Do you think your daily fitness workouts are hard? Most of you who bike, run or go to the gym on a regular basis would probably respond 'Yes'.If so, try to keep up with Bridget Runion as she does workouts to prepare for an upcoming Spartan Race she'll be competing in on Oct 31.
Even though Runion is a petite 30 year old lady who probably weighs around 100 pounds soaking wet, her workouts would make most pro football players cringe.
She's a female version of the Energizer Bunny with extra high-voltage batteries installed.
Her workouts include hanging from overhead bars and doing what appears to be endless repetitions of ab-strengthening leg lifts (toes up to the overhead bar), chin-ups, and running up and down a flight of stairs while carrying a heavy medicine ball.
She adds strength-building workouts that include hard sets of tire flips using big heavy tires, does fast endurance runs on a treadmill, and 'cools down' by teaching various aerobics classes at Community Health Club.
This isn't her first experience related to sports and fitness.
"I started gymnastics at age three and continued for the next 12 years", explains Runion. " Once I entered high school I played volleyball, basketball and softball in addition to competing on the power lifting team. I was also a cheerleader in high school and my first year of college."
The event she's training for is the Spartan Race Beast schedule for Oct 31 at Rough Creek Lodge in Glen Rose, Texas.
She and other competitors will face a grueling 12 mile race against the clock that includes 25 or more obstacles such as rope net climbs, carrying heavy rocks, tire drags, spear throws, wall climbs/jumps, barbed wire crawls and other fitness tasks that the seemingly-sadistic race organizers dream up.
All of this will take place on rugged off-road trails that include steep hills.
Competitors may not know what specific obstacles they'll face since course instructions are announced verbally during the pre-race briefing by the race director or at a specific obstacle.
If a competitor fails to complete an obstacle section they are must complete 30 'penalty burpees' before continuing on to the next part of the course, with one repetition of a burpee being a full chest-to-the-ground pushup followed immediately by a feet-off-the-ground vertical jump.
Runion says she wanted to do a Spartan race instead of a marathon, a triathlon or some other event because of the unique challenges involved.
"Spartan is a mixture of strength and endurance. The challenge of the obstacles is what appealed to me more than the running alone."
Her personal goal is to finish the event without having to 'pass' any obstacles with the alternative option of 30 burpees.
Runion says there are many reasons why people sign up for events such as Spartan races, mud runs and 'boot camp' activities that emulate military training.
"There are several different reasons why people would sign up for such events. Some do it for the social aspect while others choose to simply challenge their ability. For me, it is a test of not only my physical strength, but my inner strength."
If you want to test your inner strength and physical ability, go find Runion at Community Health Club and try to keep pace with her during her Spartan-prep workouts. Be sure to bring your 'A' game if you try to do her workouts - you'll need it.
You have to train like a Spartan to prepare for a Spartan race.
Upcoming Events
Oct 21: Longhorn Cyclocross Series race #3, http://tinyurl.com/longhorncx
Oct 24: Come Run For The FUND 5K, 10K, and half
marathon, http://tinyurl.com/BronteVFD
Oct 28: Longhorn Cyclocross Series race #4, http://tinyurl.com/longhorncx
Nov 14: Masochist Run, roadlizards.org
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