Fitness Challenge Series: Repeat Sled Sprints

This “Fitness Challenge Series” is a compilation of “challenges” that I have either tried or have seen others try as fun ways to test current levels of fitness. It is NOT intended for use on a large scale with a team of athletes. Additionally I am NOT telling you that you NEED to try these. Some of these challenges will be easy and some will be quite difficult, but almost all will require some level of prior training (meaning if you don’t train frequently now and/or have never trained you should not attempt these challenges “just to try” or “just for fun” as they may lead to serious injury). However, if you are well-trained and want a fun way to test your current fitness and/or want to throw something new in to spice up your training, this series may be worthwhile for you to read.

With all that out of the way, let’s get into this challenge: Repeat Sled Sprints. This is one I was exposed to recently that I really enjoy. Place cones 10 yards apart. Load the sled with 80-100% of body weight (make sure to count the sled weight too). For instance, if you weigh 185 lbs. you would put two 45 lb. plates and two 25 lb. plates on the sled (assuming the sled is 45 lbs. that would give you 185 lbs. total). You will sprint every 20 seconds (meaning if it takes 4 seconds to go 10 yards then you have 16 seconds rest). Completing 4 sprints is 1 set. Rest 1 minute and repeat for 2-4 sets.

The goal is to eventually get to sprinting every 12 seconds. Therefore, a simple progression week-to-week would look like the following:

-Week 1 – 80% BW every 20 seconds

-Week 2 – 80% BW every 15 seconds

-Week 3 – 80% BW every 12 seconds

You can then progress this to start including heavier weights in the next block:

-Week 1 – 90% BW every 20 seconds

-Week 2 – 90% BW every 15 seconds

-Week 3 – 90% BW every 12 seconds

You can then repeat this same progression with 100% body weight.

This can be used as a solid warm-up before a training session or as a good “finisher” at the end of a session. It will tell you a lot about your ability to repeat power output in a short period of time and give you a sense of your ability to recover. Give it a try and see what you think!