Meet Mr Scrape...a drag of a friend!

Mr Scrape is one tough dude!

On Saturday I saw this guy dragging a tire while doing bridge repeats. That's not the first time I've seen it. As a matter of fact, just about every time I run the Key Biscayne Bridge I see one or two people dragging one of these thing up and down the bridge. So when I got home I looked it up.

Tire Dragging Benefits

• It helps build strength and hip power.
• It's especially good on active recovery days as it's concentric motion that helps build blood flow. 
• It's great low impact running. 
• It's great high impact running if you decide to sprint.
• It makes you focus on form.
• It's a total leg and midsection workout. 
• It targets some hard to tone muscles like abs and glutes.
• It strengthens your knees and improves your overall balance.
• It simulates running up hill. (This is especially helpful since we really don't have ANY hills in South Florida.)

Equipment

• An old tire: If you don't already have one, you can easily find one at your nearest tire store. Just ask if you could have an old tire for your workouts. You'll be amazed how quickly they will assist. That's how I got my 18 inch tires. Or, keep it simply and go to your local junk yard.
• 3" eye bolt with washer and nut: this is optional as you can simply wrap your rope around the tire. 
• Nylon Cord or Rope: the rope needs to be tough enough to drag the tire. I used a tow strap.
• Carabiner or Snap Link: I used two large Carabiners - one connected to the eye bolt, and the other to the waist hook I created from the tow strap. 

 Put It All Together

• Drill a hole in the tire. 
• Insert the eye bolt. Place the washer and nut on the inside of the tire. Snug down tight.
• Take the rope or tow strap and connect the ends using a Carabiner or Snap Link. 

 Drag Types

•  Forward: targets calves, quads, glute
• Reverse: targets hamstrings, glute
• Lateral: targets IT bands and Adductors

Today's Workout - 1 Mile

• 1 x 100 yards forward drag
• 2 x 300 yards forward drag
• 2 x 300 yards reverse drag
• 1 x 300 yard forward drag
• 1 x 300 yard reverse drag
• 1 x 100 yards forward drag

What an amazing workout! The tire weights about 55 lbs, and when you add the friction between the tire and the concrete, it feels like it's twice as heavy.

What Now
Now that I'm at the end of my Dopey training, the time has come for me to bring back my crazy workouts. I believe Mr Scrape and I will become GREAT friends.