No Offseason

This is undoubtedly the longest stretch of time that we will not be running in a mudder.  This is made worse by The Mudder Who Never Was which DC already documented.  There are currently 82 days and counting until our next Tough Mudder event which will lead to this stretch being our offseason.  Since our goal is to run in the "World's Toughest Mudder" our offseason will look quite different.  DC and I have started working with a crossfit coach twice a week which typically leaves me looking a lot like this...

I've also signed up for two triathlons.  The first of which I completed yesterday.  I am not fond of swimming, biking, or running but the combination of the three works for me.  My time was so awful that I wouldn't have even placed in the 60-65 year old category.  The entire race consisted of the phrase "On Your Left" which is the universal saying for "I'm about to pass your slow ass".  Unfortunately, I only muttered the phrase a couple of times, one of which was on my way to the snack table post-race.  These people are in tremendous shape but I wondered (sometimes aloud) during the race whether they would willing run through live wires, jump in ice filled dumpsters, or scale everest all while running 10-12 miles.  My next triathlon is in September so I will be incorporating more swimming and biking into my training.  The running has been a bit off track and that doesn't mean that I've been hitting the trails.  It really means that there has been a lack of focused running on my part.  I know DC is going to help me get that one back on track, on trail, and on target.

Another interesting part of the offseason is an opportunity to return to where this whole adventure started.  We began this journey at Wintergreen in our first ever Tough Mudder.  This time I am crossing over to the Spartan series which will be another first. The Spartan Race is coming to Wintergreen in August and I am showing up.  This time I will be 40 pounds lighter than the first attempt and ready to take on the mountains.  The first race had me convincing myself to move 10 steps at a time.  I would literally count ten steps and take a break.  I'm not sure what the Spartan Race holds or how I will fare.  I know I can at least get up to 20 steps at a time.  It is just another test on this very muddy road that the three of us are on.

That's a quick glimpse into my offseason or lack of an offseason.  Crossfit, two triathlons, and a Spartan Super Race are in my path before we hit the Tri-State Mudder.  The plan for Tri-State is two laps on Saturday followed by one on Sunday.  This was the initial plan for the No Mudder in Va Beach.  The difference with Tri-State is that it will be followed the following weekend with a return to the Mid-Atlantic Mudder.  I'm looking forward to the fine Winchester Italian food, Natural Ice Draft, and maybe even a cameo from Sandy at a laundromat. 

No time to rest and certainly no time for an offseason!  Honestly, we wouldn't have it any other way.

 

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Mid-Atlantic Video Madness

We have finally gotten around to posting all of the recorded madness from the Mid-Atlantic Mudder on our YouTube Channel.  There are nearly 30 videos across two days and 54 obstacles.  You can go directly to the Mid-Atlantic video playlist by clicking here.  In the interest of full disclosure please note the following things:

• Most of the videos include far too much footage of my face at a close range.  I will certainly move the camera further away from my big head during the Virginia Beach mudder
• There is also absolutely no footage of Superstorm Sandy contained in these videos.  Somehow we did not manage to capture her in her glory.

My favorite obstacle on the course had to be the one that wasn't really an obstacle but a throwback to my childhood.  Have you ever wanted to go down a giant slip and slide on the side of a huge hill?  We got to do that and more.  Check out the footage of Greased Lightning and be on the lookout for rare footage of the shamu flip! 

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Asylum Versus Insanity

I'm ten days into the Asylum workout, and I thought I would put together a quick post about my perceptions so far.

1.  There's much less aerobic workout in Asylum, and much more strength training.  This means that I may have to kick up my running a notch to keep my wind during Mid-Atlantic.
2.  There's nowhere near as much structure to the workouts.  With Insanity, it was very structured.  The warmup was pretty much always the same.  The stretch was pretty much always the same.  Then you went into 3 sets of 4 different exercises, with each exercise lasting 45 seconds and a 30 second break between sets.  Once you were done with that 10 minutes of work, you went on to another round of 4 different exercises.  The only real difference between Phase One and Phase Two was that another round of exercises was added in.  Once that was done, you went into a cool-down stretch and you were done.  Asylum doesn't have anywhere near that structure.  Predominantly it's a series of minute-long exercises that aren't repeated again.  The only workout (so far) that has been structured is the strength one.
3.  There's also much less explanation of the different workout positions in Asylum.  In the Insanity workouts, Shawn T would spend a little while demonstrating proper form and technique before starting a new exercise, which, quite honest got a little old after watching the video for the 6th or 7th time.  In Asylum, he doesn't do much of that.  He may demonstrate it once, but that's not done for every exercise.
4.  There's nowhere near as many breaks in Asylum.  The workouts start, and you'd better be ready.  You may get two or three 30-second break during an entire 45 minutes.
5.  One of the things I like best about Insanity is that it doesn't depend on any equipment.  As long as you have a space to jump around, you don't really need anything else.  In fact, I did most of my Insanity workouts in a space about 6 feet X 6 feet, and never really felt all that cramped.  Asylum, on the other hand requires several pieces of equipment.  A jump-rope (which is useless indoors unless you have 10 foot ceilings) and an exercise ladder come with it, but you also need hand-weights (or exercise bands) and a chin-up bar to really get the full effect.  I use pretty much everything except for the jump rope, but find the equipment cluttering up my house most other times.  I really need to find a place to keep all this stuff out of the way.

So what's the conclusion so far?  I've been impressed with Asylum, but I'm still a fan of Insanity.  There's something about my personality that works best with the structure of Insanity.  Also, I've had to do the Overtime workout in Asylum about 1/3 of the time to feel like I've really worked out, but I've definitely pushed myself in the workouts.  I feel stronger even though it's only been 10 days, and I may regret not having the cardio work that Insanity offers, but, in general, I like what I've seen so far.  After Mid-Atlantic, I may do one of the Insanity/Asylum Hybrid workout schedules that's available online.

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Impossible is Nothing

After reading Patrick's refocusing post I began to do some reflection of my own.  You hear people throw around the word impossible often.  The problem is that very little, if anything, is impossible when you are willing to dedicate yourself to it.  That's one of the many things that I have learned about myself so far on this journey.  With the right support network and a clear goal you will exceed your wildest expectations and continually raise the bar. Muhammad Ali said it best with the following words:

"Impossible is just a big word thrown around by small men who find it easier to live the world they've been given than to explore the power they have to change it. Impossible is not a fact. It's an opinion. Impossible is not a declaration. It's a dare. Impossible is potential. Impossible is temporary. Impossible is nothing." 

- Muhammad Ali

I believe as leaders, educators, and mudders that we should ban the word "Impossible" from our vocabulary.  There are things that might be improbable but under the right circumstances anything is truly possible.  There are many examples that I could use but I thought I'd use something that both DC and I fail to enjoy which is running.  The role that trail running plays in our training illustrates the impossible quote perfectly. 

When we first began this journey I struggled to run on a treadmill for any length of time.  The goal was always to run 2 miles and the treadmill would eventually hit the 2 mile mark.  The problem was that I spent a great deal of time resting on the side while the mileage racked up.  This seemed like an impossible task for me.  I've never been a runner and truly don't enjoy running.  

Fast forward to our preparation for the Pennsylvania mudder one year ago.  The goal was to complete a five mile loop on a local trail.  This would be the indication of preparedness.  Once again this task seemed impossible.  I kept scheduling time with DC to run the trail and we would eventually hit the goal of five consecutive trail miles.  It was no surprise that this training paid huge dividends in Pennsylvania.  In a short time span I had gone from a two mile struggle to completing five miles on a trail.  There were three options after completing this goal:

1. Rest on my laurels and let the hard work go to waste
2. Continue running the five mile loop and be satisfied with the results
3. Push myself and see how far I can actually go.

Many choose the first two options and I am really good at choosing the first one.  It's easy to rest and not keep pushing.  It's also easy to settle for what you are currently doing.  Pushing further always increasing the likelihood of failure.  This happened to me many times just getting to the elusive five mile mark.  Failure is just a temporary state of mind unless someone captures the moment and posts it on Facebook.  Even then, that failure serves as fuel for you to breakthrough the plateau.  If you need further proof check out Patrick removing the monkey from his back in Miami!

The training for Miami took me to another level.  We began extending the 5 mile run to 6, 7, 8, 9, and ultimately 10 miles.

Full Disclosure:  The 10 mile run was the result of DC and I getting lost on a mountain bike trail.  Nonetheless it goes down as a 10 mile run.  

Suddenly, we began talking about adding a short run to the schedule to go with the 10 mile run.  Can you guess what the length of our short run is now? The short run is typically the five mile loop that was once the impossible goal for a long run.  We now push ourselves to run it as fast as possible.  There is no question of completing it.  The question becomes, "How fast can you run the loop?"  It's comical to think that the ultimate goal of 5 miles less than a year ago has now become the new short run in the process of our training.  

It has moved from...

It is time to set new, audacious goals especially since something that used to be extraordinary becomes ordinary.  The training for the Mid-Atlantic Mudder has officially started.  The countdown clock waits for no one.  Although I still do not enjoy running it has become substantially easier.  Ten miles is the new starting point.  Who knows where we will end up?  

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