mud run and you're in good shape, you need four solid weeks of training. If you've never run a race, train for 90 days. A beginner should train three days a week, each labeled A, B, and C.

How long does it take to do a 5K obstacle course?

Tough Mudder 5K mixes 3.1 miles of running with 10 awesome obstacles to create a challenging, one-of-a-kind event. It's not a timed race. In fact, the average finish time is 1-1.5 hours. (That's about triple the time of a regular road 5K.Jun 4, 2018

What should I eat before OCR?

Your breakfast should include a little bit of everything; protein, healthy fats and complex carbohydrates. However, avoid trying new foods on the morning of the OCR race and stick to what you know your body can handle. Some good options include porridge, fresh fruit, peanut butter, almonds and a glass or two of water.Feb 7, 2020

What is the hardest obstacle course?

The hardest obstacle course race is the Spartan Death Race. With over 50 miles of mentally and physically challenging obstacles over the course of 40+ hours, it doesn't get more difficult than the Spartan Death Race.

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 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

How do you train for a mud obstacle course?

Build your upper body strength Monkey bars and other hanging obstacles can be common in OCRs, so building your upper body strength is essential. Pull-ups, bicep curls, chest flys, tricep dips and shoulder presses are all great exercises at boosting your strength in this area.

What is a Mudder race?

Tough Mudder is an endurance event series in which participants attempt 10-to-12-mile-long (16 to 19 km) obstacle courses. It was co-founded by Will Dean and Guy Livingstone. The obstacles often play on common human fears, such as fire, water, electricity and heights.

How do you train for a terrain race?

Focus on body-weight exercises such as push-ups, plank and abs exercises, back extensions and body weight squats. As a beginner, limit yourself to one hard or speed day each week once you have built up your aerobic base. A 5K race-specific workout can be done once a week.Mar 29, 2021

How to get rid of a squat in one day?

Hold a dumbbell in each hand. Bring the weights up to shoulder level, so they’re resting on the meat of your shoulder. This is the start. Drop into a quarter squat: bend your knees and slightly push your hips back. Now explosively stand and thrust the dumbbells overhead. Slowly lower them back to the starting position. That’s 1 rep.

How to swing a kettlebell?

Place a kettlebell on the floor in front of you. Push your hips back and slightly bend your knees, leaning over the bell, grasping its handle. Hike the kettlebell between your legs, then stand tall, thrusting your hips forward and swinging the bell to shoulder level.

How to get rid of a swollen thigh?

Rest 20 seconds between each exercise. Once you’ve complete the last exercise, that’s 1 round. Do 6 total rounds. 1. Jumping pullup. Stand in front of a pullup bar, ideally one that’s 12 to 18 inches above your hands when your arms are overhead. Jump vertically and grab the bar with an overhand grip.

How to get rid of a sandbag?

Bear crawl drag. Get on all fours—like you’re about to crawl—with a sandbag or 15 to 35 pound kettlebell on the floor between your knees. Reach between your legs and pull the weight across the floor up in front of you.

How to do a gorilla hang?

Gorilla hang pullup. Stand underneath a pullup bar so you’re perpendicular to it. Grip the bar with one hand in front and the other right behind it, like you’re gripping the handle of a baseball bat. Now pull yourself up until your right shoulder touches the bar.

How to jump jacks with a leg?

Stand with your feet hip-width apart. Step backwards with your right leg so your right knee is just above the ground, your left knee forward and bent 90 degrees. Jump as high as you can as you switch legs mid-air and land so your left knee is just above the ground and your right knee is forward and bent 90 degrees. Now do two traditional jumping jacks. Repeat the pattern for time.

How to do a push up with a left elbow?

5. Plank to elbow touch. Assume a pushup position. Raise your left hand, bend your left arm, and slowly touch your left elbow to the floor. Reverse the movement, then repeat with your right arm. Continue the pattern for 40 seconds, occasionally adjusting the distance between your feet throughout.

What obstacles do you need to crawl under in OCR?

Pretty much every OCR includes some type of low-crawling obstacle. Typically, you’ll crawl under barbed wire, but some courses swap out the wire for wooden beams or even an oversized pipe.

How often should I run for OCR?

You can improve your cardio fitness without running. However, it’s important to run at least once a week during OCR training to practice proper technique. If possible, run outside and on a variety of surfaces, including roads, trails, hills, and grass.

What are rigs in a gym?

Like evil monkey bars, rigs are tall metal structures equipped with all sorts of hanging objects you’ll have to grab one by one to get across. Many rigs feature gymnastics rings, ropes, frayed nylon, baseballs—any combination of objects that’ll absolutely torch your forearms as you try to hold on.

How many reps should I do on strength days?

On strength days (you’ll separate upper- and lower-body work into two days), you’ll start with five working sets of just three to five reps of a barbell movement using super heavy weight. (Use heavy dumbbells if you don’t have access to a barbell.)

How does endurance training work?

To do so, you’ll use light (or zero) weights for sets of 15 to 30 reps of a given exercise, and limit rest between sets to less than 30 seconds. Not only does this improve your muscles’ endurance, but your cardio endurance, too.

What is a plyometrics workout?

Plyometrics are explosive movements that require a muscle to reach maximal force in the shortest possible time. You’ll want to work on both upper- and lower-body plyometric moves —but lower-body plyometrics will get you the most bang for your buck come race day.

What is the best grip for OCR?

Grip strength is essential for OCR performance. Most obstacles use one of two types of grip strength: crush grip or support grip. Crush grip, the grip between your fingers and your palm, is used in rope climbs and monkey bars. Support grip, the grip you use to hold onto something for a long time, is used during bucket carries and sled drags.

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.

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.

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 get ready for OCR?

To get ready for the OCR, you need to do plenty of speed work and hill reps to develop the explosive power needed to go through the whole course unscathed.

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.

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.

What to expect in Spartan Race?

What to Expect. On the Spartan Race course, expect a lot of muddy pits, rope climbs, dark tunnels, barbed wire and other gut wrenching obstacles. However, you cannot cheat on this one. If you skip an obstacle, expect a penalty of 10 to 30 burpees before you can move on with the rest of the course. 4.

Ultra training for OCR - HHMC

Today we talk about running and preparing for Ultra events for obstacle course racing.

Full Transcript

Rich Ryan: [00:00:00] Today, we talk about running and preparing for long races ultras, as they say. And the time to start building volume for these ultra events is right now. So Josh and I, we sit down and talk about how you can increase your volume in a sustainable way to prepare for these ultras.

How many people participated in OCR in 2017?

Obstacle course racing (OCR) and mud runs have been popular since 2012—nearly 500,000 people participated in 2017 according to a recent industry report. Odds are if you are a runner, many of your friends or coworkers have tried one.

What is the benefit of OCR?

One benefit of OCR is it gives you a chance to break up the monotony. Rarely is any one course exactly the same from the other, so each race you sign up for is a completely different challenge compared to the local 5K you do every year.

How old is Ryan Atkins?

In fact, he thinks it’s a good break for some and can reinvigorate your overall love of running. Ryan Atkins, a 32-year-old obstacle racing champion from Ontario who has won World’s Toughest Mudder five times, thinks that’s reason enough to give an OCR a try.

How long is the warrior dash?

Warrior Dash and Rugged Maniac are perfect for beginners, and they are two of the most popular events around today. Those events are 5 kilometers long and will only have two to three obstacles that better than average upper body strength.

Do aid stations have water?

Obstacle races can be very different. Most aid stations are water only, with the occasional sponsored nutrition bar, which may or may not be to your liking.