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Off-Topic Military Prep Questions

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Marcus Aurelius

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Hello All,

So, over the last 6 years or so I've been contemplating enlisting in the United States Army and I'm finally ready to pull the trigger. This Monday I'm going to the recruiter to start the process. I just want some input about how to prepare for Army basic training.

  1. Does following the Rite of Passage, gtg with high tension pushups and running a mock pt test on variety days seem like a good plan?
    1. I already walk allot, crawl allot and do allot of mobility work.
  2. I currently follow a modified warrior diet and I love it. Should I change my diet to reflect more of what I'll be eating in basic training?
  3. I've been advised to stay away from high intensity exercise because I'll do enough of that at basic.
Thank you to everybody. I'm so excited to take this next step.
 
A large number of your fellow recruits will show up with very poor fitness. If you do some running, pushups, situps, and pullups before you show up, you'll be way ahead of the game. The physical part will be easier than you think if you are prepared. No need to overthink it. The vast majority of problems encountered by recruits are related to run injuries. Do some decent run prep and you will be fine.
 
A large number of your fellow recruits will show up with very poor fitness. If you do some running, pushups, situps, and pullups before you show up, you'll be way ahead of the game. The physical part will be easier than you think if you are prepared. No need to overthink it. The vast majority of problems encountered by recruits are related to run injuries. Do some decent run prep and you will be fine.

Thank you. I feel I already have decent fitness prep. The only thing I really need to work on is the skill of running and pushups. I have the strength I just need the technique to apply it.
 
Thank you. I feel I already have decent fitness prep. The only thing I really need to work on is the skill of running and pushups. I have the strength I just need the technique to apply it.

Take it slow and progress slower than you think you should. The goal is to show up to boot camp uninjured with good run durability. You get that with a very conservative approach to mileage and intensity.
 
Take it slow and progress slower than you think you should. The goal is to show up to boot camp uninjured with good run durability. You get that with a very conservative approach to mileage and intensity.
Thank you for the advice. I'll definitely take it slow and build up.
 
@Marcus Aurelius
My experience in basic training is so ancient it may not be valid in today's age, but...
I showed up in amazing shape. Probably the fittest person in our platoon, or even company. I was shocked at how 'weak' most of the recruits were. However, I soon learned it was not a good thing to 'show off' my fitness. The high blades of grass soon got mowed.

I also did no specific preparation. I had spent the two years prior as a full time alpine climbing bum....
 
@Marcus Aurelius
My experience in basic training is so ancient it may not be valid in today's age, but...
I showed up in amazing shape. Probably the fittest person in our platoon, or even company. I was shocked at how 'weak' most of the recruits were. However, I soon learned it was not a good thing to 'show off' my fitness. The high blades of grass soon got mowed.

I also did no specific preparation. I had spent the two years prior as a full time alpine climbing bum....
I wonder why so many come in out of shape? My thought process is if I have the physical aspect down, I can put more effort into mastering the mental part of basic training.
 
I wonder why so many come in out of shape? My thought process is if I have the physical aspect down, I can put more effort into mastering the mental part of basic training.
Well, that's what I would have thought also.
Granted, when I say out of shape, I suppose I was comparing them to me at the time. (Ego clouding my perspective?)
Also bear in mind this was over 40 years ago. Different times...
 
I wonder why so many come in out of shape? My thought process is if I have the physical aspect down, I can put more effort into mastering the mental part of basic training.

It is a very interesting phenomenon for sure. I suspect that many don't have the discipline to train on their own, so they figure that boot camp will give that to them. The problem is that some of them are so deconditioned that they will not make it through boot camp at all. In any case, you should have no problem excelling.
 
Here in Finland we have conscription and a bit over 20 000 recruits start every year. The defence force has done some interesting studies on how the recruits have changed through the years.

In about the last 20 years, the average height has gone up 1 cm while the average weight has gone up 7kg. The average result of the Cooper 12 minute test has gone down from 2700m to 2400m in 40 years. The number of bad runners has multiplied throughout the years and the number of good runners has gone down. Interestingly, the weight gain does not correlate with the running results.

The chief over exercise thinks that the recruits of the past years just got more exercise in their everyday life. I wonder how big the picture is, and how things like urbanization play into it.
 
That´s really insteresting @Antti , thanks for sharing. It seems to be a good study with a very large sample. Is it available in English?
 
My boot camp experience was funny. I had played hockey for 12 years into the college level. I acted like an idiot and had to leave college. I joined the navy just a few months later and ended up getting, for me, out of shape in boot camp. S&S, ETK and Dan Johns EES will have you just fine. Running will be your big thing. Learn good form, in running shoes and boots. Best of luck with your military future. After 27 years its still my best decision!
 
My U.S. Army basic training was co-ed and strictly for support and combat support MOSs (jobs). I was the second fastest runner in the two mile in my company of 200 soldiers (maybe 120-140 males.)

A few months later, I was in training with soldiers that had just come from Infantry school (basic training immediately followed by, well, Infantry School), and I was no longer the second fastest runner. I was still close to the top, but nonetheless there were faster runners and a lot more guys right at my heels. So you will find different levels of fitness based on MOS.

It wasn't because Infantry school got them in better shape. Instead, those guys were in better shape when they arrived at boot camp than the folks I trained with. It shouldn't be surprising that folks that joined the infantry are a little more motivated to be in shape than those that signed up to be admin clerks and truck drivers.

Something to look for.

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Yes, you might lose a little 'fitness' while in boot camp. Fortunately, you'll have plenty of time to do a little extra PT on your own (standing watch at night, for example.) Or when others are standing around smoking and joking you can be knocking out pistols or other bodyweight exercises. We did no pullups in basic training but did have a pull up and dip bar available in a common area, so you might be able to crank out a few sets at least a few times a day.
 
Hello All,

So, over the last 6 years or so I've been contemplating enlisting in the United States Army and I'm finally ready to pull the trigger. This Monday I'm going to the recruiter to start the process. I just want some input about how to prepare for Army basic training.

  1. Does following the Rite of Passage, gtg with high tension pushups and running a mock pt test on variety days seem like a good plan?
    1. I already walk allot, crawl allot and do allot of mobility work.
  2. I currently follow a modified warrior diet and I love it. Should I change my diet to reflect more of what I'll be eating in basic training?
  3. I've been advised to stay away from high intensity exercise because I'll do enough of that at basic.
Thank you to everybody. I'm so excited to take this next step.
@Marcus Aurelius
Congratulations first off for taking the first step in becoming a Soldier. As the saying goes “it was the best of times, it was the worst of times...”. That will be your life for the 9 weeks of basic combat training (or longer if you decide to enlist with an MOS that trains in OSUT, which is one station unit training, basically it’s basic training and your MOS training rolled into one block). Others have addressed your fitness questions, and yes you’ll have plenty of time to workout on your own at night during personal time, but one piece of advice I will give you is that basic training is not the time to stick to the warrior diet. You’ll be doing more PT during the day than you were probably doing in a week. Hundreds of pushups, countless flutter kicks, and not to mention you’ll have to run everywhere when you’re not marching in formation. Eat the 3 meals a day they give you, your body will need these calories. I’ve seen people try the low carb diet or fasting during basic training, and a few of them had to see the doctor and one developed rhabdo. Unfortunately this is how basic is designed, DoD will not pull their head out of their 4th point of contact and change anything because it is a right of passage, and weeds out those not fit for the military.

Sorry I went off on a rant. Hope I gave you some insight. Good luck and let us know what MOS you chose.

-WF
 
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