Try This Fitness Challenge (DEKA-FIT)

By Josiah Novak

Hey, what’s up, guys? 

Just Novak back again and today I’m talking to you about a brand new fitness event/competition. 

If you’ve followed me for however long you know now that I love Spartan races, it’s one of my favorite fitness challenges to partake in. And over the past 5 to 10 years, the Spartan race has taken over the world. It’s all over the place. People are doing it from all walks of life. They just released a brand new version of the Spartan race called DEKA-FIT.

Today I want to talk to you about what DEKA-FIT is, whether or not it’s a good idea for you to jump into and how to actually prepare and train for this crazy new event that’s going to be taken the country by storm in 2020 so without further ado, let’s jump into what DEKA-FIT is.

What IS DEKA-FIT?

So you guys are probably wondering what in the heck is DEKA-FIT? What exactly is this new event? Let me break it down for you. So over the past 5/10 years, the Spartan Race has been well known for its obstacles, right? It’s basically an obstacle course race at the end of the day where you run for a certain period of time and then every mile or two miles there’s an obstacle that you have to get through, climb, overcome, whatever. Right? 

So what is DEKA-FIT? Well, DEKA-FIT has basically taken that idea, combined it with CrossFit competition and made an event that pretty much anybody in a gym setting who works out on a regular basis could jump into without any problem. What exactly is DEKA-FIT? Well, it’s 10 fitness stations with a run in between. So there are 10 different fitness obstacles that are all based around your normal fitness movements.

And then in between each obstacle you run 500 meters. So a little bit over a lap around the track. That’s it. And it’s timed, right? So you get to compete against people in your age group, people in your gender group. And then overall, if you’re trying to shoot for elite status, you can compete against other professional racers. That’s what DEKA-FIT is. They’ve basically taken the Spartan race, combined it with CrossFit and their baby is DEKA-FIT. 

So let’s jump into the events, how to start working out using those events, and we’ll cover exactly how to prepare for the race.

ZONE 1

All right guys, zone number one or exercise number one in DEKA-FIT is the Spartan Ram squat. That’s where you’re taking the Spartan Ram, which is a tool to just a heavy piece of equipment that is recycled tires form together into a Spartan Ram. Men are going to do 55 pounds elite women and open men will do 44 pounds and open women will be doing 33 pounds. You’re basically going to do six different sub zones inside zone number one and each zone you’ll do five squats, so that’s 30 total squats using the Spartan Ram. That’s zone number one. 

ZONE 2

Zone number two is a row. You’re just gonna do a 500 meter row as fast as possible. Using the rowing machine takes however long you need, complete 500 meters and you’re on to the next run, which is another 500 meter run. 

ZONE 3

Next is zone number three. Exercise number three is box jump overs. You’re going to jump up on a 24 inch plyo box, step down the other side, jump back on, step down the other side, and repeat until you completed 20 reps. Once you’ve done 20 you’re onto the next 500 meter runs.

ZONE 4

Next up is the medicine ball road. This is where you’re gonna complete 20 medicine ball throws. Men are going to use 20 pounds. We’re are you gonna use 10 once you’ve completed 20 reps, guess what? You’re onto another run. 500 meter run after the medicine ball throw

ZONE 5

Next up in zone number five exercise number five is the ski ERG. The skier is a relatively unique piece of equipment. Not every gym carries it, but what I’ve demonstrated here is how to do it with just two exercise bands so that you’re fully prepared for the exercise. You have to complete 500 meters on the skier machine. Once you’re done with 500 meters, however long it takes, you’re onto the next 500-meter run.

ZONE 6 

entering zone number six, which is the farmers carry men will carry 70 pounds in each hand. Women will carry 35 pounds in each hand. You have to walk 100 meters using that weight. Nobody can break, can’t drop the weight, take as long as it takes to get to a hundred meters. Once you return the weight, you’re onto the next run 500 meter run.

ZONE 7

Zone number seven or exercise seven is the assault bike. On the assault bike, you have to complete 20 calories, so on the screen, it’ll tell you how many calories you burned. You’re going until you burn 20 however long that takes. Then you’re onto a 500-meter run. 

ZONE 8

Zone number eight is dead ball wall-overs. Now, once again, I’ve demonstrated how to set up a wall over exercise. Here, just using a big tire, you can use whatever is about four to five feet high and all you’re doing is squatting down, picking up the ball, putting it over the obstacle in front of you, which in this case would be a wall in the competition. That’s one rep you’re going for 20 reps. men are going to do 70 pounds. Women are going to do 50.

ZONE 9

After another 500 meter run. You’re going into the sled push pull. Now, DEKA-FIT calls it the tank push-pull, but it’s basically just a sled, and once again, you’re just going for distance here, so it’s forward 10 meters back, 10 meters. That completes one round and you’re going for five total rounds and then you’re onto the last zone exercise, which is Ram burpees.

ZONE 10

Using the same tool that we started the race with Ram squat. Now you’re just doing a burpee with an overhead press. 20 reps here, men are doing 55 pounds. Women are going to do that. 33 pounds, 20 reps total. Once you’ve done here, you’re done with the race and you’re onto the finish line.

Conclusion

So that’s a breakdown of DEKA-FIT. The events, some of the exercises, and how to prepare. What I’ve also done for you in the description of the video here is I’ve listed three different workouts that you can start incorporating into your routine to start preparing for the deck of fit.

Obviously, you’re going to need to really get ready for this thing. You’re not gonna be able to just jump into it and crush it. So I suggest starting to build in workouts like the ones I’ve listed into your routine at least a couple times a week to start familiarizing yourself with the movements and start building up your athletic conditioning. Overall, I highly suggest something light deck, a fit as a goal, as a target, as a checkpoint in your year to challenge yourself, get yourself out of your comfort zone. Personally, I love the Spartan race. It’s been an amazing experience. I’ve done almost 10 races in my career and I’m going to continue to do things like DEKA-FIT. So if you’re at an event, you might see me there. Otherwise, jump into this. See if this challenge as you start to push, get a little bit of a variety into your training and I’ll see you in the race. 

Until next time,

Josiah Novak

PS. If you’re serious about losing weight and keeping it off for good, download our free guide at  TheTrueTransformation.com/Newsletter to help you get started. Let me know if you like things like this and you might see more DEKA-FIT style training info in the future. Talk to you soon.

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