As I am getting ready for another season of Obstacle Course Races (OCRs), I am pondering my improvement in certain areas. I focused a lot on my running form, endurance and upper body strength in the off-season. When I tested myself to see how far I had come, I realized that I still had some major deficiencies & imbalances in my upper body strength, especially with regards to my pull up strength. I am definitely a bit disappointed in myself as I expect more from my efforts.
I realized that I was going to do more burpees as penalties this season. The Spartan Race penalty for failing an obstacle is 30 burpees. I averaged 4-5 fails a race last year… Rope Climb, Anything with rings, spear throw, Twister, etc.) Each failure adds at least 3 minutes to my time. It sucks and I do not enjoy doing the burpees. I did not create the penalty, but I assume the burpees are meant to encourage me to succeed on the obstacle. No big deal. A set of burpees is an excellent workout and I can do them without issue.
So why is something that is good for me a punishment? This is similar to running laps when you make a mistake in practice. As a former track coach, I find it laughable that a coach would have someone run laps because that someone made a mistake. Isn’t running supposed to be glorified in most sports as opposed to being the go-to form of punishment? What if I want to run the laps as opposed to completing the task the coach wants me to do. In this case, the punishment is not encouraging a change in behavior, it is encouraging failure.
I want to run a clean OCR race and complete each obstacle without issue. If I do not, it is ok, I can just do a set of 30 burpees each time I fail and then move to the next obstacle. Therefore, is the punishment making it ok for me to fail?
I am terrible at climbing ropes. I can teach my oldest son to climb a rope, but I fail every time I tried to do so myself. Even with failing to climb the rope, I can successfully complete an obstacle course race, get my official time, and earn my medal. Is it ok that I can just rely on my 30 burpees to get me by to the next obstacle. The punishment is not changing my behavior (to climb the rope), thus the punishment is failing its purpose (to change behavior).
I may not want to do the burpees, but I can do the burpees, and I will do them because I still cannot climb the rope. At this point, after 9 obstacle course races, has the punishment become my enabler?
Be careful of the consequences/punishments that provide you with an excuse to fail. Do not rely on them to earn success. If you cannot climb a rope, instead of relying on burpees, practice until you can do it, then practice until you can do it better. Do what it takes to be successful and stay away from things that just let you get the job done.
Every day is an Interview
Everyday is an Interview 