Strength and Endurance = STREND Fitness Challenge

What is the STREND Fitness Challenge?

Basically, it is when running a 5K alone just isn’t enough.

This is a 6 event decathlon that combines strength and endurance.

It’s the total repetitions of 5 exercises divided by run time in minutes (the 6th and final event), plus there is a strict recovery between events (3 minutes).

STREND Events

1. Bench press  (start time = 0)
2. Pull ups (t = 3 min)
3. Shoulder press (t = 6 min)
4. Close grip chins (t = 9 min)
5. Dips (t = 12 min)
6. 3 mile run.  (t = 15 min)

In the STREND event, the repetitions are STRICT to form, no pausing, and one maximal set to failure.  You begin each discipline every 3 minutes thus Event #6 (or the 3 mile run) starts exactly 15 minutes after the start of the Bench press.

For Men, the weights are bodyweight and 50% of bodyweight on shoulder press.

For Women, it’s 60% of bodyweight for the bench press, and 30% bodyweight for the shoulder press.

This competition doesn’t allow any opportunities for size or weight advantage of the athletes.  It’s all relative to your own bodyweight.

But is two or three minutes enough to recover from muscular failure?

Ye Old Elite Standards

Like the Decathlon points system, scoring changes with time.

This is where you use 115% of bodyweight on Bench, pull ups and chins, 120% on Dips and 60% bodyweight on rear military shoulder press.  Of course, Pull ups, Chins and Dips require a weight vest.

This sounds like quite a challenge!

But to be honest, the 3 mile run scares the hell out of me!  For me, anything over 400 meters, I take a taxi.

Typical Scores

A score anywhere from 5.00 to 6.00 is considered very good, as you are looking at about 120 total reps, plus a time of 20 minutes for 3 miles.  That’s 120/20 = 6.00.  Cut your 3 mile time by one minute (19:00) and you are looking at 120/19 = 6.32 which will usually win the competition.

Even if you did 20 reps for each exercise, and a 20 min run, that’s 100/20 = 5.00.

I’ll write more about upcoming future events in case you are interested and try to have special guest star Matt Bogdanowicz comment on some training tips.