DEKA Strong Review

After a long layoff from Spartan Race competitions, January 2023 marked my return and first ever run through a Deka Strong event in Rapid City, South Dakota.

Why Rapid City? It was the first event available in my region that I could drive to! (7 hours).

A little background on the Deka format. There is very little running involved as it is basically a station-to-station event as you work through 10 physical challenges. Station 1 is a weighted reverse lunge for 30 reps using a 55lb piece of equipment called a RAM. Station 2 is a 500 meter row, Station 3 is 20 box jumps/step overs. Station 4 is 25 reps of medicine ball sit ups, touching the ball behind your head and between your legs for one rep. Station 5 is an “ski erg” machine for 500 meters which was completely new to me. Station 6 was a farmers carry with 60lb dumbbells in each hand for a total of 100 meters. Station 7 was the assault bike for 25 calories. Station 8 was a medicine ball shoulder-over for 20 reps. Station 9 was another new piece of equipment to me called the “tank” push and pull for 100 meters. Station 10 was another RAM exercise of 20 burpees with the RAM weighing 44 pounds and lifting it overhead to complete the rep.

This event kicked my 52-year old ass and I lost a lot of time trying to catch my breath on different stations as I was gassing out. I finished in a little over 22 minutes and later found out I was 1st in the 50-54 age group. I can do much better.

Controlling your heart rate is a major factor, which I struggled with following the box jump/step overs. The first three stations taxed your thighs with the row just beginning to wake up your shoulders, forearms and grip. The medicine ball sit up seems like a fairly “easy” place to rest, however, the ball was a larger circumference than I had trained with, and being sanitized between competitors, it had a slick feel to it. Again, like Spartan likes to do, it attacked a small set of muscles you would need later in succession.

The ski erg simulates Nordic cross country skiing which is a sneaky way of attacking your grip, just after the medicine ball sit ups. If incorporating a squatting motion, your hamstring-glute chain gets hit too. This was followed immediately by the farmers carry. I thought I’d be ok here from training with dead hangs and such, however, the previous two stations taxed my grip. This is where I learned over-gripping the handles on the ski erg = bad. At 60 meters I had to set the weights down for a few seconds to adjust my grip.

The assault bike. I’ve never liked this apparatus since it was introduced by Schwinn back in the 70’s and I still don’t! The ski erg had gassed my shoulders, the farmer carry killed my grip, so this was all foot pedals for me as I tried to get my heart rate and breathing under control. 25 calories takes forever! On to the shoulder overs. As a heavier athlete, this was really no problem for me strength-wise, I never have problems with the Spartan Race atlas stones, but I was fatigued, so my speed here was not the best.

On to the tank. This isn’t like pushing a sled in football as the brake system does not allow you to build up momentum to maintain speed. It’s a trudge to find a technique that optimizes your power and quickness without killing you going into the final station….the RAM burpees.

At my very first Spartan Race in Colorado back in 2015 I saw the first T-shirts on athletes that said “Buck Furpees”. Well, Buck RAM Burpees too! The premise is to perform 20 burpees touching your chest to the RAM at the down position, then instead of a jump, the weighted RAM is lifted overhead. I bonked hard here. I had to rest and fight my breathing at least twice costing me time.

But, I finished. I didn’t puke even though a trash can was strategically placed nearby, and I didn’t get caught by the person who started after me, which was a distinct possibility in the single lane format.

So, after all of that, it’s back to gym to work on my weaknesses, get my muscle endurance and heart rate issues under control and see what happens in February for my next attempt at a DEKA Strong, this time in Iowa.

I will eventually attempt the Deka Mile and the Deka Fit which incorporate 1 mile and 5k of running during the event respectively.

My advice to you: Go for it! Test yourself. Nobody of consequence is going to judge you for your completion time, so drop the fear. Remember, you are competing while others sit on the couch, and they are the last ones you need to listen to!

Station 2 – 500 meter row – Rapid City, South Dakota