Often, I receive emails from young men and women in their
teens who ask about military or law enforcement careers when they get old enough
to serve their country by doing such honorable professions. I wish however,
most emails were like this future Marine. Too many times, young men and women
start to prepare way too late for professions that require fitness tests. But
more importantly, their lives or their buddies’ lives may depend on their
strength and fitness level. Here is an email from a young man who wants to
become a Marine one day:
I'm 16-years old and want to become a marine. I just
want to know how good my strength is, from your perspective:
80 push-ups w/o stopping
15 pullups, 25 diamond pushups w/o stopping, and
can run a mile in 5:25.
So how does it look, could I become a Marine?
I think any branch of service would be happy to
allow you to serve. You are definitely getting into great shape. For the USMC,
you should start to focus on getting that 1 mile run up to 3 miles in about
18-19 minutes, and get those pull-ups to 20+ with ease. That will put you in
above average fitness levels upon arriving to boot camp. But, you have a few
more years to prepare yourself not only for service but for the rest of your
life. Those are great PT scores, however, not all of your career depends on
your physical abilities. You should still study hard, learn to be a team player
by playing sports, and figure out if you want to enlist out of high school or go
to college and become an officer. There are great programs that will allow the
military to pay for your college either through the GI Bill and enlistment
bonuses or ROTC and Service Academy Programs. Regardless, your fitness is
important and should be part of your daily life just as brushing your teeth is.
Here are some tips to help you get moving and building
your fitness levels to the level you should be in before you attend any basic
training program (military or law enforcement).
Upper body and lower body endurance
– The military and law enforcement indoctrination programs use calisthenics of
exercises like pushups, sit-ups, pull-ups, squats, lunges and many more to not
only train hundreds of people at a time, but to build muscular endurance. Long
lasting endurance will best help a recruit run longer, be able to perform better
on load bearing marches / gear carries and fitness tests. Higher repetitions of
these exercises will help your body last longer. See related articles on
workouts:
The
Stretching Plan
Tips for Better Pullups
Pull-up Alternatives
Running Even Faster
Take 2:00 Off Your PFT Mile
Ruck
Marches
Learn to swim – Swimming is one of the first
survival skills we all learn. Joining the military and not knowing how to swim
can seriously challenge your indoctrination training. There are videos
available to see how to swim, but the best way to learn is in person with a
coach or swim instructor. Go to a local pool and seek lessons to learn the
basic skills. Swimming is also a great way to rest the leg after miles of
running throughout the week. Who knows, you may enjoy and join a swim team.
See related swimming articles for more info:
Passing Military Swimming Tests
Swimming Workouts
Strength – being strong is important too. It
takes full body strength to carry or drag a buddy out of a danger area. From
your grip muscles in your hands to your lower back, you need to workout by
adding pull-ups, weight training, and smart lower back exercises to help add
strength. See related articles for more ideas on training the entire body to
be stronger:
Pullup-Push Workout
The Push-Up Push Workout
Pyramid PT
Too often, I receive emails from people who need to lose
20 lbs quickly before they go to Indoctrination training, having started
exercising only a few weeks prior. To be honest, to attend military or law
enforcement training and perform well, you need to have a foundation of fitness
for at least a year of sports and exercises for strength and endurance.
Otherwise, you will have a higher percentage of injuring yourself or have to
attend “extra” workout sessions to catch up to the rest of your class. Both
situations add stress to an already stressful environment and distract you from
learning your profession to the best of your ability. So do not go until in
your are in shape. Otherwise, the instructors will take your fitness growth
into their own hands and make your military and indoctrination tougher than it
needs to be.
Good luck with your training programs. For more
information on specific training workout plans, check out the workouts at
StewSmith.com Fitness Store. If
you have any questions, please feel free to email me at
Stew@stewsmith.com
_________________________________________________________________
Stew Smith CSCS is a former Navy SEAL officer and graduate
of the U.S. Naval Academy. He is certified by the National Strength and
Conditioning Association as a strength and conditioning specialist.
