Mud Madness Prep Course: SPARK It Up Team Training Info

SPARK It Up Training Team and Fellow Mud Madness members from Everywhere!

We’re excited to begin our training for the September 8th Tough Mudder. Monday workouts will meet promptly at 7PM. Saturday workouts will meet promptly at 9AM. All workouts will be posted here. Alerts will be made on facebook and twitter. Our week 1 training schedule will be up very shortly.

On training day one, we will introduce our SPARK Staff, talk some logistics about workouts and get everyone acquainted. As some of you have mentioned, there will be training days that each of us miss for one reason or another. This is ok. Life happens. However, we will all do our best to make each training session we can and also support our fellow Mud Madness members during training if it is needed.

Note: all of our workouts are going to be posted via tweets and our blog. If you’re going to miss a day, you should keep an eye on these outlets so that you can make up the training session and not skip a beat!

Twitter: @SPARK_Bod_Doc
Blog: http://sparkphysio.blogspot.com/

Also be sure to share the info with friends who are running the Tough Mudder race and may be interested in joining us. Drop-ins are welcome at $20 per day; we can accept cash or check for drop-ins.

We will work out rain, shine, monsoon, hurricane or otherwise. Here is some info that should prove helpful:

Highly recommended but not required. A training-gear bag with the following:

·         Change of clothing

·         Large towel

·         Gloves: football, gardening or otherwise. We will be doing a lot of moving around on our hands and using the environment to improve our grip strength. However, there is no need to mar up our hands if possible. I wear these gloves FYI: http://www.underarmour.com/shop/us/en/pcid1227749?cid=PS%7CGoogle%7CPLA&CAWELAID=931007465&cagpspn=pla. These are relatively inexpensive and can be purchased at nearly any sporting goods store. There are many other brands and types ranging in price from $15-$50. Find what is comfortable for you.

·         New-ish running or training sneakers that fit well. These will be your Madness shoes. While minimalist sneakers like the NewBalance Minimus are excellent shoes to walk and resistance train in, I do not recommend them for this type of race or training as they will not provide you with the ankle support needed for the uneven terrain nor the cushioning for the various different surfaces you will be running on. I’d recommend finding one pair of sneakers for training and the eventual race. The tradition at the end of the Tough Mudder race is to throw your sneakers in the ‘pile’ after the race. These sneakers will likely not be worn again by you but they are cleaned and donated to those who are less fortunate.

·         Athletic tape: each of you should bring a roll. Before each workout we will take time to tape wrists and any nicks while we talk about the days’ exercise circuits. The biggest risk for injury during the race and training is likely to ankles and wrists. We’re going to work hard to prevent injuries where we can.

Venues:

HQ: SPARK Mill Rd

2331 Mill Rd, Alexandria, VA 22314

Base Camp:

2609 S Walter Reed Dr, Arlington, VA 22206

Superman Hill to Fort Barnard Park

2101 South Pollard Street, Arlington, Virginia 22204

Angel Park

299 W Taylor Run Pky, Alexandria, VA 22314

Carlyle Quad

In front of 330 John Carlyle Street, Alexandria, VA 22314

We’re excited to begin training. Have Fun. Be Safe. Train Hard. TOUGH MUDDER!!