Personal trainer debuts in TV obstacle course show

Carla Aveledo
Posted 7/3/14

A personal trainer and athlete will star in an obstacle course reality television show next month to test his endurance and strength alongside eight other men.

Brandon Dupont, 31, of 52 Pleasant …

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Personal trainer debuts in TV obstacle course show

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A personal trainer and athlete will star in an obstacle course reality television show next month to test his endurance and strength alongside eight other men.

Brandon Dupont, 31, of 52 Pleasant View Rd., was interviewed various times by “Steve Austin’s Broken Skull Challenge,” a CMT production, and was told in January that he had made it to the semi-finals. He flew out to Los Angeles to a mock set of a ranch in Texas where he competed against 10 other men to be cast in the show. The episodes will also include eight women, head-to-head in a 10-episode series, which starts July 6 at 8 p.m. Dupont’s episode will air July 20 at the same time.

Dupont couldn’t disclose how far in the competition he got, but he said although it’s a reality show, “the competitions are real. The cameras wouldn’t stop if it didn’t look good.”

Dupont is a personal trainer at Warwick’s Planet Fitness and at CrossFit Providence. He has been training for 11 years and throughout has been a bodybuilder, police officer in Savannah, Ga., and now an obstacle course competitor. The opportunity to audition for a spot in the show was brought to his attention by a friend’s Facebook post.

The competitors weren’t allowed to speak to each other while competing. He said the show wouldn’t want athletes conspiring strategies or making alliances. The next day after the “battles,” participants would be interviewed separately about their experiences. Dupont said the show wanted the athletes to have extreme excitement.

“For me, it was kind of forced,” said Dupont.

Sometimes the cameramen had Dupont re-enact moments or take still-photos of him.

“I’ve done harder competitions in the past,” Dupont said. “But it seemed like every challenge I was always up first, which left me no time for strategies,” where he could’ve instead watched others go before him, he said.

Every day begins at 5 a.m. for Dupont. His first class is at 5:45 a.m. and his last ends by 10 p.m. In between he finds his own time to work out two or three times per day. He eats six or seven times a day and makes sure his carbohydrates intake is high to keep his energy up.

Dupont said he is disciplined and strict.

“It’s just the way I live,” he said.

His diet and training was even stricter when he was a bodybuilder. He would weigh his food and look the best he could.

“With bodybuilding, giving in is giving up,” he said.

Dupont said if he craves something, he will have it even though he is still very regimented about his lifestyle. He hand-portions his food as opposed to weighing it. He described being a bodybuilder as not very functional for his life. He decided to switch to obstacle training, which he said includes crawling, jumping and running.

“It’s the most well-rounded” type of training, said Dupont.

He said family and friends are used to Dupont being strict with himself. He said he is lucky to have a girlfriend who is the same way as him; healthy and works out.

Dupont is ranked 36th in the worldwide obstacle course, the Spartan Race, and hopes to reach the top-10 this year. The race is held almost every weekend, and people participate from all around the world. Depending on their times, participants receive points to advance their placement. Dupont placed second in an 11,000-person Spartan Race, and plans to race again next weekend at Mohegan Sun.

“I feel like I’m 18 years old, but I’m not,” said Dupont. “I’m getting better, but so are other guys who are younger.”

Social media has allowed for Dupont to gain a following and has connected him with many competitors from around the world. Dupont also said that obstacle racing is growing and is trying to be recognized as an Olympic sport.

“People like to get dirty and get challenged,” said Dupont.

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