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RACE: TRAINING
obstaclemudrunner.co.uk
ForEliteAtheletes toFunRunners
Obstacle course racing throws up a number of different
challenges, whether you are running wild through the
woods, taking on obstacles, swimming through lakes
or dashing through open fields, you’ll be left aching in
places you didn’t know it was possible to ache! With
that in mind, if you’re planning to take on an OCR,
failure to prepare could leave you well and truly stuck
in the mud!
As the head trainer of the Wolf Run’s warm up team,
I’ve put together my top five exercises to maximise
your potential and get through a gruelling event,
whether it is your first or 51st run!
Exercise 1: Walking Lunges
– Walking lunges focus
on the key muscles and joints involved when running,
strengthening them to help you jump over obstacles.
Stand with your feet together and take a long step
forward with either your left or right foot. Bend the
front knee to 90 degrees and the back knee until it
almost touches the floor, making sure the movement
is slow and controlled to ensure glute activation
occurs.
Exercise 2: Bear Crawls
– During an OCR you will
certainly be getting down on all fours, crawling and
clambering through mud and bushes. Bear crawls
are a great way to get the core muscles stronger and
conditioned for these obstacles. Lower your body
so that you are balancing on your hands and toes.
Start with your right knee forward and bent so that
it just touches the right elbow. Place the left arm out
forwards with a straight left leg trailing behind. Crawl
across the floor between two challenging points,
keeping the body as low to the floor as possible. Turn
around and repeat back to the starting point.
Exercise 3: Ice Skaters
– Ice skaters are ideal for
improving ankle stability in preparation for uneven
ground and changes of direction. Balancing on
one foot, jump sideways as far as you can onto the
other foot, crossing the other leg behind to target
the glutes and make sure you control the landing.
Jump back across in the opposite direction doing the
same and repeat for a set time or for a set number of
repetitions.
Exercise 4: Pull-ups
– Many OCR’s have some sort
of pull up obstacle, usually in the form of monkey
bars. This is one of the hardest obstacle course race
challenges. Pull-ups can be performed in the gym,
in a park or in the garden. Start with one or two pull-
ups or as many as you can do and then rest. Keep
repeating for as many sets as you desire. If you can
only do one pull-up at a time, progress will appear
slow but keep trying, as one will definitely become
two, two will become three etc.
Exercise 5: Hill Running
– Hill running can be
performed outside or in the gym on a treadmill.
It is a Fartlek based exercise that will mimic your
run experience as the intensity, terrain and pace
of the run will vary. On the treadmill, choose a hill
or a random program and run at a pace you feel
comfortable with and for a testing length of time.
Outside, find a route that contains hills or steps.
Five Essentials
If you are running Obstacle Course
Races there are five essential training
exercises you should subscribe to.
Remember, for results to improve you will need to progressively overload your workouts
by working that little bit harder each time. Good luck!
Mark Hoban is
a fitness expert
for the
WOLF Run
wild running
event, a unique
combination of
three kinds of
off-road running:
mud runs, trail
and obstacle
runs.
whether it’s your first or 51st run!
