Skip to main content

The Manual’s Guide to the Tough Mudder

Our favorite adult ‘what the hell am I doing getting electrocuted in mud’ obstacle course, Tough Mudder, is army crawling it’s way into New Hampshire this June. We spoke with Director of Marketing Operations, Ashley Pinakiewicz, about the upcoming course and what every Mudder should know.

It’s not a race

Recommended Videos

Tough Mudder is a team event. It’s all about community and helping one another along the way (like when your buddy gets knocked out cold by a hanging live wire.)

Pinakiewicz explains, “Tough Mudder courses are virtually impossible to complete alone. Even if you could do it alone, why would you want to? 80% of participants register as part of a team. If you don’t have one going in, don’t worry – you’ll make one along the way.”

The mental challenges can be worse than the physical ones

If you can run up to six miles comfortably and have gone through the Tough Mudder Boot Camp guide, you’ll be in good physical shape for the course. But that’s only part of the challenge. You will have to jump from man-made cliffs, tunnel into the dark, plunge into freezing cold water, and crawl beneath open electrical currents. The moments when you’ll want to get the hell out of there and go grab a beer will be when your mental endurance is pushed to the brink. The best way to mentally prepare is simply to know that you will have these moments and that you can push right past them. In addition, try adding a few minutes of meditation to your training regimen. As Pinakiewicz advises, “Be ready to face your fears.”

Protect your head

Okay, we’re not asking you to wear a helmet. But you might have an easier time with the course if you can protect your head by covering it with your arms during the electric eel section (long wires hanging from above). If you can handle a shock or two to your arms, you’ll have a better chance of avoiding a one to the skull and blacking out.

Your pain is going to a good cause

The course is killer, but it’s also really fun. “People know that it’s going to be a challenge, and it definitely is, but it’s not the kind of challenge that makes you miserable,” Pinakiewicz reminds us. Tough Mudder’s mission – to help you push your boundaries and overcome physical and mental obstacles – aligns with its efforts to do something great for the world. To date, Tough Mudder participants have raised more than $5 million for the Wounded Warrior Project, assisting returning service members who have overcome enormous obstacles. So while it might feel like you’re in a warzone at certain times during the course, it might help to remember that you’re supporting the people who actually are.

If you can’t make it to the Tough Mudder this June, check out their schedule for upcoming events worldwide.

Lindsay McCormack
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Lindsay McCormack is a contributing writer to TheManual.com. Previously, Lindsay studied book and magazine publishing at the…
7 incredible shows like Black Mirror to stream next
Watch these science fiction series next
Paul Giamatti in Black Mirror

Black Mirror started its life as a niche science fiction anthology show on Netflix, but the British series expanded its reach and popularity as the episodes started to blend into contemporary world issues more and more. It's no secret that the world we live in keeps getting scarier, whether that be due to the upheaval in politics or the uncertainty of artificial intelligence and climate change altering our world forever. Good TV's ability to mirror real life makes it culturally relevant, and it leaves fans craving even more of it.

With fans waiting patiently to find out if Black Mirror season 8 will be greenlit at Netflix, there are several alternatives that you can check out after finishing season 7. Not all of these series are as daring about social issues or crafted in the same way as Black Mirror, but all of them have the same sci-fi principles that make the storytelling unique. These are the best shows like Black Mirror to stream next.

Read more
One of the newest movies on Netflix is from an action movie master
Havoc is the ideal movie for anyone hankering for more John Wick.
Tom Hardy in Havoc

Not every movie on Netflix is worth your time, but the streaming service definitely makes plenty of movies that are worth seeking out. Havoc, which hit the streamer on Friday, is one such movie, and part of the reason it's worth seeking out is the extraordinary talent both in front of and behind the camera.

Directed by Gareth Edwards, the movie follows a detective who must track down a politician's son in the aftermath of a drug deal gone wrong. As he climbs deeper and deeper into the criminal underworld, he begins to appreciate just how much corruption he's facing and kills a lot of people along the way.

Read more
A Miami Vice remake is coming from the director of Top Gun: Maverick
Kosinski will next direct F1 with Brad Pitt
Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas in Miami Vice.

Miami Vice is coming back to the big screen. Almost 20 years after Michael Mann adapted the '80s series to the big screen, Joseph Kosinski is set to direct a new adaptation of the film. Universal Pictures will produce the film, which is being adapted by Dan Gilroy.

Plot details for the movie are not yet available, but the original series follows a pair of detectives who work undercover in South Florida. Mann was involved in both the original series and the first theatrical adaptation, which starred Colin Farrell and Jamie Foxx. That movie was a box office bomb and received mixed reviews at the time, but has since become something of a cult film in certain circles.

Read more