Spartan Training: Day 1

As a young child I used to watch American Gladiators religiously. In addition to American Gladiators, I used to watch Nickelodeon's GUTS. Both shows put contenders against themselves in strenuous activities, all leading to a final challenge. On American Gladiators it was THE ELIMINATOR; on GUTS is was the Aggro Crag. These shows appealed to both my sadistic, bring the pain, personality and my competitive nature.

The way I looked at both the Eliminator and the Crag was simple, don't let it beat you. To me it seemed simple, assess the situation and go for it. So whether it was climbing a cargo net, swimming 25 meters, running up a treadmill, or sprinting up a mountain while big rocks came tumbling down on your head, I was down for the challenge. Unfortunately I never made it to either competition, so then I heard of adventure-type races like the Spartan, Warrior, and Tough Mudder.

So the decision has been made. The first weekend of June I will take part in the Tri-State NY Spartan Sprint. All gimmicks aside, the reason I chose to do a Spartan Race is because, well, it is the most local of these obstacle course type races.

Personally I have never been much of a runner. I could keep up with most people in a dead sprint, but once that sprint went past a few hundred yards, I was done. So a marathon/triathlete I am not, in fact I loathe running. So the next best thing to me, a Spartan Race. Not too far, enough obstacles to break up the run, and the defining factor, 30 minutes away where I live. These factors appeal to me and a group of my friends. So we will be entering the race with the thought process of beat the race, not let it beat us.

My training regimen must change as a result. No more can I ignore cardio workouts and just go through the motions. I have a goal now, a goal that I must be ready for. The plan is simple, lift heavy weights, a lot of times, and with limited rest. Cardio-wise, the plan is to progressively get to where I can run for 3-5 miles without stopping. Ya know because in most cases I'd rather re-break my ankle then to take another step. So the treadmill and arc trainer will become familiar allies, as will my jump rope and battle rope. Hopefully I will be prepared enough to perform, hopefully.

More Barefoot Running

Today I did my longest Vibram Five Fingers run... 2.25miles. While this was only a treadmill run, it still is my longest "barefoot" run to date. Needless to say my calves are on fire. However the combination of my girlfriend doing The Super Spartan Race and my buddy Chris having ran a Tough Mudder and now preparing for the Warrior Dash Missouri competition has got me itching to do something extreme... Any suggestions would be appreciated.

So the meat and potatoes of what I find most important about today's run...

"Barefoot" Running

So I'm an idiot, if you haven't figure this out by reading my posts or knowing me in person. Actually, let me rephrase this, there are certain times when I act like an idiot. Monday was one of those times...

So on Monday I decided to run in my Vibrams (see my earlier posts). Now I haven't exactly been progressing up my mileage when running with these bad boys. In all honesty, I have really just been walking in them, jumping rope, doing sprints, and lifting in them. This is all fine and dandy cause I'm slowly getting used to them still. My feet don't get sore after jumping rope or sprinting anymore, guess those foot muscles are getting strong. However, I haven't ran a long distance at a decent rate in months while wearing either Vibrams or Sneakers. I just haven't had the desire to go running, mainly because I was lazy and stressed (more on that another time).

So back to Monday, I decided I needed to go on a run after a long weekend (went to a wedding and ate/drank too much). So I start out at a nice calm warm-up at ~18min mile pace and slowly start moving up to ~12min mile pace. Yes, that is slow so don't judge me, remember I haven't really ran since December. At the ~12min pace I was feeling really good and decided to jump up to ~8min pace. I get to ~1.25miles when my calves start to tighten up, apparently I forgot to drink water all weekend, silly me. So I dial it back down to ~12min pace and finish at 1.5 miles. No cool down, no stretch, no nothing, genius right?

It is now Wednesday, my birthday in fact, and my calves are stiff. The intelligent Athletic Trainer that I am, I let them get to this point. I have barely stretched them, haven't heated them up or iced them down, and I haven't taken advantage of my access to the E-Stim unit I have at work, or the TENS unit I have at home.

Bottom line, I knew better than to push it, but sometimes I can't help myself. Guess I'm just like this guy...