Why I do Goruck Endurance Events…& How My 3rd Tough/Challenge Went

Why I Do Goruck Endurance Events

Individuals that don’t know me that well usually give me a weird look after I explain about just doing my latest team endurance event with Goruck or looking forward to the next. The usual question is “Why the heck do you do that?”

End of the day I do it to push myself to get outside of my comfort zone. This is the hardest event I do each year. Although the obstacle course races can be challenging they don’t come close to a Goruck Tough (formerly known as Challenge). This 12 hour event will be a physical challenge, that is guaranteed. However the biggest part is the mental aspect. You have to push through moments or maybe hours of uncomfortable and difficult “exercises” that the Cadre (Goruck representative with military background) decides on. Also this is a TEAM. ..so when it first starts usually everyone is focused on their performance, how fast they are going, how well they can carry something & the list goes on. Eventually the Cadre gets it through your heads that it is about the team working together and not you alone. It is really cool to see the team come together.

Also there is always a really diverse group of people that come together to do the event. During the 12 hours you get to know people especially the ones you are next to or working with to meet some goal specified by the Cadre.

I would say watch the video above & check out the website. You don’t have to do a 12 hour one… there is a “Light” which is not as long…or if you are more fearless than me do the “Heavy” which is 24 hours. You don’t think you can do any of them? I doubt that. The reason is that you are only thinking about what you can do yourself. With a team you work together. You hold each other up. You may be sleep deprived but everyone else is and they cheer you on. You speak up when you need help. You feed the person next to you carrying a weight swedish fish (I have been on both sides).  Someone hurts their ankle, a teammate takes the weight from them so they can recover and keep on going. You learn how communication skills do not have to be spoken & often it is better if only the leader at the time speaks. Everybody has a weakness. In a group everyone can support each others weakness with their own strength.

You do it & come out the other side feeling so accomplished with a sense of camaraderie with people you didn’t even know 12 hours prior. Paraphrasing what it says on Goruck’s website “signing up is the hardest part.” It really is.

How Memorial Day Goruck Tough Went

It was a good event that started the evening of the 28th in San Diego. Just because I have done a few before this one I know they can all be different. We had some fun exercises, some difficult team movements we had to figure out and some times where we were absolutely gassed… But everybody pushed through. The past ones I have done left one of my knees sore a couple of days after. However this time my knee was fine after it was done & my shoulders were good. I credit it to the 60# sandbag I have been working with since after the Challenge last year in San Diego. I think getting under it doing various exercises (squats, shouldering, turkish getups…) strengthened my knees and my back.

For Memorial Day we each had to affix to our bags a laminated picture of a fallen solider killed after 9-11. I chose Airman First Class Kcey Ruiz who was only 21 years old when she was killed in Afghanistan.  At different points during the event the Cadre had people talk about their hero & why they chose him or her. As it was on our bags the entire time and in line we always were looking at a picture on the bag in front of us. As a result of that many of us asked each other about their hero and talked about them. I really liked how the pictures were made part of the event.

So another Goruck event in the books! Ragnar (my 1st) in Snowmass Colorado is coming up this weekend!!

 Any questions or inquires about my Personal Training services here in San Diego feel free to contact me at: incrementalfit@gmail.com