Forums >General Running>National Guard fitness goals - any Guard Soldiers here?
The Irreverent Reverend
I am currently applying to join the National Guard (as a chaplain), and I'm working both on my weight and on my fitness goals. Among other criteria, I have to hit certain fitness goals to enter - 34 push-ups in two minutes; 38 sit-ups in two minutes; 2 miles in 18:18. And, I have to get under 200 pounds (I'm currently in the 215 range, after being in the high 230s/low 240s over the summer).
I'm using Weight Watchers to help with the weight loss, and it has been working pretty well for me.
Sit-ups and push-ups - I'm starting again to do these exercises a few days/week to get better at them. I also have some freeweights and a power tower, to supplement work on my upper body and abs. I'm not very good at these workouts, and I don't enjoy them, so I tend to skimp on these exercises and just focus on the running, which I love. Of course, that plan won't help me hit my fitness targets to get into the Guard.
The 2 mile is not an issue. I've got that by a longshot. I'm also training for a marathon, while I'm at it.
If I am accepted into the Guard, I could enter the Basic Officer Leadership Course as early as this summer. Question, for any of you who have done BOLC or similar: Is it possible to come out of BOLC and do a marathon 2-3 months later? I'll surely be fit, but will I have the opportunity while at BOLC to go on long runs and train for a fall marathon?
Second, any advice for hitting these fitness goals, apart from the simple advice of, "the best way to get better at sit-ups is to do sit-ups"?
Thanks, all. Your insight, prayers, and words of wisdom will be much appreciated as I walk down this road toward service in the Guard.
Husband. Father of three. Lutheran pastor. National Guardsman. Runner. Political junkie. Baseball fan.
not bad for mile 25
Duckworth, I have nothing for you except to wish you good luck, and hope to see you in the Lincoln National Guard marathon in a couple of years.
MoBramExam
There you go. Same with push-ups. Little practice and 2:00 minutes to do 34 and 38 is an eternity. Good luck!
One day at a time
Wow, good luck, Duckworth! It's amazing that they ask chaplains to meet the same fitness requirements that everyone else does!
How old are you? If those are minimum scores, you should aim higher. As an officer (even if you are a chaplain), more is expected of you (Not to pass, but to set a good example).
Mmmmm...beer
For pushups and situps, do them every day, not just a few days a week, the frequency will help you improve faster. Also, I like to do pushups throughout the day, during commercial breaks if I'm watching tv, in the kitchen while waiting for something in the microwave, etc. Like running, consistency is the key. Good luck!
-Dave
My running blog
Goals | sub-18 5k | sub-3 marathon 2:56:46!!
I am in the Air Force. Slightly different fitness requirements, but similar.
For PU and SU, look at the 100 pushups, 200 situps program. Just do a google search for 100 pushups and it will come up. I hate doing pushups, and this is my method of ensuring I can meet the requirement every year. A couple months out, I just start the program and have had nothing but success in the past.
As for running the marathon after BLOC, I think you might find it challenging. You probably won't have a whole bunch of free time to go on long runs. I don't know for 100% sure, so keep checking around though.
Best of luck to you.
I am 39, and the sit up and push up thresholds are minimums for my age category. I plan on clearing those numbers. As one who has never worked on my abs or upper body much, even the minimums are going to take some work at this point. But I'll get there. Thanks.
Wow. I love it. Thanks.
Question: are those sit-up (38 in two minutes) and push-up (34 in two minutes) numbers as simple as the two mile time target (18:18) for a 39 year old who is reasonably fit? Please excuse my ignorance, but I truly just don't know the metrics for situps and pushups, as I've never worked out these muscles or had to do these before. If those goals are on par with the 18:18 goal ... well, shoot. I hit my two-mile split in Wednesday's 10K at 14:23, so I've got one of the goals done. I don't expect I'll exceed the SU and PU targets by as much as I exceed the 2 mile target, but I will.
Thanks, all, for your advice.
IMO (unscientific), if you randomly grabbed them off the streets, there would be more "reasonably fit" 39 year olds who could hit the push up and sit up thresholds than run the 18:18 two-mile. To the general population, 2 miles is a long, long, long way to run. Add to that, most do not know how to run 2 miles.
flashlight and sidewalk
Generally I'm not a big fan of gimmicky work out equipment, but I use "perfect pushups" 3 days a week and I have been steadily increasing the numbers. I don't know that they give you a better workout overall (pushups are pretty solid as far as a workout goes), but they are harder than a standard pushup so you can work out for less time. I do sets of regular grip, narrow, and wide (which can be done without additional equipment). I alternate pushups with ab/core workouts.
I had good success bringing up my pushup/situp numbers in high school by doing the "deck of cards" workout. Basically you flip over a card, if it is an 8 you do 8 situps and 8 pushups and rest for the remainder of the minute. You can mess around with using half a deck, counting face cards as 1 or 10 (11,12, 13, 14).
I agree that the situp and pushup requirements seem easier than the running requirement. Good luck!
**Ask me about streaking**
Just out of curiosity, do you know what the equivalent requirements would be for a woman of the same age? Give me some perspective on my own fitness.
Agree with the comments above on maximizing the volume of pushups in a day. Train to do them as fast as you can - you will not benefit from "resting" in the manner permitted during the test, and every second in the "leaning rest" burns a great deal of energy. I got my best results by hammering out single sets to exhaustion at the speed I'd use at the PT test a few times a day, versus multiple sets of shorter duration or count. I also don't think you get anything out of grinding the last few out at a slow pace.
Try to get an Army grader to put you through a practice test as soon as you can, so you can experience the form required. Perhaps your recruiter can do this, or someone else with recent Army experience. Repeat as often as you can, and tell them to grade you strict. It's demoralizing to do a rep in the test that counts and have the grader repeat the number (indicating it didn't count).
Seeing a real PT Test might be helpful, too. Some unusual physiques seem to benefit from unsual hand placements, etc., whether you're trying to max it out or just meet the minimum.
I am sure you will exceed the standards, when the time comes.
I agree 100% with this.