Training

Each week we will reveal a Survival obstacle and the training tips you need to tackle each one. See September issue of Men's Health for your Survival of The Fittest training plan (on-sale 4th August).

Obstacle: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10

Obstacle 1: The Hay Bale Scramble

We show you how to tackle it

Getting your leg over

The gun has gone and you've managed to survive the scrum at the starting line. But before you can pull away from the pack you hit the first obstacle: a 3 metre stack of hay bales. The only way past is over them, so you're going to need to be able to explode from a standing position and then haul your own body weight over the top. To train for this you'll need to work on your plyometric and upper-body strength. Here's how:

Bastados

How? Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, bend your knees, and place your hands on the floor either side of your feet. Thrust your legs out so they're completely extended. Do a press-up and bring your feet back to the squat position. From there jump as high as you can, bringing your knees to your chest, then start again. Aim for 3 sets of 30 seconds each with 30 seconds rest between each set.

Why? Not only will they give your legs the explosive strength they'll need to get you airborne, but you'll condition yourself to recover quickly after being fatigued. And believe me, they will fatigue you.

Pull-ups

How? Grab the bar with an overhand grip with your hands slightly wider than shoulder width apart. Pull yourself up so your head is above the bar, pause and with control, slowly lower yourself all the way down until your arms are straight. See how many you can do, then repeat twice to failure

Why? Pull-ups will work your back, your biceps and improve your overall strength. They'll also condition you to shift you own bodyweight, which will help you get over those hay bales.

Obstacle 2: Army Assault Course

We show you how to get through the Army Assault Course

In the Army now

Enjoy being forced to scramble over awkward obstacles while uniformed men yell at you? Then the next station is for you. The Army Assault Course is a classic test of fitness, strength and agility, designed to put soldiers through their paces and push them to the limit. Pit yourself against cargo nets, balance beams and mud - lots and lots of mud - and get an idea of what it takes to be in the armed forces. And don't worry if you flag, the attendant soldiers will be giving you plenty of "encouragement".

When negotiating unstable surfaces core strength is key. Being able to engage your obliques and abs is crucial to balance, so whether you're trying to stabilise yourself on a cargo net or negotiate a beam, a strong middle will help you through. Add these two exercises to your training plan to get the balance right:

Swiss-ball jackknife to press-up

How? Get into press up position with but instead of placing your feet on the floor, rest your shins on a Swiss-ball. With your arms straight and your back flat, your body should form a straight line from your shoulders to your ankles. Bend your arms to lower yourself to the ground in the form of a press-up. Straighten to return to the start then roll the Swiss-ball toward your chest by raising your hips and rounding your back as you pull the ball forward with your feet. Pause then return the ball to the starting position by lowering your hips and rolling it backward. That's one rep. Perform 3 sets of 12.

Why? This exercise will hit your chest and triceps as well as your abs and obliques, building not just your core stability but also the upper body strength needed to haul yourself over the nets.

Swiss-ball weighted turn

How? Kneel on a Swiss-ball holding a dumb-bell at arm's length out in front of you with both hands. Keeping your arms straight, twist your torso to the right, tensing your core at the end of the movement. Pause, and then move twist to the left. Pause, tense then return to the start position. That's one rep. Perform 3 sets of 12.

Why? Not only will you be building your obliques and arms, you'll be working on your balance so you won't be hitting the mud from a fall off a balancing beam. You'll be in it straight after though.

Obstacle 3: Postman's walk

We show you how to survive obstacle three

A balancing act

Get ready for a soaking: two ropes - one for your hands, one for your feet - suspended over water, with more water being thrown at you from the sides. You're going to need strong arms and legs, plus core stability for balance. These two total body super-sets should get you started:

Overhand pull-up & Bar-bell bench press

How? Grab the bar with a shoulder width overhand grip. Extend your arms, then pull yourself up until your chin crosses the bar. Pause then slowly lower yourself back down. See how many you can do, then do the same number of bench presses: lie on a flat bench, grab the bar-bell with an overhand grip, arms straight. Lower the bar to your chest then press it back up and repeat. Perform three sets of both the above exercises alternating in between.

Why? Not only will this combination build your arms and chest, it will work your back and improve your overall strength.

Barbell squat & lateral lunge

How? Stand feet shoulder width apart with a bar-bell on the back of your shoulders. Keeping your back straight and looking forward, bend your knees and hips until your thighs are parallel to the floor or lower. Explode up to the start position. Perform ten reps before grabbing a dumb-bell in each hand, feet together. With your right leg step forward and out so your foot is a 2 o'clock, bending your knees so the left one kisses the floor. Push back up to the start position, repeating ten times. Without rest, perform ten on your left leg.

Why? Perform these with deceleration (slowing down) and plyometric (explosive) training techniques and you'll build strong, powerful legs that will look good in running shorts.

Obstacle 4: Land Rover parkour zone

We show you how to complete the fourth obstacle

Going urban

The French art of urban gymnastics comes to Nottingham in the shape of the Survival Of The Fittest Parkour Zone. There are going to be hazards for you to jump over, crawl through and generally get past as quickly as possible. The following exercises will put the necessary spring in your step to bound your way towards the finishing line:

Lateral bound

How? Balance on your right leg, then jump laterally and land on your left leg. Be sure to only have one foot on the ground at a time. Hold the landing for 3 seconds before exploding up, focusing on the power in your quads. Repeat on the other side.

Why? This will help develop explosive power in both legs individually as well as increasing your balance.

Squat Jump

How? Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, your fingers interlocked behind your head. Keep your back straight and stomach pulled in. Lower your hips and torso until your thighs are parallel to the ground. Jump by pushing up with your glutes and landing with your knees bent.

Why? Learning to land properly will ensure you stay injury-free, as well as making sure you're out of the way before the next competitor lands on you!

Obstacle 5: The Men's Health Wall

We show you how to get over the MH wall

Wall to wall

In the 70s there was a TV show called It's A Knockout (ask your dad) where teams from all over the UK battled it out to complete bizarre obstacle courses, normally drenched in water, and in ridiculous costumes. Now while The Survival Of The Fittest doesn't require you to dress up in a latex Mad Hatter's outfit, we do know the value of a slippery surface, which is why the MH wall, designed as it is to completely fatigue you, is one of the trickier hazards on the course. And as it's also the last, you're going to need to dig deep to get over it.

First of all, the surface will de-stable your already shaky legs, then once they've given out, you're going to have to find the upper body strength to pull yourself up the remaining distance. Nice.

The following two exercises will go some way to preparing your body for this gruelling task:

Ground starts

How? Get into a press-up position and lower yourself until your chest is a few inches off the ground. From there jump to your feet and immediately sprint for ten metres. Walk back a repeat five times. Rest for 1 minute then repeat.

Why? This explosive exercise will prepare you for launching yourself at the wall and increase the distance you'll cover before its slipperiness - and gravity - kick in. Try doing this at the end of a run when you've nothing left in the tank.

Seated cable rows

How? Sit on the seated rowing machine and grip handles firmly with your palms facing each other. Keep a slight bend in your knees and your back straight. Bend your elbows to pull the weight towards your chest. Pause at the top of the movement then return to the start position.

Why? This exercise will hit your chest and triceps abs and help build the required upper-body strength for pulling yourself over a wall on a rope.

Obstacle 6: Urban Action

We give you tips to get through the Urban Action area

The future

Think of any big screen dystopian vision of the future - we're talking Blade Runner, Terminator, Mad Max. Now imagine running through it, dodging burnt out cars and leaping over barriers as you go. Welcome to the Urban Action area. Designed to tax you mentally as well as physically, the obstacles include burnt out cars, ramps and jumps. The following exercises will you prepare you for getting through the hazards, it's up to you whether you want to dress the cyber punk part.

Superleap

How? Stand with a wide stance. Bend at your hips and knees to quickly lower your body down into a classic squat position. Then swing your arms overhead and explode upward. Land as softly as possible, steady yourself, then immediately drop down to the squat position and repeat.

Why? Not only will you working pretty much every muscle in your body, you'll be improving your balance and your core stability, too. And how else were you planning on getting over the burnt out Landrover?

Weighted lunge walking

How? Perform a normal lunge with a dumb-bell in each hand and step forward onto the next. Keep the movement slow to get the full benefit. Go as far as you can, then turn and go back to the start.

Why? This will work all your major leg muscles, which will give the power to climb the ramps, scramble down the slides and survive the leaps and bounds of this challenging hazard.

Obstacle 7: For Goodness Shakes Stadium Climb

We show you how to tackle it

Football crazy

You'll be nearing the end of the race when you encounter the Forest ground for the For Goodness Shakes Stadium Climb, so you'd do well to leave a little in reserve. Nottingham Forest's ground is located on the south bank of the Trent and has been the home to many great victories. Let's hope you can add your own personal one to this list as you charge up and down the stadium's steps overlooked by the spirit of Brian Clough. We don't actually know how many steps there - maybe you could count them for us on the day?

Weighted step ups

How? Stand next to a weight bench, with your left foot on the bench and your right on the floor parallel to it. Hold a dumb-bell in each hand and, keeping your shoulders back, push up off the floor, straightening your left leg and driving your right knee up as high as it will go. Lower your right leg to the start position and repeat without pausing. When you've finished on your left leg, repeat on with your right.

Why? You'll be hitting your quadriceps - the group of four muscles on the front your thighs that are key to knee-based movements. The balance required during this exercise will also bringing your core muscles into play, just make sure you maintain a straight back throughout.

Dumb-bell squats

How? Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart with a dumb-bell in each hand, arms at your side. Looking straight ahead and keeping your back straight, stick out your backside and squat down. Once your thighs are parallel to the floor, push up through your heels and straighten your legs.

Why? Working your quadriceps and glutes, this will exercise the muscles in your legs responsible for getting you up and down all those steps. Feel free to 'do a Rocky' at the top of the ascent if you've got the energy.

Bastados
Pull ups
Swiss-ball jackknife to press-up
Swiss-ball weighted turn
Overhand pull-up & Bar-bell bench press
Barbell squat & lateral lunge
Lateral bound
Squat Jump
Seated cable rows
Ground starts
Superleap
Weighted lunge walking
Weighted step ups
Dumb-bell squats

Obstacle 8: Road works slalom

Training tips for obstacle 8

Road works

You hate 'em, right? How many times have you been caught in traffic while 'essential road works' are being carried out and thought to your self, "I could run faster than this."? Well now's your chance. Featuring all manner of street maintenance equipment, you'll run around cones, jump over fencing and crawl through concrete tubes, while all the while dodging JCBs and possibly the odd workman on a tea break. Just like a real building site.

Bench jumps

How? Set two benches up with a small gap in between them. Stand on top of one bench and jump down into the gap between the two benches. Land with both feet on the ground and jump as quickly as possible and as high as you can onto the other bench. Turn around and repeat. Hold a pair of light dumb-bells to increase difficulty if you wish.

Why? You'll be working your quads, hamstrings and glutes, which will increase your ability to bound over obstacles without having to take a run up.

Leg drills

How? Mark out on the floor in tape or chalk a square that is four paces long. Divide it into four quadrants and number each one. Keeping both feet together jump between box 1 and 2 and back again for 20 seconds. Then jump from box 1 to box 2 to box 3 for 20 seconds. Then jump from box 1 to box 3 to box 2 for 20 seconds. Then jump from box 1 to box 2 to box 3 to box 4 for 20 seconds. Then jump from box 1 to box 4 for 20 seconds. Repeat this sequence twice resting for 80 seconds after each set.

Why? By keeping your jumps low and by landing on the balls of your feet, you'll build up speed and agility, essential for navigating low obstacles. The movements should be fast and at 100% effort, so you'll be able to slot them seamlessly into a sprint, which hopefully you'll still be able to do at this stage of the race.

Obstacle 9: Under Armour Archery Challenge

We tell you everything you need to know about obstacle nine

Under Armour Archery Challenge

Seeing as we're in Nottingham, we thought at least one of the obstacles should refer to the city's most famous son (and we're not talking about Lewis McGugan). Hence the penultimate challenge features the favourite past time of Robin Hood, that is to say shooting arrows at stuff. A lot harder than it looks - especially after just running 10k - handling a bow requires strength in the chest and back, as well as a steady eye. We can help with the exercises, hitting the target is up to you.

Dumb-bell fly

How? Lie flat on a bench holding a pair of dumb-bells arms straight up above the middle of your chest with your palms facing each other. Keeping a slight arc in the elbow lower the dumb-bells down and back until your upper arms are parallel to the floor. Pause, then use your chest to pull the weights back up to the starting position. At the top of the move, squeeze the dumb-bells together.

Why? It'll build strength in your pecs, which you'll need for pulling the string back from the bow.

Reverse bench rows

How? Lie face down on an incline bench that is high enough to prevent your arms from touching the ground when fully extended. Hold a dumb-bell in each hand. Without hunching your shoulders pull the weights up to the sides of your chest keeping your elbows close to your body. Hold for a second at the top then return to the starting position in a controlled fashion.

Why? Your going to need to be able to hold tension in the bow while you aim, and a strong back will help you. Don't forget to keep your elbow high - drop that and your arrow won't even reach the target let alone hit the gold.

Obstacle 10: Land Rover White Water Rapids

We give you advice on how to tackle the final obstacle

Rapid fire

By the time you reach this obstacle you may be of the opinion that we at MH don't like our readers and have used this to simply torture them. Not so. We just want to make sure that you're pushed to your limits - we know you can excel, you just need the opportunity to do so. To paraphrase Tyler Durden, how much can you know about yourself if you've never been challenged? So, as you're being chucked down a waterslide and then dumped into a lake, from which you have to drag yourself out on a rope, all the while being sprayed with water from a high-powered fire hose, don't for one-second think that we don't like you. We're just trying to help you fulfill your potential. And prepare you for next year's event: Project Mayhem.

Inverted row

How? Position the bar on a Smith machine at waist height and hang at arm's length with your body in a straight line. Pull your chest to the bar, pause, then lower yourself back down.

Why? Deemed to be the definitive back exercise for rowers, this will help as you wade your way through the water searching for the rope to drag yourself onto dry land.

Cable PNF

How? Stand to the left of a cable machine. Grab the low-pulley cable with your left hand. Pull it up and across your body so that at the top of the move your palm is facing forward. Reverse to the start. Complete one set before changing to the other arm.

Why?Not only will this work your upper arms and shoulders, it will also strengthen your core, which in turn will help you stabilize yourself. Ideal for hauling yourself onto a muddy river bank!