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WIU Alumnus Joe Decker (front, in black shorts and shirt) leads Western kinesiology students and WIU staff through a work out on Hanson Field.
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Alum Joe Decker, 'World's Fittest Man,' Hosting 36-Hour Race in Cuba in Sept.

March 28, 2012

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MACOMB, IL – Back-to-back champion of the annual Spartan Death Race and Western Illinois University alumnus Joe Decker is no stranger to pain. Decker, a Cuba (IL) native who owns and founded the San Diego-based boot camp Gut Check Fitness, wants to share his brand of fitness philosophy — which typically includes grueling physical activities — with those who live in western Illinois. He plans to do that with "The Suck," a 36-hour race to be held on his family's farm near Cuba the weekend of Sept. 14-16.

In 2000, Decker made his mark on the fitness world by breaking the Guinness Book of World Records' 24-Hour Fitness Challenge, giving him the right to claim the title of "World's Fittest Man." He graduated from WIU in 1998 with a bachelor's degree in kinesiology, and he was recognized by Western with the 2009 College of Education and Human Services' Distinguished Alumni Award. In 2011, Decker became the Spartan Death Race's first-ever two-time winner.


In 2009, Joe Decker was honored with the College of Education
and Human Services' Distinguished Alumni Award. When he
visited the WIU campus that year, he led students through a
work out and spoke to students, faculty and staff about fitness
and his own struggles with getting fit.

According to the registration website for "The Suck," the 36-hour race will be held from 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 14 through 7 a.m. Sunday, Sept. 16.

"This will be a very grueling but 'enjoyable' 30-36 hour non-stop event," Decker states on the website. "My goal is to primarily combine strenuous Midwestern farm chores with military boot camp, trail running, strongman events, basic survival skills and more. I would strongly suggest you get proficient at all the Military PT [physical training] Standards. You may want to get familiar with shooting a shotgun, baling hay, digging fox holes, carrying heavy stuff, etc. Actual tasks will not be revealed until the day of."

Registration closes Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2012, and the race fee is $250. More information is available on "The Suck" website at www.active.com/fitness/cuba-il/the-suck-2012. Learn more about Joe Decker and Gut Check Fitness at http://gutcheckfitness.com/.

Posted By: Teresa Koltzenburg (WIUNews@wiu.edu)
Office of University Communications & Marketing