Atkins says keeping heart rate high wihile targeting grip strength every other exercise works “pretty well.” Check out a sample strength workout below:ĭIRECTIONS: do each exercise one after the other with minimal rest. “A lot of the strength I develop is from doing so many obstacle course races and the grip strength training and rock climbing or bouldering.”Ī sample Atkins strength workout is a circuit made of 4-5 exercises that involve grip strength and 4-5 exercises that don’t. “The strength training is mostly bodyweight and it’s more focused on injury prevention than developling all-out strength,” Atkins says. As for the strength training, Atkins does it all outdoors and hasn’t been to a gym in about a year. The Canadian’s favorite mountain to frequent is Bruce Trail, a rocky, up and down mountain in Caledon, Ontario preferring this site because it’s close to his residence. On average, Atkins runs 55 miles per week, which sometimes reaches as much as 80 miles/week with the lightest weeks being as little as 35 miles per week. He has a very positive attitude.”Īt one month out from WTM 2016, Atkins shifted his focus on training for shorter courses to doing longer runs and incorporating more strength training. “Jon’s biggest strength is his attitude: he’s a happy-go-lucky guy who loves to run and overcome challenges. “From racing with Jon and spending time with him, I knew that we had compatible personalities and outlooks on life, and I have a lot of respect for him as an athlete,” Atkins says. “The biggest focus is on the 100 miles and everything else is secondary.”Ītkins explains that pairing up with Albon was a natural, seamless fit. “This makes the possibility of getting higher mileage much more feasible.” “Having two people cuts the probability of someone rolling an ankle or getting stomach issues in half,” Atkins says.

Atkins sees the 2016 rule change from a 4-person team to a 2-person team as an advantage. While on paper this duo looks to be riding the best wave leading into WTM 2016–Atkins won the short course at the Obstacle Course Racing World Championships and Albon won the long course-racing for 24 hours at Lake Las Vegas is a completely different beast. “This year our main objective is run 100 miles or more.”Ītkins will be teaming with Jon Albon of the UK, his Sinergysports teammate from last year who he shared the victory with. “The biggest focus is on the 100 miles and everything else is secondary,” say Atkins. It’s a task he accomplished before, but that was an individual competitor in 2013, not as a part of team gunning for a $100,000 prize presented by Cellucor. Three-time World Toughest Mudder Champion Ryan Atkins has a clear goal heading into the 2016 rendition of the toughest event on the planet in Las Vegas, NV.

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