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Pre-Boot Camp
or Service Academy Training - PFTs
Every year, I have the honor of exercising with America's
Heroes of Tomorrow bright and early at the Naval Academy during a one week
course called Summer Seminar. At 0530, Tuesday morning I exercised with over
700 motivated High School seniors who are more than likely to become
Midshipmen in the Class of 2009! The goal of the workout is to show the
future Midshipmen that PT can be a stress reliever NOT a stress increaser IF
they arrive prepared for the daily grind of military/boot camp style of
physical training.
Military PT is the one stress you can control simply by being prepared. The
daily military indoctrination, being away from home your first time (for
many), and the constant verbal challenging by your trainers is stress enough
- WHY SHOW UP OUT OF SHAPE? Every year too many young men and women attend
boot camp, military service academies, and police academies across the
United States ill-prepared for the physical training. When this occurs, the
course is adapted to unfortunately have many of these young men and women
who defend our freedom and safety striving for the minimum standards. This
ALL can easily be avoided if there were a bigger effort to help recruits
learn how to train properly prior to attending a military / law enforcement
training course. For most of the students, it was a great workout. For some,
they soon realized the need to work a little harder prior to arriving next
year.
That is why I am dedicated to teaching the way to ace the PFT and get into
fighting shape. This is the program we did at the USNA this week which helps
the students learn whether or not they are in shape or not. Anyone can get
into shape - all it takes is practice.
Warm up - 5:00 with slow run /
stretch arms and legs
Repeat 10 times:
Jumping jacks 10
Pushups - 10 (rotate thru each type:
Regular Pushups, Wide Pushups, Close Tricep Pushups, 8 Count Body Builder
Pushups) (Total pushups = 100)
Ever warmed up with 100 pushups before? This is a great way
to get the body started in just 5:00!
Repeat 3 times:
Sit ups - 1:00
(Rest one minute while you hold your partners feet)
Pushups 50 straight non-stop
When it come to sit ups - you can pace yourself and score
higher - too many times people start off too fast and burn out within the
first minute. Try to set your pace at 20 reps in 30 seconds which will equal
80 in 2:00. This is 15 reps above the minimum standard.
Super Set for pushups/sit ups
Repeat 2-3 times in 2:30 each set:
Pushups - 10
Crunches - 20
Wide pushups- 10
Reverse crunches - 20
Close Pushups - 10
Double crunches - 20
The above superset is a great way to build a foundation in respect to
adding pushups to your PFT score. Mixing in maximum rep sets is another
great way to increase your scores.
Stretch 5:00
Run 1-2 miles
If you REALLY need help on running, it is recommended to use the 2 mile
option for 2 months before picking up the mileage to 3 miles track workout
as seen on StewSmith.com articles about running
faster and
properly.
Any questions??
You can e-mail Stew Smith at
Stew@stewsmith.com. Your questions will be
answered either by email or as a feature in his fitness column.
There is also a free 6 week program online at
www.stewsmith.com for you to download titled, "USNA Workout." The
scores below are the goals to score above average on the PFT.
| Above average
scores |
MEN |
WOMEN |
| Pushups |
80-90 |
50-60 |
| Situps |
80-90 |
80-90 |
| 1.5
mile run |
9:00-9:30 |
11:00-11:30 |
Go to Boot Camp Workout -
The Navy, Air Force, Marine Corp
Boot Camp Workout
and you can check out the Candidate Fitness Assessment Workout for
Service Academy hopefuls:
CFA and PFT Workout
Check out the
Ace the PFT article at the
www.StewSmith.com
Fitness Articles
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Stew Smith is a
former Navy SEAL and Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) by
the National Strength and Conditioning Association. He specializes in military
and law enforcement fitness, particularly Special Operations units. Please feel
free to email him at
Stew@stewsmith.com with any comments or questions.
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