Obstacle Mud Runner - issue 12

30 obstaclemudrunner.co.uk ForEliteAtheletes toFunRunners RACE : BOULDERING improve movement and rhythm 5 Reasons... Why Bouldering Is The Perfect Addition To Your OCR Lifestyle Join me, Sam Winkworth as I talk you through 5 more reasons why Bouldering could be the perfect addition to your OCR Lifestyle: 1 Grip strength development One thing obstacle racers need more of is grip strength and upper body endurance. Bouldering as an activity, over time, can help to develop your grip and forearm muscles as well as give you more upper body endurance for those upper body intensive obstacles. There are 3 types of grip strength, crush, support & pinch. It’s important to train all 3 types equally for OCR so that you don’t incur any muscle imbalances or strength deficits which could lead to injuries later on down the line. Bouldering has different holds and routes that will challenge your grip strength in different ways. 2 Movement flow Navigating those grip-intensive obstacles isn’t just about how strong your grip is, (if you do it right you’re never hanging still on an obstacle right?) it’s about how strong your grip is when combined with body movement. With that in mind, your movement flow when you’re gripping needs to be sound also. Bouldering & climbing can help improve your movement flow & rhythm which in time will help to transfer over to obstacles that require such skills. 3 It’s fun It’s healthy to have another hobby outside of OCR otherwise you could run the risk of becoming a ‘one dimensional douche bag’ and bending your friends and families ears about your new hobby! Bouldering & climbing centres you’ll find are also friendly, relaxed, laid back environments, with an emphasis on learning You could run the risk of becoming a ‘one dimensional douche bag’ We already know that climbing is an activity that provides a whole-body strength workout for obstacle racers – arms, core, shoulders, fingers, legs even toes are all being used without us having to think about it too much. But how else can bouldering benefit us for obstacle course racing?