Military Fitness Brainstorming

[Ladder Guy]

On that note, absolutely. I don't know if you ever watch gym fails on youtube but some of them we use for training of what not to do. Seriously, how do you mess up using the rower. I guess where there is a will there is a way

 

[booker]

The world is full of fucktards, lucky for us they like to video themselves doing stupid shit in the gym.

 

[reed11b]

There is already a Crossfit hate thread, no need to turn this into one.
I have been working on my own fitness programing and one of things I have noticed is that many of the Rx programs (MA, SEALfit, Gymjones etc,) is that they are seriously time heavy. Often times with close to 2 hour programing and sometimes two-a-days, with same length of programing per session. I could see maybe maintaining that as a FT combat arms type (I recall being released early more often than late) but as a Reservist (Guardsman) with a FT job and family two hour sessions are nearly impossible. Do the SME's on this board feel that type of programing is required to be in SOF candidate shape, or is it possible with 1hour to 45 min daily programing? Can you work smarter and get similar results?
I'll throw up what I have when I get done and track results, but I am coming from pretty low on the fitness scale, so I may not be the best test dummy.
Reed

 

[booker]

IMHO SEALfit is way overboard in the amount of work, but it can be broken up throughout the day if that is your cup of tea. I have followed the Operator template for GymJones for a long time, not sure where you are getting the 2 hr workouts from beyond the occasional >90 endurance event. Same with Military Athlete, I don't recall having to spend an exorbitant amount of time on the workouts. Things to keep in mind, unless you are doing pure strength work with 5 minute rest intervals, most of the work capacity events in MA and GJ are not meant to be hour long events. If you feel like you require 2 hrs to complete to workouts, it may be time to think about scaling weight, sets, etc until you build yourself up to that amount of work. You have to do the work in order to reap the benefits, this idea that you can cut corners and reach your desired level of fitness is bullshit. FT job and only being in the guard are not good enough reasons to not work out. I hit the gym at 5AM every day, and I work, and I have kids that need help with homework and sports. Make your priorities, but don't expect there to be any shortcuts for the fitness side of things.

 

[CDG]

There is already a Crossfit hate thread, no need to turn this into one.
I have been working on my own fitness programing and one of things I have noticed is that many of the Rx programs (MA, SEALfit, Gymjones etc,) is that they are seriously time heavy. Often times with close to 2 hour programing and sometimes two-a-days, with same length of programing per session. I could see maybe maintaining that as a FT combat arms type (I recall being released early more often than late) but as a Reservist (Guardsman) with a FT job and family two hour sessions are nearly impossible. Do the SME's on this board feel that type of programing is required to be in SOF candidate shape, or is it possible with 1hour to 45 min daily programing? Can you work smarter and get similar results?
I'll throw up what I have when I get done and track results, but I am coming from pretty low on the fitness scale, so I may not be the best test dummy.
Reed

Unless it's a stamina or endurance based workout, MA rarely goes over 60 minutes. In fact, the whole point of their regular sessions is to be right at that 60 minute mark, and Rob has even posted times where he's cut workouts back because they took too long. If the regular sessions are taking you well beyond the 60:00 mark, I would suggest either scaling weights and/or reps back or looking into the On Ramp Program.

 

[SkrewzLoose]

Agree with the 2 above posts. Also, my 5/3/1 sessions rarely go over 30 minutes, with assistance work. Throw in 2-3 days of running or swimming, that shouldn't exceed 30-45 minutes either. Lather, rinse, repeat.
K.I.S.S.

 

[Ladder Guy]

Agree with the 2 above posts. Also, my 5/3/1 sessions rarely go over 30 minutes, with assistance work. Throw in 2-3 days of running or swimming, that shouldn't exceed 30-45 minutes either. Lather, rinse, repeat.
K.I.S.S.

What are your exercises and assistance work that you use for the 5/3/1. I have done One Man One Barbell with Squat, Bench, Deadlift, Press and utilized lunges, dips, rows, side raises as assistance exercises.

 

[RustyShackleford]

Agree with the 2 above posts. Also, my 5/3/1 sessions rarely go over 30 minutes, with assistance work. Throw in 2-3 days of running or swimming, that shouldn't exceed 30-45 minutes either. Lather, rinse, repeat.
K.I.S.S.

Might as well be a third person who agrees. My workouts are done early in the morning and are typically 40-60 minutes in length. Add in 1-3 days per week where I squeeze in some single track mtn biking as well and I am good to go (not part of PT, just to blow off steam or ride for the hell of it).

When it comes to endurance related work efforts, I find that I am better served with what is described above coupled with a decent diet/hydration as opposed to longer efforts.

 

[Grizzlystr]

I apologize in advance if this has already been brought up in this thread, but I was reading through and the topic got derailed multiple times. I just jumped to the end.

One of the questions I've always had when following programs or programming myself is where does the gym time really play in? I understand the benefits of slinging a barbell, but I've always believed that if you wanna get better at running, swimming, rucking, etc., then you gotta run, swim, ruck, etc. I still lift religiously, and that's not going to change, however, I've just often wondered why we lift as opposed to just doing what you need to improve on. Is it just supplementary for protecting against injury, or just for the overall endurance/strength side of the house?

 

[RustyShackleford]

I do what I do in order to maintain a balance between strength and endurance. It doesn't hurt that the end result is a 38 y/o male who can still put guys in their early 20s to shame in most physical and work related tasks.

As to getting better at any one event, well, if I am training up for a race, my focus is on that event. The bench press won't make me faster on a trail or road race but a little bit of lifting tied in with a shitload of running helps hold it all together.

 

[SkrewzLoose]

What are your exercises and assistance work that you use for the 5/3/1. I have done One Man One Barbell with Squat, Bench, Deadlift, Press and utilized lunges, dips, rows, side raises as assistance exercises.

I keep it simple.

Bench press day: Dips, incline/decline DB press, push ups, flys
Squat day: In the hole squats, good mornings, OH squats, hamstring curls, GHD sit ups
OH press day: Arnold/seated BB presses, shoulder mobility with light weight or PVC/bands
DL day: Pull ups, DB rows, good mornings, GHD sit ups, rack DL, back extensions

My main focus is on the primary lift and mobility. I have very little free time right now (thanks to my CoC) and I'm 32, so I stick with what Rusty mentioned above.
5/3/1 takes up very little time as does running 3-4 miles. I throw in a good 30-40 minute CF/HIIT WOD when I have the time because I still really enjoy that type of work.

Grizzlystr , it depends on what your goals are. If you only want to be fast, run 4-5 times a week and scale back the lifting to 2 days/week. If you want to be strong, do the opposite. If you want to be well rounded, you're going to have to find time to mix in a little bit of everything. Again, I don't know what your goals are, so it's hard to answer your question.

 

[booker]

You don't necessarily have to spend time in the gym, some of the great SF folks that were PT studs didn't spend much time in the gym, but given that the new generation of SF/SOF has to carry around armor, etc, the need to add on some mass is a legitimate goal for some folks, as well as injury proofing and providing a greater strength level than conventional bodyweight training, so yes, I think lifting is a necessity in today's military environment. Does that mean that you are going to get all swole and be a slow ass and become a liability to your team? No, it's all in how you dial in nutrition ,etc with your lifting.

Goon and others here have provided evidence that the need for "running to improve run times" isn't necessary. That being said, I think that rucking is a specialty type of exercise, and one that requires you to spend time under the tick to prepare you mentally and physically for that particular event, and there is no gym exercise that can simulate rucking.. I'm built to be a load bearing mule, not an 11:00 2 miler, so knowing what your strengths are will help you go a lot farther too. YMMV. It's always n=1, you have to find what works best for you. That doesn't mean reinventing the wheel, but do the Bruce Lee thing and discard what isn't useful to you.

 

[SkrewzLoose]

Made it into the gym for the first time in about 2 weeks today. I did my 3/3/3+ FS workout.
Then I did this as my "accessory work"...

http://www.crossfithyannis.com/911-memorial-wod/

-Scaled thrusters & push jerk to 115#
-Scaled HSPU to just slow negatives
-First time I have ever had to break up DL in a WOD
-First 2001 meter row averaged 2:04/500m, Second was 2:15/500m
-Absolute smoke session. I haven't sweat through everything I was wearing since I did The Murph.

 

[booker]

I did the same WOD, but ran 1.25 miles in lieu instead of rowing twice. Did the run first, which turned out to be a god send, although the row at the end was a very good mental exercise, finished the row just shy of 7 minutes. Thrusters were by far the worst movement, but 11 reps of HSPUs seemed like an eternity as well. Good workout in all.

 

[CBA]

Hello everyone. I want to thank everyone who contributed to this thread, as it has been very insightful.

I just finished MA's Bodyweight 1 plan last week, and wanted to have a go at designing my own programming for a few weeks, working with a sandbag I made this weekend (somewhere around 75#, but I'm not sure). This is based almost entirely on the structure of the bodyweight plan, but mixed with their 4 week run-improvement plan. I had one that had less running, but after reading a current RASP attendee say that running very quickly is important, I cut back on the strength to three days (from four), and amped up running to three days (from two).

Some of the stuff I'm unsure about, and won't know if it will work for sure until I do it. After this week I'll revise to make it more or less difficult, according to how I handle this week.

Let me know what you think of this 1) in general and 2) as a selection (RASP) prep plan. This is my first try at programming, and I wanted to see how successful it would be.



Thanks

Conor

 

[CDG]

Programming for yourself is difficult. It's very easy to fall into the habit of not programming what you need to work on and justifying extra days off or reduced volume. I don't know how far out from RASP you are, but MA has a RASP plan. I would suggest just using that. Experiment with your own programming when you don't have as much riding on it.

 

[SkrewzLoose]

There are also a few guys around here who have completed RASP within the last 12 months or so. They might be a good source regarding what kind of training would be best and where to cut back or add to your current regimen.

 

[CBA]

Programming for yourself is difficult. It's very easy to fall into the habit of not programming what you need to work on and justifying extra days off or reduced volume. I don't know how far out from RASP you are, but MA has a RASP plan. I would suggest just using that. Experiment with your own programming when you don't have as much riding on it.

Thank you for the advice. Yes, it is difficult. I think running is my biggest weakness. I don't even ship out for Basic for almost a year, so I have quite a lot of time. I have my eye on the RASP plan, and definitely will use it before Basic, so I was hoping to come up with some stuff to do in the meantime. I had my eye on the MA Sandbag, Dumbell, and weight vest plan, but this is my attempt to do something similar for myself (and free). If I'm unsuccessful I will certainly get the MA plan. I really enjoyed Bodyweight 1, and like their training philosophy.

There are also a few guys around here who have completed RASP within the last 12 months or so. They might be a good source regarding what kind of training would be best and where to cut back or add to your current regimen.

That would be great. I'm a mentee on ArmyRanger.com as well, and that's where I heard about the speed running emphasis from a current (Week 4 or 5, I think) RASP attendee.

Thanks again for the suggestions.

 

[CDG]

Thank you for the advice. Yes, it is difficult. I think running is my biggest weakness. I don't even ship out for Basic for almost a year, so I have quite a lot of time. I have my eye on the RASP plan, and definitely will use it before Basic, so I was hoping to come up with some stuff to do in the meantime. I had my eye on the MA Sandbag, Dumbell, and weight vest plan, but this is my attempt to do something similar for myself (and free). If I'm unsuccessful I will certainly get the MA plan. I really enjoyed Bodyweight 1, and like their training philosophy.

Check out SOFWODs or TF Black for free programming that's SOF oriented.

 

[goon175]

Yeah, RASP is definitely a running mans game. Not that you should skimp on the other stuff, but I think someone who is a good runner but mediocre strength will do better than someone that is great in the strength department but mediocre at running. The goal is to be well rounded though, and with the amount of time you have, I would focus on mobility stuff like crazy as that will prevent injury once you get into the real deal. Many a stud has fallen by the wayside due to injury that many times could have been prevented with mobility prep months in advance.