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Let’s Get Physical

Alumnus and fitness expert will get you in peak form through obstacle course workouts

The following is an excerpt from the new book Obstacle Fit: Your Complete Training Program to Run Fast, Conquer Challenges, and Discover Your Inner Spartan, Mudder, or Warrior by Pete Williams. Read a Q&A with the author.

Come with me now for an obstacle race workout. Let’s assume we’ve done a five-minute core warm-up routine. Now, let’s run out my driveway and turn left. Instead of running on that concrete sidewalk and pounding our joints, we’re going to run on the narrow grassy strip between the sidewalk and the road.

It’s only a quarter-mile to a waterfront park, where my obstacle race course already is laid out. It’s not an official course, but that’s okay. Nobody else knows about it.

As we enter the park, let’s stay off the roads and run on the grass along the water. It’s low tide and I suppose we could leap over the barrier wall and into the ankle-deep water to run in the muck, but let’s save that for another day.

Even though we’re in Florida, this park has some hills. We’re actually dealing with a slight incline now. See that park bench at the top? Wait for me when you get there.

But don’t sit down! The bench is part of the course. It’s time to do a dozen incline pushups. Since you’re new to this, place your hands on the top of the bench, where you might rest your back were you using the bench for its intended purpose. Otherwise grab the front of the bench; the lower angle makes the pushups more challenging. When you’re finished, flip yourself around and do a dozen dips off the front of the bench.

All done? Let’s run some more. I love the park bench routine and we’re going to repeat it every time we see a bench.

Up ahead is one of the park’s many shelters, those covered pavilions used for picnics and other events. They’re basically concrete slabs with a roof and picnic tables. It’s a weekday so nobody is using them.

The first thing we’re going to do is climb over the picnic tables. Yes, all 10 of them. Obstacle races are full of similar modest obstacles, sometimes many in a row, so this is a perfect simulation.

Warmed up yet? I know I am. The pavilion roof has exposed beams and that one going across is a perfect pull-up bar. Let’s jump up and see how many we can do. I’m going to aim for a set of 10, but however many you can do is okay for now.

Had enough of this pavilion? Let’s run some more. I love this park with all of its wildlife, its killer views of the water, and the kids’ playgrounds it has scattered throughout. In fact, here’s one of my favorites right now, a rock park.

See those faux boulders placed about three feet apart? They’re right out of an obstacle race. Let’s climb across those a few times. How about those ropes strung tightly between two big rocks? We could walk across them with our hands, our feet hanging, but for now let’s do 10 dips. Those are tough enough on a stable surface, but this is going to challenge our stability even more since there’s some give to the ropes.

Nice job. Don’t stop, though. See that four-inch-wide railing around the rock park that keeps all the shredded rubber mulch from spreading beyond the playground? It’s a perfect balance beam! I’m pretty sure the designers of this rock park didn’t have this in mind, but it will serve our purpose.

Ugh. I slipped off already. I’m going to do ten Burpees as punishment. If this were the Spartan Race, I’d have to do thirty and get back on the course. Here I’ll get back on the beam and if I fall off again, yep, ten more Burpees.

Above: bench pushups; Below: Burpees

Okay, enough of that. It’s funny how your balance improves with the threat of Burpees looming. We can’t leave the playground without taking on that rock wall. This isn’t one with pegs and footholds, but rather a big hunk of faux rock with grooves and indentations. That’s tougher, but much more like an obstacle race.

Yes, I know. Those young mothers over there have been giving us some dirty looks. It’s a shame they’ve forgotten what it’s like to play like a kid. Let’s hope they put their smart phones down long enough to let their children indulge.

All right, let’s run some more before the moms call the park ranger. See that hill up ahead? You might wonder what it’s doing in Florida. It’s actually an ancient Indian mound. The county parks department was nice enough to pave an asphalt trail up it, but I’d rather sprint up the grass.

You ready? Go!

Whew. That took about 10 seconds but we’ll spend about 20 walking down. Let’s go again.

We’ll complete this work-rest interval five times for a total of six repetitions. That’s 10 seconds work and 20 seconds rest for a total of just three minutes. I don’t know about you, but that’s one tough three minutes.

Let’s recover by running along the water some more. The key with obstacle racing is to keep moving. We never want to be one of those people who complete a challenge and then walk to the next one. This is a race, after all.

Okay, it’s time for something completely different: volleyball. Yes, there are only two of us and we don’t have a ball. But that sand court over there is available. Let’s stand in front of the net with our hands up. Now take three steps laterally to our right and jump as if blocking at the net. Three more steps and jump again. Repeat and turn to the other side of the net.

I call this routine “Middle Blockers” and it’s tough on a hard surface, let alone sand. Let’s do two sets of Middle Blockers and get back to running.

My heart is pounding, but isn’t it interesting how quickly we recover? That’s the idea; we always want to keep moving in an obstacle race. What’s that up ahead? Yes, that’s definitely a park bench. It’s time for more push-ups and dips. Who knew a park bench could be such a versatile piece of training equipment?

We haven’t run continually for any great length of time yet, but that’s about to change. Follow that trail heading into the woods. I love trail running since it’s easier on the joints and forces you to stay engaged. Otherwise you might trip on something or run into a branch. There are turns and dips, the occasional hole and mud, and even the occasional small critter to dodge.

Now we’re coming to a clearing. This is where the park service dumps mulch for anyone who wants to claim it. Apparently the program isn’t too popular because those piles have gotten pretty high, forming a perfect obstacle.

I’ve yet to do an obstacle race involving mountains of mulch, but every race has dirt, sand or other small hills to navigate. So the mulch is good preparation.

What’s that? You have mulch in your shoes? Hey, at least they’re not wet and caked with mud. C’mon. Let’s head over to that softball field.

No, we’re not going to run around the diamond. But look what they have on either side. Benches! I know, those aren’t park benches, but let’s do another set of push-ups and dips.

We’re winding down now. The great thing about obstacle race training is that it’s non-stop, so you’re packing a lot of work into a relatively short period of time. We never want to just go on a long, steady state run or be one of those people in the gym who rests for three minutes between sets.

I’d much rather hang out at the playground – literally. See that playground up ahead? We must tackle those monkey bars, which appear in every obstacle race. It’s funny that people rarely train for monkey bars, even though it’s possible at any playground.

Let’s go across twice. Yes, I know, these bars are meant for shorter people. Just pull your feet back. When you get to the last bar, do a couple of pull-ups for good measure.

Ready to head home? It’s about a half mile out of the park and then another quarter-mile back to my house. We could stop at one of those shelters and do that routine again, but let’s keep moving.

Now that we’re out of the park, we need a break. We’re not going to stop, but we need an obstacle. Look, a bus stop with a park bench!

This park bench has advertising on it. Don’t mind that real estate agent staring at us. I know this looks a little ridiculous, which is why the cars are honking. Just remember, some of those folks are headed to the gym for another boring workout.

All we have left is a quarter-mile sprint home and we’re done.

Here are a few key ground rules of Obstacle Fit:

WARM YOUR CORE: An active warm-up is important before an obstacle race or training session since you’re using your entire body, often in ways you don’t expect. Front and side planks, glute bridges, walking lunges, and lateral lunges not only prime you for movement they’ll boost performance and help prevent injury.

PLAY LIKE A KID: In an obstacle race you’ll be called upon to navigate monkey bars, balance on beams, climb walls, and traverse ropes. Chances are you can find all of those things at your local playground. This is a great excuse to play more with your kids. Don’t have kids? Borrow some nieces or nephews. No kids available? Use the playground in off hours.

RUN INTERVALS: Long, slow distance runs have a place in some training programs. Interval training builds speed and is especially important in obstacle race training, which combine intervals of running and obstacles. After a warm-up run, alternate between intervals of work and rest, i.e. three minutes of running at 80 percent followed by 3 minutes of walking or light running.

RUN HILLS: Unlike the steady, paved inclines of road races or the run portion of triathlons, obstacle races feature short, steep, off-road climbs. Here, too, your local park can be a perfect training ground. Sprint uphill and take twice the time to walk down. Repeat several times. Be sure to keep your stride compact to prevent hamstring pulls.

MIX IT TOGETHER: Obstacle race training is not just about running, of course. Simulate the rhythms and challenges of a race by stopping every half a mile to do a dozen pushups, pull-ups, or burpees. You can perform 30 mountain climbers or body-weight squats. Or do a combination of two or three exercises after each half a mile. The key is to make it continuous, mimicking a non-stop obstacle race.

BE A KID AGAIN: Children are natural obstacle races. They instinctively climb or leap to touch anything in their paths. They attack playground “obstacles,” in a non-stop flurry of running. Instead of working out in a gym, play outside to train. You might find you enjoy it just as much as the muddy obstacle race itself.

Read a Q&A with the author.