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Old Forum Help with preparation for obstacle course

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elawin

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Hello everybody!

My name is Per and I´ve been scanning this site for quite a while, but this is the first time that I post something here. I´ve been a fan of Pavel´s books for some years now and I think they are great. That is why I turn to you for help. On the 29th of august this year, I will participate in an obstacle course here in Sweden ( a friend challenged me)  and I´m looking for advice on how to prepare. I´ve been doing the Rite of Passage program before and I really liked it. Therefore I was thinking of combining this program with running on the variety days. The course is 15 km long and at the moment I don´t know what kind of obstacles there will be.

What do you guys think? Does this sound like a good idea or should I do something completely different? Any advice would be appreciated.'

Thanks in sdvance

Per
 
Per, thank you for your kind words!

Make sure your upper body is strong to pull yourself, your lower body is mobile and can take the impact of landings, your ankles are strong.  ROP and running are good general preparation in addition.

Then research previous O-courses in this event and practice.
 
Per, I've done a lot of obstacle course races here in the United States and I would strongly agree with Pavel.

The biggest issue I see people have, is they lack the strength to pull themselves up. When it comes to rope climbs, walls, cargo nets, monkey bars, etc. it takes a lot of pulling strength/endurance and grip strength/endurance.

Ankles are another huge thing. My ankles are immobile so they've taken a beating on some of the uneven terrain and landings from some of the obstacles. This puts a lot of stress on my knees and has caused issues. It's something I'm really working on trying to fix as I have 3 more races this year.

If you haven't been doing the ROP with pullups/chinups, I would definitely add those in. I've done it ladder style with KBs on my feet and it has helped immensely with my climbing and pulling skills. Running is good because you'll probably do a lot on the course. I'd encourage doing work on hills too as a lot of course incorporate them. Carrying objects such as heavy buckets, sandbags, etc. Farmer's carry, suitcase carries would all translate well into the course.

For my last race, ROP and S&S translated really well for the obstacles and the strength portions of the course. I was lacking in cardio (long, slow endurance) and lower body mobility, including ankles, which plagued me throughout the course. I hope that helps... good luck!

 
 
Per, I've done a lot of obstacle course races here in the United States and I would strongly agree with Pavel.

The biggest issue I see people have, is they lack the strength to pull themselves up. When it comes to rope climbs, walls, cargo nets, monkey bars, etc. it takes a lot of pulling strength/endurance and grip strength/endurance.

Ankles are another huge thing. My ankles are immobile so they've taken a beating on some of the uneven terrain and landings from some of the obstacles. This puts a lot of stress on my knees and has caused issues. It's something I'm really working on trying to fix as I have 3 more races this year.

If you haven't been doing the ROP with pullups/chinups, I would definitely add those in. I've done it ladder style with KBs on my feet and it has helped immensely with my climbing and pulling skills. Running is good because you'll probably do a lot on the course. I'd encourage doing work on hills too as a lot of courses incorporate them. Carrying objects such as heavy buckets, sandbags, etc. Farmer's carry, suitcase carries would all translate well into the course.

For my last race, ROP and S&S translated really well for the obstacles and the strength portions of the course. I was lacking in cardio (long, slow endurance) and lower body mobility, including ankles, which plagued me throughout the course. I hope that helps... good luck!

 
 
Ok I´ve been away for a couple of days and haven´t had access to a computer. That´s why I haven´t written earlier. Thank you very much for the help. It seems that I was on the right track with ROP and running. I will stick to that.

I´m doing the ROP with towel pullups since I feel that it works my gripp and forearms more than ordinary pullups. I hope this will pay off in the race with better grip strength and endurance.
 
Hi all, I came across Pavel on a podcast recently and then started doing GTG and have already had amazing results plus I am ready to train the next day with no DOMS!

 

Anyway I am also doing an obstacle course race (in October) and have been doing 1 long run & 1 sprint session per week (off road, minimalist shoes, plenty of hills). In between the runs I am doing 10 x 10 KB swings per day and squatting and pressing with logs and beer kegs. I'm also bouldering a bit to help with climbing.

My question is what else could I encourporate into the KB swing days between the sets?

Thanks and keep on rocking Pavel!
 
Here is an article that is specific to training for obstacle courses... maybe useful for you (it does reiterate what was said here)

http://www.artofmanliness.com/2015/05/18/how-to-train-to-dominate-an-obstacle-race/

it comes down to running, and general strength with an emphasis on pulling and leg strength and speed, so either ROP + pullups + running or S&S + pullups + running are very good candidates to get in the required shape!

After that, if you want to dominate it not just survive, you'll have to identify the obstacles that are a part of the course, and train for them specifically! Remember, GPP + specific training for the event is what makes athletes successful!

btw, the running part is often what people focus on most, however most likely you won't do a long steady run but rather be stuck at the obstacles with running short fast sections in between... So strength is at least as important than running endurance (as is running speed)! If you're strong and in reasonably good running shape your chances of being competitive are much higher than if your are a strong runner but lack the strength to overcome the obstacles quickly!

 
 
Chris,

I think you are doing exactly what you should, good running training, with leg strength and endurance with 100 swings, and pressing and pulling training, nothing to add! Focus on quality, not quantity

You could alternate the pressing/squatting with heavy (to you) KB TGUs, they will build resiliency and a strong connected and balanced body which you will need for many obstacles!

bouldering is very good too and very specific already for a lot of obstacle races
 
Thank you for the responses and glad to hear I'm on the right track. It's a 30k course and I'm just looking to get round not try and go fast so I'll just keep increasing the running miles throughout the year and I have ordered a light KB so I can start doing TGUs too.

 

Thanks again!
 
Chris, if you're only looking to finish than it sounds like you're on the right track! The running portion of the course can be done run/walk style as needed. This takes some of the pressure off of that.

 
 
Right now I´m also just focusing on making it through the course. If I like it and want to participate in other obstacle courses, I will focus mor on SPP for the next race. But it feels good that I seem to be on the right track with ROP and running.
 
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