The World of Obstacle Course Racing – Part 1: What is an OCR?
In today’s popular fitness culture many different fitness “fads” or “trends” are beginning to grow as people look for more challenging outlets for fitness. You might recognize terms like Bootcamp, Seal-Fit, TRX, Kettlebell, Cross-Fit, and HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) to describe vigorous workouts and/or group training sessions for advanced athletes and those looking for their next challenge. These cutting-edge classes and group workouts draw gym goers in due to their ability to push your limits, test your metal, make you dig deep, and prove what you’ve got. These radical workouts have grown in popularity due to the growth of another unconventional sport out there that now rivals the popularity of traditional sports. I’m referring to the new world of Obstacle Course Racing!
Obstacle Course Racing, or OCR as we in the obstacle race world call it, has fast become one of the biggest movements in fitness. With multiple races across the nation and multiple companies popping up all over, the options for the fitness customer couldn’t be better! Everyone from gym beginners to expert fitness elites can find a race that will challenge them and leave them wanting more. With all of these companies and races out there the biggest obstacle an OCR racer may encounter (besides the actual obstacles on the course) will be choosing the right race for them. Knowing what company and what race you’re getting yourself into is the most important thing before preparing for any type of obstacle course race.
Each of the OCR companies offers a different race at a different level of difficulty although they all share one thing in common…MUD! The one constant you will find at every OCR is mud, and lots of it! Mud is everywhere and used in everything when it comes to an Obstacle Course Race. I highly suggest you be okay with getting muddy before attempting one of these races. Besides sharing “tons of mud” this is where the similarities end.
The Spartan Race, Tough Mudder, and Warrior Dash are the 3 big names out there in the OCR world. Each race differs on two major components: course length and difficulty.
All of these courses are designed to fit your fitness level as well as push you out of your comfort zone, but one thing holds true… you will need to train if you want to succeed at any of them. Be sure to read an upcoming post for Part 2 which will review how to train for one of these races.
By: Bryce Donald, BS, ACE-CPT, Fitness Specialist/Personal Trainer at VHWFC
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