By Jon Luman
ModernMan.com

For a lot of guys, working out is a necessary evil. It keeps us from looking like human veal, which women tend to appreciate. But it can also be mind-numbingly boring -- and that can sap your will to hit the gym. Which means you start looking like human veal, which means you need to get motivated.

Yes, you can make a high-energy playlist, hire a personal trainer (if you can afford one), and pick a cardio machine that's near a TV. But we've got a list of things that can be even more helpful in keeping you motivated -- and that can make your workouts far more effective.

Tip 1: Change Your Workouts Regularly/Invite Peer Pressure
Switch your workouts around every few weeks or whenever you feel like you're no longer seeing results (muscleheads refer to that as plateauing). Mix up the exercises, sets, reps, rest periods, level of intensity, length of time and number of days you train; it's called the muscle-confusion principle. (Yes, even your muscles can get confused.)

And you can do this automatically by signing up for the Muscle & Fitness Trainer. It's free, and depending on what you want to do -- build muscle, lose weight, get bigger guns than Mr. Olympia -- it'll build you personal workouts. If you don't check in and train when you're scheduled to, the M&F Trainer will send a message to your friends and family to let them know. You might not feel guilty for eating Funyons and watching Netflix instead of going to the gym, but you'll definitely feel annoyed when you're bombarded with Facebook posts from people busting your chops for bring a loafer.

If you're tired of the massive crowds in your local 5K, getting kicked in the face during the swim leg of a packed triathlon, or if you can't bear to plunk down $100 (or more) just to run in the woods, a new trend in racing is emerging that might be just what you're looking for.

It's called bandit racing -- a grassroots training group that allows you to run, bike, kayak -- essentially, choose your adventure -- with others, but with a slight competitive lean. It's not exactly a race because the events aren't timed, though there's sometimes a small prize -- like a six-pack -- for the top finisher. There's usually a set course, and the goal is to simply finish or test your mojo. (Our pick for the No. 2 running trend? Minimalist or barefoot-style shoes. Read our story Should You Run Barefoot? to learn if it’s right for you.)

The other differences between bandit races and sanctioned events: No entrance fees, no insurance, no amenities like water stands or medical care, and usually, no permits -- the main issue that puts these "unofficial training sessions" under the radar.

Why bandit races? There are some places where it's impossible to go in a sanctioned way due to difficult land-use regulations, says San Francisco-based bandit organizer and mountain bike coach, Blanco, whose name has been anonymized at his request. "The permitting process can be burdensome."

Joshua Mullins had endured a lot already: Trudging through mud, swimming through ice water, dragging a large rock on a rope.

Now, he was alternating hauling sandbags and five gallon buckets of rocks up a steep hill, "a giant mountain of a hill, for Texas at least." And he was doing it in the cold, driving rain.

He kept thinking to himself, "I've carried heavier things," recalling the massive drum cases he'd carry for his musician wife in and out of her gigs. The Bag of Doom, he called them.

Still, this was different. He'd signed a death waiver to do this.

Mullins, a 29-year-old recruiter in the Texas oil and gas industry, wasn't being punished. He wasn't in military training. He actually paid to haul those sandbags and buckets, part of an extreme adventure course called Super Spartan. It's just one of many extreme adventure courses in a booming industry that just doesn't seem to know the meaning of "enough is enough."

The Ironman Triathlon might be insanely long, but hey, no one's getting electrocuted during that 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike ride and full marathon run. There's the Tough Mudder, Warrior Dash, Spartan Sprint, Spartan Beast, GORUCK, Mud on the Mountain, Survivor Mud Run, Obstacle Apocalypse, Hero Rush, Urban Dare and yes, the Spartan Death Race.

Many require signing a death waiver, and mud is the common denominator, along with a disdain toward the buttoned-up, vanilla marathon (or half-marathon, or any other traditional race). Discomfort, rather than time, is of the essence. Who wants to run on the concrete for two hours only to be greeted by a banana and an ugly T-shirt when you could crawl through barbed wire, get electrocuted, chop wood and finish it all off with a cold beer and live music?

Whenever my campers or clients hear that burpees are on the agenda for a given workout, they take a deep breath, a heavy gulp, and seemingly pray for the courage to get through the punishment coming their way.

The burpee is the baddest exercise on the planet and an incredible whole body muscle-builder, fat-burner and metabolism-booster that will also make you more athletic for sport. The movement finds its roots through the work of American physiologist Royal H. Burpee in the 1930's, who developed the burpee test as a quick and easy way to assess total body fitness. The exercise continued to gain popularity through widespread military use and of course as the calisthenic of choice in gym classes and athletic practices worldwide.

The burpee basically describes a series of smooth and fluid movements that have you going from a full stand to a push-up position and back. It’s no wonder this whole body up and down movement is a metabolic nightmare involving nearly every muscle from head to toe. But, it's also the most bastardized exercise on the planet that can implode your knees and back like a stiff and solid Mike Tyson uppercut.