Heather Rayburn, age 37 recently finished her first Spartan Race.  She sent us an email giving us an insight into her experience in Colorado.  While participants faced all kinds of obstacles on race day, Rayburn had her own set of unique challenges before even stepping foot on the course.  Hear her tell her story in her own words about how she found her Spartan finish line and how she’ll be back next year to take it on again… 

As I came out of the first mud pit obstacle I had no idea there was another.  And another.  Oh yeah, and another.  It wasn’t because of lack of preparation on my part – it was because I just couldn’t see that far in front of me.  I have been legally blind/visually impaired since age 12  with non-correctable, less-than 20-500 vision.   So the 2012 Colorado Military Spartan Race was literally was one surprise after another.

Since vision impairment is a hidden disability, I wear a bib/tag for all events that says “Visually Impaired”.  This is so that people don’t think I’m just slow for no reason.  I also have a Guide who trains and competes alongside me.

There are some benefits that stem from the lack of vision.  I can’t tell how steep a hill is or how far there is left to the end of an obstacle – so I just keep going.

There was a moment on each of the wall obstacles when I asked myself what I had gotten into.  Not being able to see the top of the wall is one thing.  My Guide helps me here.  The really interesting part is then being at the top of the wall and dropping what seems like forever to the ground; my feet would find terra firma before my eyes.  Even with my trusted guide, dropping from many feet up was daunting.

Some obstacles affected everyone regardless of vision, like the downhills on the Rucksack and Sandbag carry – everyone was ‘slip-sliding away.’  I still have no idea where I was supposed to throw for the grenade toss but I did my burpees and went on with a smile.

My guide (by the way, he is also my husband) and I became separated in the mud crawl.  Somehow people got between us; I could not stop for him and so I just kept crawling forward…and forward…and forward.    Once in a while my Guide and I would yell back and forth some words of encouragement or direction.  The directions he gave were simple “keep crawling forward a bit more.”  He could see the distance and kept telling me “Just a little further”… or “just a bit more.”  Usually he gives a distance estimate and I wondered why he didn’t.  One quarter mile later I emerged from the pit muddy and bloody with my M16 and waited for him to find me.  I guess I looked recognizable enough because the next thing I knew we were jogging into new territory.

The terrain was extremely challenging for me as it was very uneven in every direction with lots of sand, small rolling stones, and cactus.  It was fantastic!  Frequently we would move to the side so those coming from behind us could pass and I could maneuver safely.  I am so impressed with the Spartan Spirit!  Many of the folks coming by had encouraging words for me, asking if I was doing ok, or offering assistance.

In the end I attempted every obstacle – and did a lot of burpees – but was amazed at how many obstacles I conquered.  The grenade toss and spear throw were “automatic bupees” since I didn’t know where I was aiming.  Obstacles like the uneven upright log steps and directions like “step forward, through space about 5 feet and about 2 feet up” made me laugh more than anything.  The log-climb obstacle was interesting as I really couldn’t see from one to the next but with good instructions my hands and feet found each like a ladder.

The fire obstacle had been causing anxiety since we observed the lighting of the flames.  Brian kept saying it would be fine and reminding me that I jump creeks and other things occasionally and I reminded him that water and fire are very different to tumble into.  We stood beside the fire and my Guide counted about how many steps the others were taking so we had a place to start from.  We bolted forward, side by side, toward the flames.  I heard him yell “JUMP!” and so I did, leaping the fire successfully.  I was up and over the cargo net with relative ease as it is a repetitive task.  I followed behind my husband through the Spartans – they took him out and I passed unscathed to receive my medal!  I was told by the Spartan Staff that, as far as they know, I am the first VI/Legally Blind competitor to finish this race.

Thanks to my husband and Guide – I never would/could have done it without him and also to Spartan Race for yet another affirmation that you don’t know what you can really do until you try.

I think the biggest thing I learned is that I am not bound by obstacles.  My vision, or any disability really, is an obstacle, just like the obstacles in the Spartan Race.  How you deal with it is up to you.  Some obstacles, like some days or some tasks, take more concentration, more instruction from others, and more determination to conquer.  Sometimes I wanted to give up but there was a bigger picture.  As my Guide and I were negotiating steep, rocky inclines people were passing us and giving me encouragement.  I saw people of all ages, shapes, sizes, races struggling, grunting, swearing, and dealing with whatever their issue or dis-ability was and I realized what makes a Spartan – determination to conquer any and all obstacles in my path be it a wall to climb, a mud pit to crawl through, or to navigate a world that ends a few feet in front of me.  For this morning’s workout, I wore the shirt I wore to Spartan; the small tears and remnant stains remind me to push a little harder, train a little more, because I will be back again next year for more!

Team SuperBlind is already registered for the 2013 Colorado Military Spartan Race and I am already looking forward to it.  Let the training… continue.  AROO!

My Jounney to Sparta:  The Chris Davis – Part 10:  “It” Hits the Fan

by Chris Davis

 
In this installment of the Chris Davis Project we find Chris Davis writing after finishing a monstrous weekend of training.  He’s beat up, exhausted, and at his breaking point.  He’s behind on his weight loss and being pushed by Joe Desena to make more caloric cuts while simultaneously increasing his exercise volume.  It’s adding up, surely, and the pressure is mounting as Chris is balancing on the edge, about to fall behind on his weight loss goals.  It’s not a good start to the week.

The Chris Davis Project: Week 5 video has been released.  Check out the bottom of this post for links to all previous videos if you need to catch up on the action.  -Jason J

5/29/2012 Memorial Day Weekend Recap

This weekend has been a very challenging weekend both physically and mentally.   Things really got hard on Friday morning when I weighed in.  I hit a big snag; my weight jumped up to 330lbs.  Joe believes that it is because I have added protein back into my diet.  We cannot afford to have any weight gain in the program, so we need to remove protein from my diet again.   I agree that my weight gain is also related to the protein, but I believe that the weight gain is because my body is using the protein and building muscle because of the speed in which we are ramping up my training.  Muscle building is out doing my fat loss right now.

I know these weight gains are not due to increased caloric intake, because there is no way I ate 17,500 calories (what would be required to pack on this about of poundage) on Thursday.   So Joe made a deal with me – if I was still at 330lbs by Monday, I would need to go back to a diet of only raw fruit and vegetables.   I continued to do the workout we had planned.  I did my time on the ski machine, and did my walking and kung-fu lesson that night.  I also ate a light dinner knowing that I had a very big walk in the morning.

The plan for this weekend was to get two 13+ miles days in.   To me this was a very ambitious goal because last week the goal was two 10+ miles days.   So adding 6 miles in a week was a little aggressive, but I like a good challenge sometimes.

The other big challenge is Joe was out of town so I would be doing the walks alone.   No one to help keep me going when the time gets toughs – just me and the road.   So this would be a true test of my dedication, both to myself and to this project.

Things started out great – I had completed the first 6 miles and I was working through the normal sourness, the joint pain that you get when you start a long walk.  This is when I started to notice some new soreness on the top of my left leg.  After a little observation of my current stride (because it has been changing from day to day) it looks like I have lost enough weight so that my stomach is rubbing on the tops of my legs as I walk.   Up until now this has only happened when I tried to jog or run, but now it is happening when I walk as well.

By mile 8 the soreness had changed to pain and now it felt like someone was jabbing me with a hot poker on the top of my leg, so I stopped to take a look and see what was going on.  It looked like a small line of bug bites on my leg.  No big deal, I thought, I will keep an eye on it and keep going.

A little later, I ran into Marion Abrams on the road, and we decided to take a break from my walking to do our weekly video filming.   After that was complete, I took another look at my leg and I was surprised to see that there were several new sore spots and that some of them had been bleeding.   I took some time, cleaned up the area, and it looked a lot better – the bleeding had stopped and it just looked irritated.   Determined to finish my walk for the day, I decided to continue on.   When I got to my 13.1 mile mark I was so happy to be done.  My leg was in bad shape, the raw spot was now about 4 inches long, and about 2 inches wide.    But I had finished my walk.    After walking another 1.2 miles to get back to my room I called it a day and tried to recover.

* * *

Sunday morning I work up and checked on my leg.  It looked better, but it was still raw.  I knew that today was going to be a long day.   Still sore from the night before, I got back on the road around 6:30 am.   By the time I got to the 1 mile mark I knew that my fears where going to come true – my leg started to burn and I knew I was going to be facing a repeat of yesterday.  But I know that I need to work thought the pain and discomfort and get this done.   I stopped at the 5 mile mark to take a look at it, and the sore was growing again.  On top of that, I was starting to get the same bumps on my stomach that I had had on my legs yesterday.

I was so frustrated at this point that I wanted to stop, but I knew if I did it would be a disaster for my progress, so I continued on.  By the time I got to the 8 mile mark my leg was bleeding and my stomach was completely raw.   A  little later I rolled my ankle trying to get out of the way from an oncoming car that had crossed over the white line on route 100.   At this point I started to question why I was still out on the road.

I sat on the guard rail for about five minutes rubbing my ankle, and that is when I told myself that I had made it this far, so I can finish this!  I got back up and continued on.

About 10 minutes later I was in the valley walking down route 100 when someone pulled up in a pickup truck, and said “I drive a semi around here every morning, and I have been watching you for the last few weeks.  You’re doing great, keep up the good work.”

It was at that point I knew had made the right decision to keep going.  I had a new wave of determination from this brief conversation and the encouragement kept me going through the rest of the walk.

By the time I got to my 13.1 mile mark, I was in bad shape.   Both of my ankles we swollen, my knees hurt, my hip was soar, and my leg and stomach were on fire.    But I had completed my goal.   I have now walked the distance of a marathon in one weekend.   I will be honest; I never thought I would be able to walk this kind of a distance in my life.

* * *

Monday morning rolls around and I am so incurably soar, everything hurts and I need to get up and walk into the office so I can weigh in.  I got on the scale and I was relieved to see that I was down to 325.6 lbs.  I was quite happy with my progress since Friday.   It made all that hard work worth it.  I had proven to myself that I could meet my goals by myself, even with Joe out of town.   I was feeling great, so I walked up to the general store and got an omelet with extra spinach and a Spartan Green Juice.   While I was waiting for it to be ready I send Joe a text message letting him know the good news that I was down to 325.

This is where ‘it’ hit the fan for me.

His reply was: “ Ok, did you get 5 miles in this am?”  

First of all, Mondays are supposed to be my day to recover.  I replied with “ I have 1.2 miles in today”.

I then get the next messages from Joe while I am starting to eat breakfast.  “Ok see if you can get 3.8 done with the pancake (sandbag).  I didn’t realize we have till Friday to be at 308ish.  So even 315 would not be a disaster.  Could you go raw this week?”

I was so pissed off and crushed I could not see straight.   I worked hard this weekend and kept pushing through the pain.  This is the reward I get?

I took a few minutes to cool off before I replied, “I can go raw for the rest of the week, but need to take a day to recover from the 27+ miles this weekend.  The raw spots on my legs are very soar and still bleeding from time to time.”

“Do the rower.”   He replied

At this point all I could do was throw my arms in the air and say I give up.   I finished my breakfast, and started to leave to go watch the Memorial Day parade here in Pittsfield VT.   It was a very small event, but there was a good crowd that showed up.   The parade ended in the city cemetery, where there was a small service for our fallen heroes.   It is funny how incurably small my problems felt, after experiencing this service.  Talk about a reality check that was a big one.

This morning I weighed myself again and I am back up again to 327.2lbs. I am going to keep my deal and make it the rest of the week on raw food, and we will see how thing go from there.   I am not happy about this, because I feel that my body needs the protein to build muscle and to help repair the damage I am doing to my body as I continue to push the limits of what is possible.  But I guess my opinion doesn’t matter.   I am just going to do what I am told until I physically cannot go any further, and my body shuts down.

click here to read Part 9…

CHRIS DAVIS PROJECT VIDEOS:

Week 1

Week 2

Week 3

Week 4

Week 5

~By James Villepigue CSCS & Hobie Call

Good Day, Spartans!  It’s crazy how quickly 2012 is moving along. Here we are in the midst of the Spartan Race season and you need to bring your game to a whole new level if you expect to perform at your Spartan best!  So let’s get into this week’s Spartan WOD, presented by Gaspari Nutrition, the indisputable #1 sports supplements brand.

This week I’m giving you a few new exercises to add to your repertoire. You must be willing to change up your training workouts or at least change around the various training variables in order to keep your body guessing and allow progress and results to optimally take place. If you visit most gyms, you’ll see 90% of the people training or trainers training, following the typical 3 sets of 12 repetitions that have been around since the 1940’s. Even with the explosion of high output training programs like Cross Fit and high intensity interval training, it’s amazing that people continue to follow such an archaic and limiting training program.

This, I feel, is authentic validation that our society is susceptible to sticking to what’s comfortable and safe. It’s the few, like you, who are willing to take chances and take a step out of your comfort zone, in order to become your very best and for that, I commend you! Okay, here we go… Today we’ll be focusing on an endurance exercise followed by a strength exercise.

You’ll be executing a total of 15 exercises, which makes up one full cycle. You may repeat cycles based on your level of conditioning. You’ll be working at a 45 second work time and a 15 second rest between exercises. That’s a lot of work and a tiny bit of rest, so be forewarned and be ready to work!

Here’s how each superset sequence will look and work:

1 – Jump Rope –45 seconds will usually give you about 100 jumps, depending on your jump pace.

2 – Kettlebell/Dumbbell Swing – Stand with feet hip width apart, hold the dumbbell by the top end with fingers wrapped under the top weight plate and your thumbs securing the top. The long end of the dumbbell will be hanging down vertically. Let the arms fully extend down and place the dumbbell between your legs. Bend your knees, keep your abdominals tight, stick your chest out, keep shoulders back and down and head up. To begin, I want you to shift your pelvis forward, creating momentum to lift the dumbbell straight out in front of you, making sure to keep those arms completely extended…no elbow bend.

The harder you shift your pelvis forward, the more force generated to effortlessly lift the dumbbell. When the dumbbell has reached the level of 60 degrees – if 90 degrees is straight up above you, 60 would be more like a diagonal angled straight out from your chest. When you reach 60 degrees, do not resist the dumbbell from lowering aka allow the dumbbell to fall back down to the start position, except due to the falling force, I want you to allow the dumbbell to freely move between your legs and beyond – you can counter this force by squatting down fairly deeply and without any rest, immediately begin your accent back to standing with that seamless pelvic shift transition. Repeat for 45 seconds.

3 – Side Shuffle – Try to find a spacious setting to get the most out of this drill. Start at one side of that space. Take a hip width stance with knees bent and upper body upright. Bring your arms up in front of you and keep head straight. Your objective is to move side-to-side – your left leg moves laterally first and then the right comes next…this is what creates the shuffling effect. Make sure to stay low, so that your center of gravity stays intact. As you shuffle, each time you shuffle both feet, push your arms out to full extension and them quickly bring them back in. You will continuously do this for the entire 45 seconds.

4 – Spiderman Push-Ups into Supine Leg Lift – Take a standard top push-up position, with arms fully extended and balanced on the balls of your feet. As you lower your body, pull your right foot in toward your groin – this is the Spiderman like action. Push the leg back out to full extension, but keep it elevated and then as you push up, raise that leg as high as you can aka hip extension. Pace yourself here, as too fast a movement will throw of your ability to extend that leg up. Now, repeat on the other side.

5 – Jump Rope –45 seconds will usually give you about 100 jumps, depending on your jump pace.

6 – Romanian Deadlift -This exercise works more muscles than any other exercise. Sloppy form will injure your lower back, so be sure to pay close attention to the techniques described and look at our model’s (The very talented Reebok sponsored Libby DiBiase) beautiful form in the right side picture.

EXECUTION AND FORM

With two dumbbells on the floor, placed horizontally in front of you, stand facing them bar with your feet shoulder width apart or slightly less and halfway under the dumbbells.

While still standing straight, look up to the ceiling and inhale deeply. As you descend to the dumbbells, hold your breath and do the following: arch your lower back—don’t round it— and squeeze your shoulder blades to hold your shoulders back. Make a point of pushing your butt back as if you were going to sit in a chair and keep your shins vertical.

Remember to keep your eyes on the ceiling throughout the movement. This keeps your back aligned properly so that you will lift with your legs instead of your back. During the descent tighten up your entire body to keep alignment correct. I call this the full body tension technique and it’s a great way to call upon all muscles for work time, while helping to avoid injury because all muscles are working to keep joints and connective tissue guarded.

Without looking at it, grip the bar with your hands slightly wider than shoulder width. Use an overhand grip on both db’s.

Straighten your arms, tighten your abs and glutes and remember you are still holding your breath. When I say “holding your breath”, this creates a valsalva maneuver, which creates a natural safety belt around your spine. Don’t hold your breath for too long! It’s only during the range where exertion is at its greatest. Make sense? If not, contact me and I will be happy to explain further.  

Squeeze the db’s with your hands and turn your focus to your legs. Tighten up your legs—imagine them as huge coiled springs ready to launch you to the moon.

 PRESS THROUGH YOUR HEELS TO PUSH THE FLOOR AWAY FROM YOU.

Stay tight throughout the movement. Envision your legs as giant hydraulic pile drivers burrowing into the ground. Your back is a crane: straight and strong. Your arms are cables, just carrying the load.

Near the top of the lift give your hips a slight thrust forward and throw back your shoulders to completely straighten your body. Keep your chest high but DO NOT LEAN BACK. You are still looking at an angle up.

At the top, you can take a deep breath before you lower the bar to the ground.

To lower the bar, keep your back straight and push your butt back, bending at the hips. If you want to get the greatest result from your deadlifts, don’t do as most people do and haphazardly drop the weight…control the weight and lower them using your muscles. Remember to stay on your heels and continue looking at the ceiling.

Your Mind-Set Matters:

This exercise requires full concentration and focus to stay tight and straight. Your mind needs to be fully engaged with this exercise, making sure that all of your body’s muscles are assisting in the movement. Most importantly, you need to be constantly aware of your back and keep it in proper alignment.

7 -Jumping Jack Flash – A standard jumping jack with forward and side arm raises. Begin with legs together and arms down at your sides. Perform the jumping jacks as fast as you can, and when the legs first jump out to the side raise your arms to the front and then immediately back down, when the legs jump back in, bring your arms out to the sides and repeat for the 45 second duration.

8 – Dumbbell Lunges – Because only one leg is used at a time, lunges require a balancing act. In order to maintain balance the body recruits as many auxiliary fibers as possible. This means more muscle stimulation per repetition. In addition, lunges can stimulate the hamstring muscles or the quadriceps muscles by varying how far away you place your foot. If you step forward with your foot closer to your body, you will primarily stimulate the quadriceps. If you step forward with your foot farther away, you will primarily stimulate the hamstrings.

Note: In no case, as you’ll see in the exercise description, should your knee go past your toes.

EXECUTION AND FORM

Take hold of two dumbbells and hold them to the sides of your body.

Align your body from the bottom up, taking a stance with the feet together and toes pointing straight ahead. Keep your knees slightly bent to avoid any stress from locking the knee joint. Slightly contract the abdominal muscles.

Stick the chest out while simultaneously bringing the shoulder blades back, keeping them there throughout the movement. Keep your head level at all times, making sure your head or your eyes do not drop down or excessively wander upward.

Step forward with your right foot. Bend at the knees making sure you descend slowly and in control and that your right knee does not go past your toes. As your left knee bends and your hips are lowering, lower yourself only until your left knee is about two inches from the ground and then stop.

Reverse the movement by pushing through the heel of your right foot only. You may naturally want to use the left knee to assist in pushing back up, but do not let this happen. The objective is to fully isolate the right leg muscles and use the left leg only as a balancing tool, sort of like the rudder on a boat. Remember to keep your focus on the contraction of your right thigh muscle throughout the exercise.

Make sure you do not use momentum as you push off with the right leg to return. This will totally inhibit the stimulation of the leg muscles.

Return to the start position but do not rest. Switch legs and repeat the same movement making sure to main­tain the alignment and posture throughout the movement. Once you’ve lunged with both legs you’ve completed one repetition.

Your Mind-Set Matters:

Some people think that you have to be loose and springy to avoid injury on an exercise like the lunge. Actually, tensing your leg muscles in this exercise stabilizes your joints and absorbs the impact to reduce the risk of injury. It’s like a seatbelt in a car accident: a snug one will keep you tight against the seatback and limits whiplash, while a loose one lets your body gain forward momentum before jolting you to a stop.

9 – Straight Punches – Take a hip width stance and bend the knees slightly. Your objective is to punch straight ahead, as fast as you can. DO NOT lock out your elbows. This is not about throwing the perfect punch…it’s about the speed of the punch and non-stop movement.

10 – Pushup Bridge & Flip – Begin in an elevated pushup position. Perform one pushup and as you push back up, swing one arm out from your side and flip your body to a bridge position, where your belly is now facing the sky, and hands and feet are flat on the ground. Without any rest, quickly thrust and flip (this is the flip aka a reverse plyo-pushup) your body right back into a pushup position. Without rest, continue in the opposite direction.

Now, to throw in a twist of “not ready for it”, get ready for this triple treat of core work…

11 – Bicycle Maneuver – The bicycle maneuver has been regarded as one of the most effective abdominal/core exercises in existence.

EXECUTION AND FORM

Take a lying position on your back and bring your legs in toward your chest to start.

You’ll be raising your knees so that your thighs are perpendicular to the floor & your lower legs will be parallel to the floor, thus creating a 90-degree angle.
Now, interlace your fingers/hands behind your neck and get ready to twist – You must be careful not to pull on your neck during the actual exercise. You’re placing your hands behind your head in order to help optimally twist your upper torso toward each knee.

I want you to begin by flexing/crunching the spine and holding that isometric contraction for the entirety of the set. Now, exhale, and begin the motion by twisting your right elbow across your body, to your left knee, which will be drawn in…your right leg should be extended fully out.

Do your very best to touch your elbow to your knee; but even more importantly, concentrate on driving that left shoulder across your body, as that’s where the most effective abdominal work comes in.
Okay, now inhale as you slowly return back to the start/neutral position, but do not lower your head back to the floor and continue to hold that tight isometric contraction in your abdominal muscles.

Without rest, repeat the twisting on the other side, driving the left elbow/shoulder across your body, toward your right drawn in knee, while the left leg is fully extended out.

As you hopefully realize, the twisting motion from right elbow/shoulder toward left knee and left elbow/shoulder toward right knee along with the opposing leg extension should all be a very fluid and seamless transition as you execute your target # of repetitions.

12 – Plank:  Get on the floor and face downward. Take a modified pushup position, where your forearms are positioned on the ulna/pinky down with palms facing each other, but fists clenched. Forearms are in straight line, parallel to one another. Get up on your tiptoes and keep them rigid. Legs are completely straight and maintained in a tight position. Keep a neutral spine and make sure that the spine is straight and doesn’t dip down or peak up. I want you to focus on keeping your abdominals contracted throughout the full 1-minute, as this will both help to keep a rigid and straight spine, plus will further engage those abdominal muscles.

13 – Heel Taps – This is an easy description, but the execution is no joke. Lay with your back down, bend your knees and place your feel flat on the ground. This next partn is critical: The distance your feet are from your butt will have significant effect on this exercise will stimulate your core muscles. The further your feet are, the more intense the exercise will be. Here’s the way to determine the best distance for you. Place your feet far enough away from your butt where you have to really reach/crunch forward to touch your heels. You may have to test a couple of lengths. Now that you’re in the right position, lay back and place your arms hands down at your sides, with palms down and fingers pointing toward your toes. Next, crunch your chest toward your pelvis and hold that static contraction for the entire exercise. In that crunched position, I want you to laterally bend to your right side, reaching your right arm/hand to touch your right heel and immediately bend the opposite direction and bring your left arm/hand to your left heel and touch.

This static contraction to the rectus abdominus muscles and the lateral bend to the left and right sides will stimulate your abs and internal/external obliques.

14 – Walking Bodyweight Lunges – same form as the Dumbbell Lunges above, but now you’re moving to cover distance. I like to call it, “getting from here to there and back!” – The only difference, is that with these, you’ll be constantly moving forward, so the leg that lunges, will be the same leg that uses force to move you forward. Do not let that back leg push off into the next lunge. That leg/foot is only for balance. The front leg does all the work!

15 – Jump Squats – Make sure that you use proper form – Feet are hip width apart, knees are slightly bent to start, hands are held back behind you and straight (to help produce power & momentum), head is up and eyes looking up on an angle, chest out, shoulders back, abs tight and lower back arched, not rounded. Speed in the jump rebound is the key to building power! As you land back into the squat, quickly transition right back into your next jump.

Repeat 2-3 Times!

As always, please have a timer with a beep indicator to ensure that you keep tabs on your work time. At the end of each cycle (the 15^th exercise), you’ll have a 1 minute break.

If you need to take more rest, do so, but no cheating yourself!  As always, please have some cool water, a towel and a timer with you.

Please remember to let Hobie and I know how you did!

Keep Going!

James Villepigue & Hobie Call

Master WOD Archive

Spartan Race WOD Archive 5.21.12 to 5.27.12

by Jason Jaksetic

This week marked the debut of a Spartan holiday – Buck Furpees Day.  Yes, Buck Furpee Day will forever officially be on May 21st every, but feel free to break into Buck Furpees day at any point in your weekly training cycle.

Traditionally in workout programs, Monday’s are reserved for rest or recovery days – Monday being the day of the week that hits you like a sandbag full of bricks no matter how well you prepare.  So if you have to pick a day to do less training- Monday logically follows.

However, sometimes it’s nice to tackle Mondays head on and jump in full force.  Sometimes you need a jolt to start your training week.

We hope Buck Furpees Day was a good start to the week!  We’re hoping this WOD archive helps get you ready to go wherever you are in your week.

www.spartanrace.com/wod

WOD for 5-21-12
Spartan Buck Furpees Day

Burpees suck.  They hurt.  Overall they just break you down physically and mentally.  (Especially when you get a 30 burpee penalty well into your Spartan Race while you can’t feel your exhausted arms.)

Burpees turn your internal furnace on HIGH. They force you to put out a huge effort as you confront your ability to be in control of your own body.  Your metabolism will be on fire after Spartan Buck Furpee day. Also, it will give you the confidence to know that you can handle a 30 burpee penality at a Spartan Race.  Not to mention that the burpee is a great recipe for getting lean muscle.

Tomorrow, to honor the 300 men that went into battle in Thermopolye (and burpees in general), do 300 burpees as fast as you can.  Do 300 as slowly as you can.  Whatever.  Just do them.  300 of them.  Let this WOD last all day if you have to!

Much more on Spartan Buck Furpees Day on our blog…

WOD for 5-22-12

Beat up from Buck Furpees Day today?  Did you get your 300 burpees in? Ready for another beating from tomorrow’s WOD?

The greatest results in life are usually attained by simple means and the exercise of ordinary qualities. These may for the most part be summed in these two: common-sense and perseverance.
- Owen Feltham

WOD:  Sandbag Carry
Time to go out and tackle your favorite 3-10 mile run course.  The steeper the gradients the better.  Just plan on being much slower than usual because you’ll need to bring along a training partner – your sandbag (or something similar).

Weighted vests are great, but nothing beats the way an irregular object like a sandbag works your stabilizers as well as your grip.  You’ll probably notice some new weakness in your fitness as you engage new muscle groups if you’ve never done this WOD before.

Start with a manageable weight (around 10-25 lbs) as a beginner, but more experienced athletes can use 50-75lbs of weight.  Try not to use your shoulders, but force yourselves to carry the sandbag in your arms, thus requiring you to work on your grip.

WOD for 5-23-12

You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, “I lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.” You must do the thing you think you cannot do.
-Eleanor Roosevelt

Step up to the challenge of being fitter, more active, and more focused on health.  This is a great workout that breaks up your running with upper body and strength exercises.  A Spartan is not a pure runner.  Nor are they only concerned with strength.  A Spartan strives to be a pure athlete – able to conquer anything before them.

Warm up with a 10 minute jog and do two sets of 10 push ups.

Run 1 mile at race pace
5-25 burpees
Run 1 mile at race pace
5-25 pull-ups
Run 1 mile at race pace
Burpee-pull ups until failure
50 crunches
2-4 minute plank
(Build your strength and endurance!  Try to eliminate resting between running and each exercise.)

Cool down with a nice easy jog and stretch.

WOD for 5-24-12

The beginning is the most important part of the work.
- Plato

Let’s hear it for all our beginners! No matter how advanced you think you are now, you were once a newb – don’t forget!  Take the time to help & encourage beginners. We know the Workout of the Day’s (WOD’s) can get intimidating at times, so here is one geared for those just starting out.

30 minutes.  Set aside 30 minutes of time for FITNESS and commit.  No distractions, no phone, no excuses.  Just keep moving forward and keep your heart rate up as you move from one exercise to the next.

20 minutes cardio (walk, run, hike, swim, bike, row, etc)
5-10 burpees
10-20 body weight squats

Cool down with a nice easy jog and stretch.

WOD for 5-25-12
Even if you are on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there.
-Will Rogers

Sometimes it’s important not to over complicate things.  This WOD can be done by both the beginner and expert.  Just adjust pace and repetitions to meet your current fitness level.

WOD

warm up with 10 minute jog (jump rope optional)

main set:

25-100 lunges
run 1 mile at race tempo (or slightly faster)
recover 2-4 minutes
(repeat 2-8 times)

cool down with light jog and stretch

WOD for 5-26-12

When you get right down to the root of the meaning of the word “succeed,” you find that it simply means to follow through.

– F. W. Nichol

Long run.  Should be the longest of your week.  Try and push yourself an extra mile.  Also, consider including these two exercises at the half way point of your run:

50-200 body weight squats
50-200 lunges

We promise, you’ll thank us for having experiences like this when you are barely into your Spartan Race event and your legs feel like lead weights.

Stretch as cool down.

WOD for 5-27-12

In all human affairs there are efforts, and there are results, and the strength of the effort is the measure of the result.
- James Allen

Lots going on this weekend?  Here’s a quick WOD to pound out.

WOD
1. 30 Push Ups
2. 15-30 Burpee/Pullups
3. 30 Box jumps
4. 100 Jumping Jacks
5. 300 crunches

Feel free to break this WOD up across your day or to pound it out straight – one exercise performed immediately after the other.  Just get it done!

by Chris Davis

Chris Davis is still going strong at Spartan HQ where he has been working on his personal journey of going from 696 lbs to doing the Spartan Ultra Beast.   It is amazing to see him develop as an athlete and writer for this blog.

I had the pleasure of walking 10 miles with Chris Davis last weekend (you’ll read about it below).  Not a 10 normal miles mind you, but some of the steepest roads Vermont has to offer.  Even while passing around 40lbs, 50lbs, and a 75lbs sandbags with other walkers, we still were never close carrying the weight that Chris did each and every step.  And he can’t put his down when he gets tired. 

I know Chris is working twice as hard because of this.  He surely must be hurting twice as much.  I start to really comprehend how much guts it has taken him to get this far.  I know that if anyone can do this, he can.  – Jason J

5/17/2012

I was going through and re-reading some of my blogs, and I realized that I have never taken the time to explain where I started out and how I came to be here at Spartan Race HQ.  So I thought I would go back and do some research to build a list of milestones that helped me get to Spartan Race and beyond.

My Major Milestones:

•                  I started my weight loss program on June 29th 2009 @ 696 lbs.

•                  I had Sleeve Gastrectomy, a type of bariatric surgery, on July 12th 2010 @ 634 lbs.

•                  I started walking in the Lazy River at the Romulus Athletic Center on November 23, 2010 @ 499 lbs.

•                  I joined the Dunwoody Running Group on June 13th 2011 @ 448 lbs.

•                  I climbed Stone Mountain on July 9th 2011 @ 440 lbs.

•                  I completed my first 5k race on October 1st, 2011 @ 411 lbs.

•                  I completed my first Spartan Sprint on March 10th, 2012 @ 390 lbs.

•                  I arrived at Spartan Camp on April 11th, 2012 @ 388 lbs.

•                  I completed my first 10 mile hike on May 12th, 2012 @ 334 lbs.

When I started to do this research I did not expect that it would bring up so many great memories from my past.   I started to think about Stacey, Farah, Tammy, and Sherrie from the weight loss program that I attended before having my bariatric surgery.    How Keryl, stayed by my side and helped me finish my first 1.6 mile loop during my first meeting with the Dunwoody Running Group.   I will never forget the day that Liz and Dorene walked with me when I completed my first 5k.  These are just some of great memories that I have experienced while on this journey.

Yea, there have been some days that sucked, but it’s funny how fast you forget about them when you look back at what you have accomplished.

5/21/2012

This weekend was another big weekend for me.   On Saturday Joe, Andy, Jason and 2 other people joined me for a 10 mile walk.  The kicker this time being that our walk started at 4 am.

I will be honest, I am not a big fan of waking up and walking at 4 am – but that is part of the Spartan Camp Experience, I guess.   When you come to Spartan Camp you have to understand that the only thing you can count on is the unexpected.

After a little drive we got on some random dirt road that disappeared up a mountain, it was cold and very dark; there are no street lights outs here, so the only source of light is the moon and the stars.   It takes your eyes a few minutes to adjust but you would be surprised at how little light you need to see once your eyes get used to the dark.  As we climbed up the mountain the sun started to come up and it got even easier to see.  The first 2 miles of our walk were straight up.

It took a while before we got to the top of the mountain and as we did, we came up to this over look right as the sun started to rise over the mountains.

Now I understood why Joe wanted us up at 4 am.   I just wish would have taken some extra time and enjoyed watching the sun rise a little longer before we headed down the road.

Maybe after the race, I will head back up this road and sit back and enjoy the sunrise properly.    Until then I have to learn to cherish every moment I get to see something beautiful on this journey.    By the time the day was over, I had walked 11.1 miles with an evaluation climb of over 1850 feet.

On Sunday, I got to sleep in my till a normal, sane time.  We started the day by walking the 5 miles from my apartment to the office, but instead of stopping, Joe talked me into doing a couple of laps around Lower and Upper Michigan Roads – two connected dirt roads that wind around the western mountain slopes of Pittsfield.

By the time I had finished my 2 loops in I had walked a total of 10.5 miles, and was ready to call it a day when Joe drove up to meet me at the Pittsfield General Store.   He me asked how things were going and I told him I was done for the day – I had completed my goal of 10 miles and my feet were soar, and I was done…just done.

His reply, “Great!  Let me get a hold of the camera crew and let’s go walk up to that Cabin up on top of the mountain.”   I was crushed, but I said sure why not, I had made a comment earlier in the week that depending on how I was feeling I might try and go for 13.1 miles on Sunday.

So I sat down and had an apple and a green juice.  After answering some questions for the film crew we walked to Spartan Camp.  Once I got there I picked up Wilson (a sand bag) and Joe’s kids decided to come along as we headed up the mountain.  We made it up just past where I normally turn around and I had to stop.

I was just out of steam…   After a little break and some water, we continued up the mountain, and after a few more breaks.  I made it to the T in the road, I was total spent.  So I took a break and then buckled into peer pressure and moved on a little further up the hill.   I had to stop my body was starting to fail, so we turned around and headed back down the mountain.   I was so tired that I had to stop 3 additional times along the way down.   By the time we made it to Joe’s house I was feeling light headed, and I knew I needed some water and food ASAP.   So I had a glass of water at Spartan Camp, and then got a ride to the General Store and ate an omelet with some spinach in it.

After eating the spinning stopped, but I still felt bad, so I got a ride back to my apartment and took a nap.    After a couple of hours, I felt a lot better.   So when it was all over on Sunday I had walked 13.7 miles with an elevation climb of over 1750 feet.    For a weekend total of 24.8 miles with an elevation climb of over 3600 feet.

This morning when I woke up I was still soar, and had a hard time walking, but the more I moved around my apartment the better I felt,   when I asked Joe to send someone to get me, he kindly replied with “start walking to town and I will send someone”.  This usually ends in one of two ways:  a) I end up walking 10 miles into work, or b), someone will show up about in about 30 minutes.

I had no choice, but to start walking towards the office.   About a mile down the road I am starting to get that sinking feeling that I’m in for the long haul when Chris pulls up next to me and lets me know the Joe has sent him to pick me up.   I get into the car and head to the office.

Once I get to the office,  Joe wanted me to weigh in before I got a chance to get settled in.  All I could do was think about how much water I drank last night and how that was going to throw my weight off, but now it didn’t matter, so I stepped on the scale and it read 328.6.  This put me down 7lbs since Friday, where I had gained a few pounds after trying to re-hydrate.

So I was happy with my weight loss, but Joe, well not so much…he was hoping that I would have lost over 10lbs to help me get me closer to reaching our goal of 308lbs by June 1^st.    I don’t know if we can make it happen, but I will do my best to get there.

5/23/2012

On Monday we had 9 new interns join us here at Spartan HQ.   It was great to meet so many people excited about starting their journey here at Spartan Race.   As a team building exercise we started talking about this and that, and somehow they talked me into fasting for the entire day – and in return they would do 3,000 push-ups as a team by noon tomorrow.   Reluctantly, I agreed, so after two big days of walking over the weekend, I fasted on Monday.

The last time I fasted was after another big workout and about 24 -48 hours after that fasting experience I got really depressed and almost quit.    Well, it’s happening again.  But don’t worry, I’m not thinking of quitting this time.  But none the less, I am still very depressed.

There has to be something that goes on in my body when I fast that sets off a chemical imbalance, and that is why I get so incurably depressed.   I started to notice this last night as I finished up with kung-fu.   I started to get an overwhelming feeling of being alone.   So I reached out to a few friends on the phone in the lodge lobby (since my cellphone doesn’t get service at the lodge) and I was able to get a hold of my good friend Lauri.   You have no idea how good it was to hear her voice.  I felt so bad that I called while she was eating dinner, but she didn’t mind.  We sat and talked for at least 25 minutes and I felt so much better for a while.   But then, it got bad again.

I ended up going to bed thinking of my other good friend and house mate Dra.   It has been over a week since I had last heard anything from her.  She had not returned any of my messages, from the last few days which is not like her at all.

When I woke up this morning I just wanted to hide under the covers and pretend that the world did not exist.  But I had my doctor’s appointment, so I knew I had to get up and going.  I forced myself out of bed and into the shower.   Usually after a nice hot shower I feel alive and ready to take on the world – but not today.   I had some time before my ride was supposed to pick me up, so I headed to the lobby of the lodge and turned on the TV to try and see what the rest of the world was up to.   It is kind of crazy how fast the rest of the world can fade way when you’re doing something like this.

For those of you who don’t know me, if there is one thing that freaks me out more than anything, it is being late.  So at 7:25 I am wondering when Steve was going to show up since he was my ride to the doctor’s office.  I keep thinking is Steve going to forget about me like Chris Z did yesterday? 7:30 rolls around and still nobody.  7:35, still no one.  7:40, I finally start to freak out, and I go back to my apartment and grab my laptop, because of course, I do not have Steve’s number in my phone.   I go online and get his number.  When I called I find he thought the appointment was on Thursday, so he had not left yet.  My appointment was scheduled for 8am, and now I was going to be late.  I just started to freak out, but about 60 seconds later, I settled myself down.  I said, “Oh well, there is nothing I can do about this.   I am just going to have to deal with it”.  By the time Steve arrived, I was back to my calm but depressed self.

We got to the doctor’s office about 15 minutes late, and I was expecting all kinds of problems because we were late, but they didn’t even raise an eye brow.   I guess that is the difference with a small town doctor’s office, they understand that these things happen.    When I talked to the doctor he was quite happy with the results of my blood work, and agreed that adding Eggs to my diet was a good choice, and that should help.  Other than that, nothing else has him concerned at this time.   I am scheduled to go back in 3 weeks do another set of blood work, and see how things are going then.   I should have been ecstatic about this, but it just when in one ear and out the other.

After getting back to the office, I resume my funk – I couldn’t focus on anything, it’s like my whole world is foggy.  I have even tried taking a walk down by the river, and that didn’t help.   My mind keeps wondering back to Dra, and how I still have not heard from her.  I sent her another text message, telling her that I was getting worried.   This time I got a reply, she explained that things have not been going well for her back in Atlanta, and she told me some of the things that have happened to her over the last few weeks while we have been out of touch.

It was at this moment I was reminded me of just how far away from home I am, because I know there is nothing I can do to help her from here.   I have a real hard time talking to her on the phone because she works two jobs, and is only available to talk after midnight.  With me going to bed at 8pm, this kills our ability to talk on the phone.   So what about text messages, and IM?  Well there are some people where I need real-time feedback to understand the tone and intent of the message, and she is one of though people.

While I sit writing this blog, I can’t tell you how much I miss my friends in Atlanta.  I know they are behind me 100% of the way, and I guess that is why I miss them so much.   The only advise that helps right now is something I would say to my friends when they are having a rough day.  “Tomorrow will be a better day, and if not tomorrow the day after that.”

I just need to hang in there, and hope that tomorrow I will feel better than I do today.

…click here to catch Chris’s story from the beginning.

We are happy to announce that The Chris Davis will be posted at noon on Tuesdays and Friday.  The Friday blog will capture Chris’ experience during the week while the Tuesday blog will recap the excitement of his weekends.

Original Spartan Chick Alyssa Tokorcheck

In August of 2011, about eight women towed the line at the Spartan Beast dressed in Spartan Chicked gear, myself one among them. The Spartan Chicked movement had started shortly before when I sent an email to some friends and some women I knew to be registered for the 13ish miles in Vermont. Several responded, and just that simply, there were eight official Spartan Chicks. I thought when I sent the email that it would be fun to have my friends race with me for such a momentous athletic first – the Spartan Beast. And it became something that we huddled around and cherished. Because when we finished, we were bonded for life in a way that I was so thankful for and so completely inspired to be a part. More than anything, I just wanted us to feel supported and connected. I had no idea where that email would lead.

Spartan Race has grown substantially since 2010 when the obstacle racing series began. Born out of the Death Race that was founded in 2005 with an emphasis on surviving the unknown and pushing past your known limits, the obstacle racing series has evolving and continually pushing the boundaries ever since. Developed deliberately as an merging sport at the highest level with international world rankings, chip times, and even accolades like Outside Magazine’s Best Obstacle Race 2012, the event has growth astronomically over the last few years. Seeing nearly 250,000 racers in 2012, Spartan Race has solidified its place in the endurance arena. FOUR distances – from a 5K Sprint, Super 10K+ distance, Beast half marathon distance, to the grueling first of it’s kind the unsupported Ultra Beast that will be roughly 26.2 miles, there is a place for everyone in the series. Knowing where Spartan Race was going as a whole, I wanted to make sure there was a space carved out for women, and from eight in Killington, VT we are now numbering in the thousands.

Spartan Chicked began as a way for me to connect women into a network that would inspire, educate, and motivate the women who had already raced with Spartan, those who were registered, and those who needed to know more. We started a closed group on FB for the women to network and engage on all things health and well-being. (Sorry boys – it’s closed so that we can keep it female friendly and an open forum for exchange.)

Everything from recipes, training tips, gear, motivation passes amongst the nearly 5,000 women who are now a part of the group each day. I’ve watched those numbers grow in the past months and have felt remarkably humbled to bear witness to the impact of those connections. Women are motivated to take better care of themselves, reclaim their lives, rebuild from injury or loss, commit to train, and ultimately dedicate themselves to live a healthier life. Like 5,000 on call cheerleaders it’s a safe place to ask the un-askable and to women who have probably wondered the same things. It’s also a practical place to get gear and nutrition advice from women who know and are willing to share. It has also happily become a social network of women who now connect and even plan trips to run their events together, training in groups and virtually from afar.

There is no “standard” Spartan Chick. There are grandmothers, daughters, wives, sisters, moms of all shapes and sizes, colors and backgrounds, abilities and places on their own journey to a lifetime of health all committed to being a part of the community and being part of each others’ lives even in a small way every day.

My Daughter Cate

This was recently demonstrated in a big way in the Facebook network when I decided, on a whim, to issue a special WOD to the group. On May 16th, I issued a challenge to the community and they answered back. I dubbed the day, “DROP AND PLANK DAY” after my own four and a half year old daughter showed me her best plank. For every waking hour on the hour the women were tasked with holding a plank position for 1 – 3 minutes and post their pictures in the community feed on FB. The women responded enthusiastically and creatively to the task. More than 150 pictures were posted and collected for this photo album that shows how the Spartan chicks get it done when called to action. From cubicles to school buses and everything in between, the Spartan Chicks showed off their rad planking skills.

HERE are the pictures!

Three Layered Plank

Thinking back to that August morning in Vermont, and the connection between the eight of us original Spartan chicks, I feel the same connection now, amplified by so many amazing females. Though our numbers have grown, our intentions have not and that is a beautiful thing.

Ladies, do you want to join the movement? Just ask HERE. Sorry guys, this group is just for the Spartan Chicks.

Master WOD Archive

Spartan Race WOD Archive 5.14.12 to 5.20.12

by Jason Jaksetic

 This week the quotes of the day were particularly enjoyable.  They all boil down, for the most part, as quotes about ‘can’ and ‘do’.

Get your ‘can do’ attitude on and do these WODs.  You can.

WOD for 5-14-12

If the wind will not serve,
take to the oars.
Destitutus ventis, remos adhibe
– Latin Proverb

Mondays are often so crazy workouts get shelved.  Let’s put an end to this.  Here’s a WOD that can be fit into any random 30 minutes.

WOD
Pick your three favorite body weight exercises (for example:  push-ups, burpees, lunges).  Focus 10 minutes on each trying to max out reps while preserving good form.  Can be done as a straight 30 minutes or 3 separate 10 minute workouts.  Just get it done!

WOD for 5-15-12
Take calculated risks.
That is quite different from being rash.
– George S. Patton

CLICK HERE to check out our blog which is hosting tonight’s WOD and brought to you by Gaspari Nutrition.

WOD for 5-16-12

They can because they think they can.
-Virgil

WOD
“Lumberjack 20″

20 Deadlifts (275/185)
Run 400m
20 KB swings (2pood/1pood)
Run 400m
20 Overhead Squats (115/75)
Run 400m
20 Burpees
Run 400m
20 Pullups (Chest to Bar)
Run 400m
20 Box jumps (24″)
Run 400m
20 Squat Cleans (95/65)
Run 400m

Make sure you do BOTH a solid warm up and cool down.

Need a video to help you out with this one?  CLICK HERE for a video created just for you by CrossFit Dilworth,located in Charlotte, NC.

WOD for 5-17-12

You can’t plow a field by turning it over in your mind.
-Unknown

Stop thinking about doing a workout each day.  At some point you have to stop making plans, and start traveling.  Today is the perfect day to take on the WOD as part of your daily routine.

WOD
Go for a 1-hour moderately paced run.   Keep first 15 minutes dedicated to warming up – gradually bringing yourself up in pace.  At minute 15, however, start pounding out 10-30 burpees each mile you do, or instead, do 10-30 burpees at regularly scheduled intervals (every 5 to 10 minutes).  Finish run strong with 10-30 burpees.   Make sure you do a cool down routine that includes stretching.

WOD for 5-18-12

Adversity causes some men to break; others to break records.
-William A. Ward

Hill Repeats (aka Adversity Training) are a great way to make quality fitness gains in a compressed amount of time.

WOD
1-2 mile jog/run warm up.  Be sure to do some accellerations towards end of warm up that take you to high intensity very briefly.  A solid warm-up is vital for this workout.

Find steep section of Earth.
Explosive run 30-60 seconds going up.
2 minutes recover walk on way back down.

(advanced athletes can do with additional weight such as sand bag or weighted vest)

For our flatland spartans, please consider experimenting on variations of this WOD with stairs, bleachers, stair climbers.  Or drag a tire with a rope.  That always works, too.

Repeat Hill Inteveral 4-12 times before going into light jog for cool down.  Stretch.

WOD for 5-19-12

Begin to be now what you will be hereafter.
-  William James

If you want to be a Spartan Race finisher you better start training like one.  Just sayin’.

WOD
Tomorrow go for distance.  Running or hiking. Your choice.

Runners: shoot for a ‘conversation pace’ because this should be your longest run of the week.  One hour minimum.
Hikers:  go long.  3-4 hours minimum.  Maximum?  Try and be back by Monday morning…

Spartan Race TV:  Colorado is now live

…and registration is open for 2013

If you enjoyed recieving your WOD today, forward it to a friend.  Include this subscription link:  http://www.spartanrace.com/wod/

Training buddies help keep you moving forward.

WOD for 5-20-12
Do you want to know who you are? Don’t ask. Act! Action will delineate and define you.
-  Thomas Jefferson

Here’s a workout to just DO.  You don’t need any fancy gear or a whole lot of time.  Just commit to doing this workout and define your current fitness with the results.

This is a good workout to do periodically to bookmark your progress.  Never get discouraged, only get inspired to do better next time.  You succeed by trying the WOD – most people won’t even get that far.

WOD

Warm Up:  Jump rope, do jumping jacks, and throw down some burpees -  10 minutes.

Strength:
2 minutes push ups
2 minutes crunches
max pull ups
2 minutes crunches
max push ups

Endurance: 2-4 mile tempo run

Cool Down:  Stretch

Signature Founder’s WOD:  Spartan Buck Furpees Day

Master WOD Archive

by Joe Desena and Jason Jaksetic

Burpees suck.  They hurt.  Overall they just break you down physically and mentally.  (Especially when you get a 30 burpee penalty well into your Spartan Race while you can’t feel your exhausted arms.)

Burpees turn your internal furnace on HIGH. They force you to put out a huge effort as you confront your ability to be in control of your own body.  Your metabolism will be on fire after Spartan Buck Furpee day. Also, it will give you the confidence to know that you can handle a 30 burpee penality at a Spartan Race.  Not to mention that the burpee is a great recipe for getting lean muscle.

Tomorrow, to honor the 300 men that went into battle in Thermopolye (and burpees in general), do 300 burpees as fast as you can.  Do 300 as slowly as you can.  Whatever.  Just do them.  300 of them.  Let this WOD last all day if you have to!  Forward the link to this blog to your boss if you have some kind of embarrassing and awkward moment as you are caught doing burpees on the job.

At Spartan HQ, we often chase a set of 300 burpees with a long run.  Hope to hear about your experiences with Spartan Buck Furpees Day in the comments below and on our Facebook Wall.

How to Do Proper Spartan Burpees

You should burn between 600 and 1000 calories depending on how hard you attack this.  If done with meticulous form and fast movements you’ll understand how much training you can fit into one burpee rep.

by Chris Davis and Jason Jaksetic

In this installment of My Journey to Spartan – The Chris Davis Project we find Chris Davis writing to us more about how he is feeling:  what he thinks about when watching TV and contemplating food, how he feels homesick, and how he takes stock of his remarkable progress here at Spartan HQ.  Working with him each day I can only appreciate his resolve as he focuses on the transformation of a lifetime.  I train on the same hills he does and I can tell you that they are a killer to walk up, no matter where you are on your athletic journey. When Chris talks about going out to take a walk, he means it!   

These are hard roads, but I always see Chris walking with his chin up.  -Jason Jaksetic

5/8/2012

Chris Davis: Hiker

Last night was the first night since I have arrived at Spartan HQ where I just sat down and watched some TV.   I have to admit, that between VOD, Tivo, and Netflix, I don’t watch a lot of normal TV anymore, so it was kind of funny to me how many of the commercials were for foods that I use to love:  Digiorno, Pizza Hut, Burger King, Quiznos, and several more.

It seemed that there was at least one food commercial in every break.     I just found it funny how I have never noticed this before in all of my years of watching TV.  Maybe I noticed this last night because I was completely focused on the TV, and not trying to do anything else – like thinking of work, trying to solve a problem from earlier in the day, or worried about what to need to do tomorrow.

Or maybe it was because I found myself craving everything that I saw.  I started to question each one of the food items before me; thinking about calories, and the real nutritional value of each piece of junk food, and I thought back to Andy Weinberg’s comment in the week 3 video clip:  “3000 calories of garbage” (for a meal!)

Yea, that was the life I use to live.   To be honest, I still crave some of these foods some times, but right now I would rather cook my own food than going out for fast food.  Nothing is sounding better to me than a nice piece of grilled chicken, with some fresh rosemary…   It is funny how eating fruits and vegetables for almost 5 weeks changes the way you look at food, not just fruits and vegetables, but all foods.  It really helps to bring you back to the basics.  I think that is a good thing from time to time.

This morning I had a hard time waking up – I just did not want to get out of bed.  I didn’t sleep very well, did a lot of tossing and turning.

But once I got out of bed I felt great, my feet had stopped hurting, I felt ready to go walking.  When I left my apartment at 5:43am, I just started walking up the road.   I was surprised that before I made it to the first turn, my ride showed up, so I just smiled and got in the car.

When I got to Spartan Camp I started to look for my friend, the 30 lbs sandbag weight called The Green Spartan Pancake, but I could not find it so, I started on my walk up the hill without it.   About 3 minutes into the walk Joe sent me a message to make sure I was walking with the Pancake, so I turned back around searched till about 6:15, when I just gave up.  So I left without it and told Joe that I was unable to find it, but I would look again after my morning kung-fu lesson.

I did a quick walk up to the first road up the mountain and back.   Not a very long walk, but just enough to warm up for kung-fu.   After kung-fu  I found The Green Spartan Pancake in the one cabinet I could not get open earlier in the morning, so I went for a second walk up the mountain after kung-fu, before walking to the office.

Here is the real crazy thing; I am starting too actually like walking, up here…   I think something clicked in my head over the weekend during my two 10-mile days.  It’s too early to know for sure…  But we will see…

After getting to Spartan HQ this morning I received a ‘pep-u-up’ package from my good friend Lauri, who lives in back in Atlanta!  Thank you so much…  This could not have come at a better time…  I miss my peeps in Atlanta very much, and look forward to coming home and going out and have all kinds of fun with you like, camping (Sorry I missed the last one), hiking, and exploring everything Atlanta has to offer!

5/10/2012

Today is day 28 here at Spartan Camp, I cannot believe that I have been here four 4 weeks all ready.   Looking back on the last 4 weeks, there have been some highs and some lows.

Most of the lows have been self-induced, like missing my friends and co-workers in Atlanta, and adjusting from living in major metropolitan life to living in a small town, and getting used to being the one who is asking for help instead of the one offering to help.

Enough with the lows, the highs have been great, like having a walk with over 900 feet of elevation change, walking over 20 miles in a weekend, breaking the 50% total weight loss barrier, and being able to hang from a pull up bar for the first time in my life.   I have also had to try things like kung-fu, bikram yoga, chopping wood with an axe, and climbing across a bridge that was made out of old I-beams, and wooden planks.

As far as my weight goes I started here at Spartan Camp weighing 388lbs, as of this morning I am down to 339.2 giving me a weight loss of 48.8lbs or an average of 1.7lbs a day.   I am a little nervous about hitting my goal of getting down to 200lbs by September 1^st, because the weight loss has slowed down over the last few days, but it is still coming off and that is the important thing for me to keep in mind.   To make my goal I will need to continue to lose 1.2lbs a day, is this possible?   To be honest, I don’t know, but I am going to keep trying and we will see what happens.

I have learned so much about myself of the last 4 weeks, it make me wonder what I will learn over the next 4 weeks?   Will I be able to keep up with my weight loss goals?   Will my body continue to be pushed hard with without breaking?  Will my mind break and start to play tricks on me…   It will be interesting to see…   I will let you know in 4 weeks.

click here to continue on to Part 9…

Did you catch The Chris Davis Project Part 7?

Since his emergence on the Spartan scene in February of 2011, Hobie Call has come to exemplify the Spartan spirit.  Winning more Spartan races than any other individual male or female, he leads the way in performance, ability, and discipline.  He’s had a target on his back for most of his ascent, but he’s rarely been bested and often left a gaping hole for those trying to catch up.  He took home the Spartan World Championships and the $10,000 pay day that went along with the victory.

A familiar face has emerged as a challenger and he’s taking on Hobie Call in Texas where all of Sparta will undoubtedly be watching the showdown.  Quentin Leadbeter won two Spartan Races in 2011, both events Call was notably absent but Leadbeter was disappointed in that fact.  The naval academy student was quoted as saying after his Virginia victory, which he won in just 22 minutes, “Well, when I signed up for the race, I knew he [Hobie] was on his quest and I figured it would be fun to run against him… It would have been fun to run against him and give him a little competition.”

A little more about our challenger: Leadbeter is a Midshipman at the US Naval Academy in Annapolis, where he just completed Freshman year. He still has three more years of school and then can commission as either a Marine or Navaal officer.

A competitive wrester, the 2010 Northern High School graduate of Owings, MD owned a 147-16 career record and was a four-time state place winner (6th, 3rd, 5th, 3rd)  Leadbeter also placed sixth at the National Wrestling Coaches Association Championship while wrestling at NAPS.

Check out these links for more details: http://www.navysports.com/sports/m-wrestl/mtt/leadbeter_quentin00.html and http://www.athletic.net/TrackAndField/Athlete.aspx?AID=644254

~By James Villepigue CSCS & Hobie Call

Hobie Call

How are you, Spartans? If you’ve been following the weekly WOD, you will surely be seeing the fruits of your labor by now.

We have another mighty WOD for you today and it’s brought to you by Gaspari Nutrition…sports nutrition for the best of us!

Today’s WOD is a full body barrage and can be done with minimal equipment. All you’ll really need is a sturdy ledge, branch or Pull-Up bar and you’re off to the obstacle races!

Today we’ll be focusing on a strength exercise followed by a run.

You’ll be executing a total of 8 exercises, which makes up one full cycle. You may repeat cycles based on your level of conditioning.

Here’s how each superset sequence will look and work:

1.  1 set of 20 Pull-Ups – Here’s the deal. If you can do full fledge Pull-Ups, do them – if you need to take a quick rest before you’ve hit the 20 rep mark, use your muscle math and jump back in from where ever you left off and add two reps for each rest you take. For those of you who cannot YET do a full Pull-Up, get yourself some sort of a platform so that you can easily hold on to the bar with arms fully extended (I don’t want you having to jump up to grab the bar) and for each Pull-Up, jump into the rep to give yourself bit of a boost. Make sure that your upper body is responsible for the bulk of the work and not simply the force generated from your legs and inertia.

2.  Run for 3 minutes at a moderate speed

3.  1 set of 14 Pushups into arm opposing leg lifts – Perform a full Push-Up and at the top, immediately raise your right arm and lift your left leg high. Perform another full Push-Up and now switch the arm/leg. Make sure that your arm and leg lifts happen right as you push up to the top position…it should be a seamless transition.

4.  Run for 5 minutes – First 2.5 mins at faster pace and last 2.5 mins at moderate pace

5.  Jump Squats & Speed Squats – Perform 15 Jump Squats and finish with 25 speed Squats – Proper form is a must here-Head up, chest out, shoulders pulled back and kept down, abs tight, arch the lower back and stick the butt out. Bend at the hips first, not the knees. I want you to lower your body slowly and from the bottom position, explosively jump as high as you can!

Once you’ve completed 15 consecutive Jump Squats, without rest, perform 25 bodyweight speed Squats. Your legs will be fired up!

6.  Run for 5 minutes at a moderate speed – Your legs may be exhausted, so be conscious of them and stay strong during your run.

7.  1 minute Plank into 30 Bicycle Maneuver into 1 minute Plank into 30 Bicycle Maneuver

8.  Run for 3 minutes at a fast pace – rest if you need to, but when you can, get right back into it!

Repeat 2-3 Times!

As always, please have a timer with a beep indicator to ensure that you keep tabs on your work time. At the end of each cycle (the 8th exercise), you’ll have a 1 minute break.

If you need to take more rest, do so, but no cheating yourself!

As always, please have some cool water, a towel and a timer with you.

Please remember to let Hobie and I know how you did!

Keep Going!

James Villepigue & Hobie Call

Did you catch last weeks feature WOD in this series?  CLICK HERE

Does reading this WOD make you want to register for a Spartan Race?  To find a race near you CLICK HERE

by Jason Jaksetic

Another week has past, and now you are another week stronger.  You are one step further along on your own personal transformation.  Be a work in progress. 

These WODs can be customized to suit your needs.  Make adjustments depending on your ability, age, and goals.  You don’t have to be able to do each WOD in it’s entirety.  You also don’t have to be able to do each week in it’s entirety.  BUT study the WODs in their entirety and the week of WODs in its entirety, and aspire to do it.

Or maybe you are an athlete with a background in marathons, 5ks, Triathlons, or similar endurance sport?  Start using these WODs to adapt your training so you can start dominating at a Spartan Race, the world leader in Obstacle Racing.

Stay strong, stay focused.  We’ll see you at the finish line. – Jason Jaksetic

Not receiving your WODs in your inbox?  Want to?

www.spartanrace.com/wod

WOD for 5.7.12

“No matter how slow you go, you’re still lapping everyone on the couch”

Check out this video of the Chris Davis Project that is documenting his amazing weight loss.

Grab your sandbag! It’s t ime to workout! No excuses!

WOD

5 Reps  of main set for time:
400m run (uphill, if possible) with sandbag
20 walking lunges with sandbag
20 back lunges with sandbag
20 sandbag push press
10 burpees

Be sure to warm up & cool down with a good stretch!

Monday

WOD for 5.8.12

Sweet are the uses of adversity. ~ William Shakespeare
Set aside the time to get this done.  You’ll thank us race day.

WOD

5-10K run near race pace
50-150 lunges
50-150 body weight squats
30 burpees
5 minute plank

WOD for 5.9.12
Today’s Workout of the Day was brought to by Gaspari Nutrition.  Here’s the link:

http://blog.spartanrace.com/wod-for-wednesday-may-9th-brought-to-you-by-gaspari-nutrition/

WOD 5.10.12

Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will.

-Mohandas Gandhi

You get faster by running fast.  It’s supposed to be difficult.  It’s supposed to hurt.  So just have fun with it.

Mile repeats. (track is optimal, but road/treadmill is fine)

3-5 one mile intervals with negative splits.  This means you run a one mile split at 5k pace and then recover, planning on running your next mile split faster..  Each interval you run try to push it a little bit faster.  Recovery intervals should be no longer than half the time it took you to run 1 mile.  Jog or walk your recovery interval.

An example workout would look like this

warm up:  10 minute jog with 4-6 30 second accelerations to race pace

1 mile in 7:30
3:45 recover
1 mile in 7:00
3:30 recover
1 mile in 6:45
3:22 recover
1 mile in 6.30

10 cool down walk/stretch

Wod 5.11.12

You cannot dream yourself into a character; you must hammer and forge yourself one.
-Henry David Thoreau

Less dreaming, more doing.  Time to hammer out some character 800 meters at a time.

You don’t need lots of expensive gear to get a wicked workout in.  Here a box is enough.  For our minimalists, use a box-ish rock or box-ish tree stump.  Whatever!  Just no excuses.

WOD

warm up with an easy one mile jog

main sequence:

Run 800 meters hard
20 Squat jumps

Run 800 meters hard
20 box jumps
Run 800 meters hard
20 Tuck jumps

Run 800 meters hard
20 Lateral Jumps over box

cool down with easy one mile jog

WOD for 5.12.12

Sow an act, and you reap a habit; sow a habit, and you reap a character; sow a character, and you reap a destiny.
-George Dana Boardman

Master WOD Archive

The weekend is the time to log your miles and put quality fitness time in the bank.  Get up early on the weekends, not late!  Time for that 1 to 3 hour run.  Don’t worry so much about distance or speed, just focus on quality time in your aerobic zone.  You’ll need the endurance come race day – especially if you are thinking of doing a Beast!

WOD for 5.13.12

It was a high counsel that I once heard given to a young person, “Always do what you are afraid to do.”
- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Don’t let fear be what is keeping you from completing your first Spartan.  Today is the day to tackle what you are most afraid of.  What is that for you?  Running or swimming?  Power generating workouts or speed producing workouts?  We all have strengths and weaknesses – focus on your weakness, tomorrow.  Not sure what your weaknesses are?  Here’s a WOD that might let you know:

WOD

warm up:  1 mile jog, 5-10 minutes jump rope, 20-40 burpees

main set

run 5k at fast tempo

50-100 lunges

25-100 push ups

50-100 body weight squats

10-25 pull-ups

run 1 mile full speed

cool down:  stretch it out.

~By James Villepigue CSCS & Hobie Call

WOD are you Spartans up to today? Here’s today’s Spartan Workout of the day, presented by the one and only, Gaspari Nutrition…sports nutrition for the best of us!

Today’s WOD is a little off the beaten path, but that’s what obstacle race training is all about; stepping off the pavement and into some wild terrain!

Today we’ll be focusing on upper body, cardio and core. You’ll be focusing on pull-ups, chin-ups, jump rope and the standard plank exercises.

You’ll be executing 20 total sets of exercise today, performing a specific superset sequence using two exercise movements for 10 sets and then another pair of exercise movements for another 10 sets.

Here’s how each superset sequence it will look and work:

• 1^st: 5 Sets of 10-12 Pull-ups X 5 sets of 1.5-minute Plank – 1-minute rest
• 2^nd: 5 Sets of 10-12 Chin-ups X 5 sets of 75 reps of the Bicycle Maneuver – that’s 75 per side! – 1-minute rest
• 3^rd: 5 Sets of 150 jump rope X 5 sets of 1-minute Plank – 1-minute rest
• 4^th: 5 Sets of 100 jump rope X 5 sets of 1-minute Plank – 1-minute rest

Please have a timer with a beep indicator to ensure that you keep tabs on your work time. At the end of each 5^th set, you’ll have a 1 minute break – It’s not a lot of rest, but it’s the type of training develops race worthy conditioning!

As always, if you feel like you need to take more rest, take it, but DO NOT sell yourself short, Spartans!!!

Exercise Descriptions:

Pull-ups: You’d be surprised where you can do a chin-up or pull-up. Look in your home for a sturdy ledge or outside for a fairly low hanging horizontal branch. Make it fun and challenging!

Take a shoulder width overhand grip and grip that handle as hard as you can (grabbing the handle with a tight grip will help to prepare your body for the exertion – Make every muscle in your body rigid just before you begin pulling up).

Before you begin, stick that chest out, keep those shoulders pinned back and depressed down, abs tight, arch that lower back, bend at the knees and interlock your ankles, look up to where you want to pull and as you pull up, begin your exhale and think about driving your elbows down into the ground below you.

Chin-ups: Take a shoulder width or narrower underhand grip and keep those elbows closer to your sides. Now, follow the same form as the Pull-up.

Plank:  Get on the floor and face downward. Take a modified pushup position, where your forearms are positioned on the ulna/pinky down with palms facing each other, but fists clenched. Forearms are in straight line, parallel to one another. Get up on your tiptoes and keep them rigid. Legs are completely straight and maintained in a tight position. Keep a neutral spine and make sure that the spine is straight and doesn’t dip down or peak up. I want you to focus on keeping your abdominals contracted throughout the full 1-minute, as this will both help to keep a rigid and straight spine, plus will further engage those abdominal muscles.

Jump Rope: Nothing fancy here, folks. Feet are hip width or closer. I want you to keep your hands down low and when you jump, allow the wrists to flip with the jump, so that the rope follows your jump pattern. This will ensure that your timing is accurate and will help prevent the rope from catching your toes. The objective is to keep the jump shallow, but keep the jump rope speed as rapid as you possibly can! If you find that you keep catching the rope on your toes, hang in there…it’s a simple timing issue and will be solved with some patience and commitment. I promise!

As always, please have some cool water, a towel and a timer with you.

Please remember to let Hobie and I know how you did!

Keep Going!

James Villepigue & Hobie Call

As Chris Davis continues his journey towards the healthiest life possible, he continually reaches new milestones.  After officially hitting a milestone of 50% of his total weight loss last week, he hit another one over the weekend walking over 20 miles.  As he settles into his new life in Pittsfield and under the watchful eye of Dr. Jeff Godin and one of Spartan’s Founding Few Joe Desena he is achieving levels of success he never thought possible.  Here is his journal entry for March 7, 2012.

Check out Chris Davis’s Week Three Video HERE.

5/7/2012

This weekend was a great weekend for me, I spent most of the weekend walking and I was able to walk over 20 miles, with an elevation climb of over 2,200 feet. I never thought I would walk 20 miles in a weekend. It funny to think I that soon will be doing that in a single day. I am so happy with the progress I am making here. In a few short months I will be walking 20+ miles a day a couple times a week. That is just going to be so cool!

This morning, my body felt good considering what I did to it over the weekend, but when I went to stand up I got a little light headed. Over the weekend Dr. Jeff Godin left me a glucose meter to try and keep an eye on my blood sugar levels when I get light headed like this. So I took emailed him and I ran the test. It was low, very low, so I ate a couple of oranges and I started to feel better. I guess this is something we are going to have to keep a close eye on days where I push hard to find my new limits.

It sounds like Mondays are now going to be my day to recover, so I have been taking it easy on the exercise today, and I have taken time to reply back to emails from fellow Spartans, and to go through and read the comments on Facebook and on the blog site. Thank you for all of your support, it is really helping me to keep my mind in the game.

Master WOD Archived

Spartan Race WOD Archive 5.1.12 to 5.6.12

by Jason Jaksetic

Are you signed up to receive your daily inspiration and WOD in your inbox?  If not, CLICK HERE.

WOD for 5.1.12

We become just by performing just actions, temperate by performing temperate actions, brave by performing brave actions.
-Aristotle

Perform.  Nothing fancy.  Just perform.

WOD

warm up with jump rope or easy jog

Push ups to failure
Run 1-3 miles
Pull ups to failure
Run 1-3 miles
20-100 crunches

cool down with a stretch

WOD for 5.2.12

Another great WOD brought to you by Gaspari Nutrition!

http://blog.spartanrace.com/wod-for-5-2-12-brought-to-you-by-gaspari-nutrition/

WOD for 5.3.12

When you come to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on. 

-Franklin D. Roosevelt

The goal of training is to push you to your limits.  Get there and hang tough and you will get stronger.

WOD

Warm up: 1 mile jog and/or jump rope.

Main Set:

2-5 mile tempo run.  (What is a tempo run?  It’s not a jog, that’s for sure.  10k race pace is a good place to start.)

2-5 100 meter sprints a 3-4 minutes recovery

25-100 crunches

10-50 burpees

Cool down:  stretch

WOD for 5.4.12

From one thing, know ten thousand things.
― Miyamoto Musashi

The burpee is an exercise that works you from top to bottom.  There are no fancy gadgets involved.  It’s just you and a movement, that, when done right will rip you up for whatever your goals are.

WOD

30 minutes of burpees

Every minute to a set number of burpees.  Example, 1 burpee per minute for 30 minutes will give you a 30 burpee workout.  Start there if you are a beginner.  If you are more advanced you can shoot for 3-5.  NEVER sacrifice form for reaching higher numbers.  It’s easy to brag about high numbers when you use bogus form!

WOD for 5.5.12

It’s not that I’m so smart, it’s just that I stay with problems longer. 

- Albert Einstein

Get outdoors this weekend.  Try something new that will work new muscle groups.  If you are traditionally a runner, go kayaking or canoeing.  If you are tearing it up in the weight room all week, try running.  We are only as strong as our weaknesses.  Find your weakness, decide to eliminate it, and then stick to this resolution

Wod for 5.6.12

Rest is for the weary, sleep is for the dead.

Today you should have been smart by training a weakness of yours.  Tomorrow go long your favorite discipline.  Runners, cyclists, swimmers, hikers – let’s see some high mileage.  If you are in the gym, make it a long sessions.  You will benefit from that extra time you bank!

CLICK HERE FOR THE PREVIOUS MASTER WOD ARCHIVE

There are days when the sun rises and sets without any distinguishable features.  The hours seem to slip by without any fanfare and without incident.  Then there are the days when something happens, something so impossible to believe that the world itself hasn’t stopped turning.  Today was a day like that for Chris Davis.  Today, he became half the man he once was.

Here is his journal entry for today.

5/2/2012

Last night I left the office, and walked back to Spartan Camp, we have decided to add a second climb up the mountain in the afternoon to help keep our progress on track. The walk went great, I was running a few minutes late for kung-fu, and I will just have to make sure I get out of the office a few minutes earlier to make sure I am not late for kung-fu today.

This morning, I was woken up by Joe and the film crew… There is nothing better than waking up to a camera recording.  It took me back to my days of being on-call as a Network Engineer for Comcast. Talk about going from 0-60 in 15 seconds, that will do it.

After waking up, we drove down to the Bikram Yoga Studio, where I had my second session, I feel that I did a lot better this time, but I know I have a long way to go. I the only part I had a real problem with was lying flat on my back… I guess it is a side effect of being so heavy for so long. I am sure that as I continue to lose weight, and get more flexible that this will work it way out like the other issues I have experienced so far…

Then came the big news.  After Yoga, we weighed me and I am down to 344.4lbs. That means I have now lost over 50% of my original weight when I began this journey. I am literally half the man I was and I feel great!

(Note from Chris:  I really need to take a minute and thank my fellow co-workers located in the Detroit XOC, Atlanta XOC, and Central Division Offices. Without your support I would not have made it this far. I also need to personally thank Wayne Pennington, for watching over our servers in Detroit, and Jimmy Gatt for watching over our servers in Atlanta, during my leave of absence. Also I need to thank Shane Portfolio for inviting me to join him during the Atlanta Spartan Sprint Race; his invitation changed my life forever.)

click here to read part 7…

click here to read part 5…

~By James Villepigue CSCS & Hobie Call

Ready for today’s WOD? Hope So!

When it comes to race specific training, I love breaking up the monotony and keeping things fresh.

Switching things up and working on many training variables at once, is the essence of obstacle race training.

One of the things that I do to keep this constant flow is to often include jump rope (or any other fast paced endurance based movement) in between each of my resistance training exercises.

Call it active rest or no rest at all, whatever you call it, this is the flow that you’d optimally like to keep on the race course. If you’re a Spartan racer, then you’re likely in it to win it, so training with a high-intensity pace is the name of the game.

Today’s WOD will take place outside (rain or shine) and will consist of bodyweight resistance exercise combined with high output/short duration based cardio Bursts.

We want you to find a hill, preferably a grassy hill with a steep incline and long enough to allow an all out sprint. We’re not as concerned about the amount of time it takes you to get up that hill, as much as we are about making sure that you get up it as fast as that body can get you there.

The beautiful thing about uphill sprint training is that it happens to be one of the safest ways to perform high intensity interval training. When you run uphill, you limit the need for your legs to fully extend, which takes stress off of your knees and hips. The angled position upward provides resistance to your body, making moving and accelerating difficult, which limits the typical ballistic weight that bears down on joints when running on flat pavement.

Another thing that makes uphill springing so awesome, is that the more you use your arms to propel forward, the more speed and torque you gain and this now means that the upper body is also working hard. For you advanced Spartan’s, strap some wrist weights on when you sprint and use an over exaggerated arm swing just as much as you use those legs to move.

Okay, so, you will preform one body weight movement followed by an uphill sprint.

You will perform 20 reps on each bodyweight exercise and without rest, immediately follow-up with an uphill sprint.

Take one full minute to recover between this superset, but no more. Keep tabs on your rest time and stay focused. If you feel like you need to take a rest, take it, but if you don’t need a rest, then stay strong and DO NOT QUIT!

Here’s the list of exercises – 20 Reps/All Out Sprint Superset

1.  Incline Pushups – Simply position your body on the angled upward hill, facing up. This position will help transfer the bodyweight resistance to your upper pectoral and anterior shoulder muscles. Keep the spine straight and rigid. You can vary the width of you hand position on each Burst/Set. The wider your hands the more shoulder and outer pectoral muscle fiber recruitment and the narrower your hands, the more triceps and inner pec stimulation.

X

Uphill Sprint

2.  Angled Alternating Lunges – Begin with 10 uphill lunges (10 per leg) and then right to 10 downhill lunges. During the downhill lunges, be careful to control the negative (lowering aka the lunge downward) and step down far enough to keep the knee from going beyond the knee.

X

Uphill Sprint

3.  Downhill Shoulder Pushups  – Face down on a steep portion of the hill and take a pushup position with fully extended arms. This time, bend at your hips and stick your rear way up high, so that your upper and lower body forms an arch. This position will transfer the body resistance to your shoulders. If you have very difficult time performing these downhill, try them on flat ground or for even less difficulty try them facing uphill.

X

Uphill Sprint

4.  Hill Dips (Triceps) – Lay on your back with your feet facing up the hill. Now, bend at the knees and keep your feet flat on the grade incline. Do your best to take a sit-up position and quickly place your hands at your sides, with palms down and fingers facing behind you. Simultaneously push off with your feet and hands, so that your butt is elevated off the ground. Keep the elbows tight to the sides of your body and focus on the triceps as you lift and lower your rear off the ground. To make it more intense, try staying on your tip-toes through the 20 reps.

X

Uphill Sprint

5.  Downhill Plank – Exactly what you’d imagine it to be – Dig in and stay focused!

X

Uphill Sprint

Repeat All Sets 2-3 Times!

As always, please have some cool water, a towel and a timer with you.

Please don’t forger to let Hobie and I know how you did!

Keep Going!

James Villepigue & Hobie Call

by Jason Jaksetic

4.24.12

Every week we are pleased to present a WOD brought to you by Gaspari Nutrition.  CLICK HERE for this week’s WOD that is hosted on our blog.

4.25.12

Even if you fall on your face, you’re still moving forward.

-Victor Kiam

Faster is a quality goal. Let’s work on speed.
WOD

Mile repeats. (track is optimal, but road/treadmill is fine)

15-20 minute warm-up run, put in a handful 100 meter accelerations to loosen up

3-5 one mile intervals with negative splits.  This means you run a one mile split around 5k to 10k race pace.  Each interval you run try to push it a little bit faster.  Recovery should be no longer than half the time it took you to run 1 mile.
.
Cool down with a jog, walk, then stretch

4.26.12

The turning point in the process of growing up is when you discover the core of strength within you that survives all hurt.

-Max Lerner

We are all growing as athletes daily.  But you have to take the first step to get on the path and start the process so that the rest will fall into place.  Here is a great workout to do even if you have limited time during the day.  Try not to obsess about how many reps and sets you do as you structure the numbers below according to your needs.  Doing 10% of a WOD is better than throwing yourself 100% on the couch.
WOD

warm up:  fast walk/jog/jump-rope

Main Set:
50-200 body weight squats
20-100 push-ups
jump rope
4 minute plank
50-200 lunges
10-50 pull ups

cool down:  stretch or hit up a yoga class

4.27.12

An ounce of performance is worth pounds of promises.
– Mae West

Time to stop reading WODs and saying ‘if only…’. Time to start training now, not ‘next week’. Not later now. Now now!
WOD

1 mile warm up jog

Main Set (repeat 3-8 times)

400 meters hard run then 30 burpees
1-2 minutes recover
30 burpees, then 400 meter hard run
1-2 minutes recover

10 minute cool down jog and stretch

4.28.12

The road to Easy Street goes through the sewer.

- John Madden

Hill Repeats.  Get after them!
WOD

warm up: 15 minute jog

6-8 hill repeats on steepest gradient you can find.  Run 30-90 seconds HARD.  You can do a set time for interval or set distance.  Recover 2 – 3 minutes between sets.  If you are doing this right you should be exhausted after 2-3.  Stay strong to the end.

Cool down:  Walk then stretch

4.29.12

There is no secret to success. What exists is the result of preparation, hard work, and learning from failure. 

-Colin Powell

WOD

Sunday is our long day for aerobic conditioning. Make it a fun run through the park or a suffer-fest of hiking. What is your ‘long’ workout? That is up to you.  But make it count.  Back off on your usual intensity and stretch this cardio workout out so that you spend at least one continuous hour with an elevated heart rate.

4.30.12

Tomorrow’s WOD in it’s entirety can be found at our blog.  It’s is the third installment in our Signature Founder’s WODs where the people behind Spartan breakdown their favorite workouts.

Barn Workout WOD

1. 30 Burpees
2. 30 Burpee/Pullups
3. 30 Pullups
4. 30 Box jumps
5. 30 Medicine Ball Squat Throws
6. 100 Jumping Jacks
7. 300 crunches
8. 30 body weight squats
9. 30 side kicks (each side)
10. 30 jumping lunges
11. 30 curls
12. 30 Tricip overhead presses
13. 30 frog jumps
14. 30 squat jumps
15. 3 x rope climbs

Stretch

Typically a workout like this is done after an outdoor workout.  Here is a short one to do first:

1. Stretch for 5 minutes
2. 10 x 100 yard sprints with 1 minute break between
3. 100 burpees
4. Slow 1 mile jog
5. Stretch for 5 minutes

All of Spartan HQ and a large portion of the Spartan community has become captivated by the Chris Davis story.  His journey from obese to healthy and active is one that many can identify with.  He’s not alone.

The sad fact, according to the World Health Organization is that in the United States, nearly 2/3 of the population are either overweight or obese.  The National Center for Health Statistics recently found that 34% of Americans are clinically obese.  That’s a startling statistic.  Additionally, nearly 50% of women and 25% of men classify themselves as “being on a diet” and are counting calories of limiting their food intake.

National Geographic recently published the following facts about mortality and the links to obesity in the United States.  It was published that the top three most statistically likely causes of death were heart disease (with a 1 in 5 chance), cancer (with a 1 in 7 chance), and stroke (with a 1 in 24 chance) are directly linked to obesity.

It’s clear that something has to be done, but diets are often unsuccessful in the long term.  The National Institute of Health has estimated that dieters can expect to regain two-thirds of their lost weight within a year of completing their diet plan. These dieters can expect to regain all of their weight, and possibly more, within 5 years.

What is required for long term weight loss and management is a change in lifestyle.  Chris Davis is currently going through that process in Pittsfield under the watchful eye of Dr. Jeff Godin and Spartan Race founder Joe Desena.

Chris has hit a road bump in his training physically and mentally.  He is finding out that his limitations are very real and he will have to keep pushing himself to be successful. It’s not easy to change a lifestyle so radically and what Chris is going through will not be the first or the last of his struggles.  His most recent blog demonstrates that.

Here is Chris Davis’s journal from yesterday.

4/30/2012

It has been a couple of days since my last blog; this has been for a couple of reasons, the first being my body has started to fail me. This has happened because Joe tried to push it a little too hard over the weekend. On Saturday I walked 5.2 miles from the lodge to the office at 4:15 am to go to my first Bikram Yoga class that lasted for 1.5 to 2 hours. Bikram Yoga is an incredible experience, and I recommend everyone try it at least once in there life. For me it pushed me to my limits and a little beyond. After the session I felt light headed and sick to my stomach,  but I have never sweat more in my life. I think that even after my time at Spartan Camp I will continue to do the Bikram Yoga. After yoga we headed back to the lodge to meet with the Spartan Trainer Candidates, which were going though there certification classes this weekend. About 1.5 miles from the lodge Joe had me get out of the car and walk the rest of the way to lodge. When I got there, everything was spinning, I and It took everything I had left in me just to make it to a chair and sit down. After a few minutes of sitting down, I was able to drink a small glass of Orange Juice, and eat an apple. After a few more minutes Joe said told me to get to bed, and just relax. When I got back to my room, I could not stop shaking; this when on for about a half hour before I finally fell asleep. I slept until about 4pm, after getting backup I came and got me for kung-fu. After kung-fu I went back to the lodge talk to some of my friends before going to bed.

Sunday, was It another long day, I walked over 7 miles throughout the day 3.6 miles of that I was caring my best friend the Green Spartan Pancake, By the end of the day feet felt like they were going to explode. I am currently fighting some blisters on my right foot, and a sore spot in the ball of my left foot. Dr. Jeff Godin thinks that changing from cotton to wool socks should help with the blisters, so I am looking forward to seeing it makes a difference.

This is now my 18^th day here at Spartan Camp, and I am starting to break down, mentally. I have been on an all fruit and raw vegetable diet, since arriving at Spartan Camp, while this has been great for losing weight, and my complexion. I have been having some problems with some of the side effects like having a foggy mind, and problems focusing on mental task. I understand that it part of the trade off, for focusing on my health, but where do I draw the line. Another issue that is currently weighing on my mind is I am having a trust issue with Joe right now. Part of it comes different points of views; His point of view is that I can only handle part of the information at the time. So one example is I was supposed to be on the fruit and vegetable cleanse for 14 days. To me, I took that as a goal to be meet, once it was done we were going to be moving on to the next goal. Joe’s though process was “if I tell Chris that we are going to do an all fruit and vegetable diet for a month Chris would not go of it, so I will tell him we are only going to do it for 14 days so it is something that is less daunting.”

This is hard for me because I feel like I’ve been lied to.  If he did not have any intention to ending the food cleans on day 14, then I would have liked to have known about it. Joe and I have talked about this this morning, and I am hopeful we can rebuild the trust between us. I know that if I am going to stay here we will need work this out.

[Editor’s Note:This morning Joe sent an email that said simply, “42 lbs in 19 days. Needless to say, he’s a believer now.”]

click here to continue on to Part 6…

click here to go back and read part 4…

by Margaret Schlachter, Spartan Chick

“It is not inertia alone that is responsible for human relationships repeating themselves from case to case, indescribably monotonous and unrenewed… But only someone who is ready for everything, who excludes nothing, not even the most enigmatical will live the relation to another as something alive.“ ~ Rilke

In life sometimes we are presented with opportunities. These opportunities may only present themselves once so when given the chance you can either continue along with your life or take the opportunity and see where it goes. A couple of months ago I was in a conversation about a new program starting through Spartan Race called the Certified Spartan Coach Program. I was lucky enough to make into the first certification weekend. This is how I found myself in Pittsfield this past weekend, experiencing a life changing two days surrounded by truly incredible people. But it all started with the application…

THE APPLICATION

Not just anyone can apply to be a Certified Spartan Coach, the mandates include training specific from one or the major organizations (ACSM, NSCA, NASM or ACE) or a four year degree in Exercise and Sports Science. Yes, this is a no joke certification. It was even asked for proof of this certification. All applicants were required to have five years working experience and a resume to back this up. We were each required to write two different essays the first of many more essays to come regarding our ideas on coaching and training.

To prove we weren’t just gym rats we were asked if we had completed in the last five years this short this: 30 Day Bikram Yoga Challenge, Marathon or longer, Century bike ride, or 50 mile mountain bike ride, 2 mile swim,  Super Spartan or greater. Again here we needed to include proof of results from races. A major part was do you live by the Spartan Code which included a list of several aspects of life.

Finally, the most rewarding part of the application was the letters of recommendations, eight from former or current athletes and an additional five character letters of recommendation. This was the most rewarding for me. I had letters of recommendation spanning from 10 year olds up through one of my former athletes who is now a Division 1 college athlete. It was wonderful to get to read what they all had to say about what they had learned from me. The most rewarding aspect was finding out the pieces that stuck with them the longest were the other pieces for many it was the emotional support I gave them and this struck home with me.

Dr. Jeff Godin who is in charge of the process I thanked as I submitted my 30+ page application for the exercise within itself was reward enough for me. However, I found out I would be making the initial cut and thus I found myself packing my bags on Friday and heading down the road.

THE PACKING LIST

Dr. Jeff is a veteran of the Death Race so when I got the packing list for the weekend I was not surprised at the randomness of some of the items. Our packing list included many basics; notebook, pens, pencils, snacks, workout attire, extra socks, calculator, copy of your consent form, jump rope, resistance band, and extra socks. None of these things stood out in my mind as strange items for a certification weekend.

The came the items that had the Death Race and Spartan Race flair to them; backpack, sleeping bag, headlamp, swim goggles, duct tape, first aid kit. But still being a Wilderness EMT and living in Vermont all of these items still seemed logical. Although this was the point where I was thinking we were going to be spending more time then they were letting on outside (sleeping bag).

Finally, the items that made you say WTF and scratch your head; “extra rope” no detail for what it was for, Aluminum foil, oven mitt (my thought cooking might be involved), and finally a copy of your favorite non-exercise book.  It was at this point I started to think carefully about what this weekend would actually entail. I sent Jeff an email:

Hi Jeff,

Not sure if your packing list is DR style or if you are actually going to give me a helpful answer. I spend far too much time around Joe. In the things you need list I had a question or two. 

1. Extra Rope – are we talking paracord like for rescue scenario or are we talking more like climbing rope or something like that. Also what lengths? I don’t need to begin to know what we are doing just want to have the right thing.

2. Aluminum Foil – For cooking or survival as in a foil wrap or heat blanket. I am assuming cooking but want to be sure.

3. Backpack, full on camping pack or light pack used for training.

His answer, DR style. So it was going to be one of those weekends. I packed with this thought in my head the whole time knowing it was a weekend which would most likely include very little sleep, high stress physically and mentally, and you would be judged at all stages of the weekend.

CERTIFICATION WEEKEND

Nothing with Spartan Race is easy nor is it ever a straight line. A weekend in Pittsfield is also never as it seems on paper. As I pulled into Trailside Lodge just 5 miles from my house armed with all I would need for the weekend I knew it was on. Quickly I got to meet my fellow candidates, an impressive group of people. We had trainers who work with college and professional athletes, CrossFit trainers, strength guys, MMA specialist, gymnastics backgrounds, Parkour Trainer, Movement Specialists, and many more. Over thirty people applied for the certification only seven were picked from this pool and an additional seven were invited based on experience and expertise. We had a highly knowledgeable and diverse group of individuals.

Friday

The weekend started off nice with some time to chat and get to know one another. At dinner we had a lively round table discussion regarding nutrition and supplements. This was the most relaxed the weekend would be. After our discussion the first of three tests began. We had two hours to answer over 350 multiple choice questions. Remember those scantron sheets you had in high school, yup it was one of those tests. The test was comprehensive to say the least, detailed questions regarding the all aspects of the body function and how it applies to fitness were asked. If you want this certification you better know all about ATP, the respiratory system, muscle development, how to train children, VO₂Max and many more topics. The topics were diverse and at the end of two hours I found the questions blending together. I was also still about twenty short of the last one when we had to hand the test in. Yes, wish I had studied more for that one! Only two people in the room actually answered all the questions and one is a current doctoral student finishing his PhD in exercise science.

After the test we met as a group and were informed that Bikram Yoga would start at 6:00am and we had two options A) Run (5 miles) to yoga or B) Run back to breakfast after the yoga session. This was the easiest decision of the weekend. Yes it cut into sleep time but knowing Bikram running home was not the better option. Also the run there was all downhill. We were then told we could go to bed. Knowing Spartan Race I felt as if we were going to be messed with overnight. I slept in my yoga clothing with shoes and essentials less than a arms reach away.

(More to come from Margaret on Spartan Coaching weekend)