4H Mud Run and Obstacle Race Training, the book

Saturday I traveled south to Mullica Hills, NJ to run the 4h Mud Run for the second year. The boy was supposed to come with me, but he wasn't feeling up to it!

I wear this tank to most of my mud runs lately! It must be good luck!

The hubs came with me to take pictures, although he couldn't get on the course so there weren't many!

We got there with barely enough time to get my bib and pee. I hate starting that way, but it couldn't be helped!

I only had to wait about 5 minutes before we took our pledge (part if it was that we wouldn't cry!) and started out!

We started by walking across logs that spanned the final mud pit, and then we headed into the woods. Next was a military crawl through coffee grinds, and monkey bars over what looked like baba ganoush! No lie, it was squash, eggplant, and other veggies. It was gross. I know because I barely made it halfway across before I fell in.

Next was a short wall, and some pipes, some more running, a rope swing, and then this happened:

This pic came from the Facebook page! I made it halfway across before they made me jump off, I was taking too long. It was exhausting!

We ran though some lovely dyed water after that, crossed another log, and headed towards some more walls. It was tough! I made it through most if it, which made me so happy!

I met up with a group of guys that were helping me out a little over the next mile. There were some tubes filled with rotten veggies but the smell was horrible so I crossed on top of them instead. I scaled a log building and headed into the woods again. 

We came out of the woods, and I stepped down wrong and tweaked my calf. Ugh! In the clearing we found this:

Oh my heck! Climbing it was painful, and I had to stop three times to rest my calf. We had to go down the other side, and my new friends told me to slide down in my butt! They were so sweet, they waited for me to get down to the bottom before they moved on!

After some gravel hills, we went back into the woods. The boy at the opening told me to watch out, because it was rough in there. Uh oh, that's not good! There was a really long trail of mud to wade through and something akin to quicksand mud, and my new friends helped me one last time to get on the bank after my legs got stuck!

Yikes! Some more twisting trails and we came back out to that dirt mountain! We had to wade through a river to get there and luckily my calf was relaxing a bit and it was easier to go up and over. At this point, the boys had moved on, but I was with some girls and an older man, and we all commiserated together!

Back into the woods and out into the parking area for their version of the warped wall. I wasn't sure if I could handle it, with a sore calf, and was standing in the rain deciding, when a 71 year old woman got most of the way up! The men at the top pulled her the rest of the way.

Ok so now I have to go!

I waited my turn and ran up and grabbed the rope...

Can you see the rain in the pic? I got up to the first cheater bar with no problem, and managed to get to the second one with a little extra work before I let the volunteer help me over the top.

The rain made it just a little harder! 

We got to slide down into the final mud pit.

Race photo of the view down, it's sooo high! I love their shot of the obstacle being built! I tried to slow myself down but I hit the water pretty hard and had to climb out through the muck! Whew!

Overall it took about 90 minutes, but I had to wait at 2-3 obstacles so it was probably more like 75 minutes. Not super impressive, but there were worse times recorded at the site! I never turned in my time, so my name isn't on the list! The hubs told me what time I finished, though. 

It

Was

Exhausting!

If you have never done a mud run, this book that I got to read as a Fitfluential Ambassador is perfect for you!
*****I was provided this book in exchange for my review, and as always, all opinions are my own.*****

Written by Margaret Schlachter from Dirt in Your Skirt, it covers every facet of obstacle race training you could possibly imagine.

She starts with descriptions of all of the different races, provides plenty of training plans, and even includes the perfect diet to get you ready.

She moves on to cover mental preparation which is very important during an obstacle race because you don't want to be afraid going into the race!! You will definitely know exactly what to expect!

She then moves on to show you how to master the course, telling you how to handle every possible obstacle that will come your way and how to train for each one!

I will definitely be reading this book again in the next two weeks while I plan for Pretty Muddy in Chicago!

She even includes a list of what you should bring with you and what you should wear to maximize your experience.

If you're planning your first mud run, or even your second or third, this book is definitely for you.

I highly recommend you stalk Margaret on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
Margaret is so inspiring, and you definitely don't want to miss out on all of the information she provides!

Have you ever done a mud run? What is the hardest mud run you have ever done?