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Old Forum Special forces selection

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Rigor Mortis

Level 1 Valued Member
Hello everyone,

So my goal is to get through Army special forces selection in my home country. Selection is following:

 

Phase 1:

5km run with 10kg rucksack (in about 22 minutes)

PFT (pushups, situps, chins, somekind of get ups, back extensions)

200m swim

diving test

10km skiing test

 

And the best candidates get to the second phase.

 

Phase 2:

5 days of torture in the woods

-lots of running with gear, rucking, orienteering, crawling, hand to hand combat, shooting etc.

-sleep deprivation, not enough food, stress etc.

 

My backround:

I served  12 months as a conscript and 2,5 months as “instructor” in the army. Last autumn I got selected to university to study to become an officer in army, and also to police academy .

I chose to start studies in the police academy. So now I study law enforcement, but want to same time prepare these two years for army Special forces selection.

I don’t have any competition level sport backround, so I feel like most of the “prepare for sfas” etc. programs are too much for my recovery abilities at this point.

I’m pretty skinny, 21 years old 178cm/70kg male. I could run last summer 3km in 12minutes, do +20 chins and do 1 one arm chin with both arms. I also run half marathon distance in boots and camelback on my back on last winter, just to test my mental side.

So I’m average with bodyweight stuff, but my strength with loads, endurance and work capacity has to get MUCH better.

 

I have read Nate Morrisons “Those who dare” and “The Morrison system”, and Joseph Martins “Get selected for special forces”. There is lots of important information in the books, but the physical routines are just too much for me at this point.

I have also read Pavels “ETK” and “Easy strength”. The problem with kettlebells are my tight right hip and hurting L2-L3 disk. Even with swings.

I think “easy strength” and “easy endurance” principles would be really good for my purposes, but I just can`t figure out the intelligent routine on my own.

I have also payed for the strength coach to design a plan for me, but I was disappointed with it too. I didn’t see how the bodybuilding routine I got, would have helped me achieving my goals, and it actually didn’t.

I know that on this forum here is lots of knowledge on “tactical athlete” type training and it would be GREAT  if you can help me with this challenge.

I know that I have to start small and progressively build my work capacity to the point where I can do even 3 training sessions a day, because selection and the job will be 24/7 physically demanding. How the hell can I do it intelligently?

Is there going to be more information on “tactical” part of the strongfirst page? Few of my friends have been in afganistan, and I would really want to know how “suddenly the hindu kush was easy”? :D

Sorry for the long first post, and my bad English.

Thank you for your time, and possible answer. Have a nice weekend!
 
Hey bro shoot me an email at gtlaau@Hotmail.com I have a program or two that I can send that might help if your interested in trading (ebooks for ebooks for it?

add the subject titles to email as SF fitness.

Cheers G
 
Gray: Nice. I will send Email to you soon.

Michael: Thank you for your kind words. OAC are nice and help with rope climbing, but i think not much else.

Has anyone else ideas?
 
Here's a link to Pavel's Force Recon workout: http://completestrength.blogspot.com/2006/03/force-recon-traditional-russian.html

Should definitely help with conditioning and strength. You'll want to do some light specific endurance a couple of other days a week to work on the swimming, skiing and rucking.
 
I was not special forces but i spent 14 years in The Army, as a REME Tech (lol),  i found something like

2x week strength training ( Easy strength would have been a good guide in hindsight)

3x week steady state Cv, running/swimming/cycling/trekking (dependant on time of year and what sport i was doing at the time)

1x week HIIT/circuit training (KB work would have been good in hindsight)

that kept me way ahead of most people.

good luck :)
 
Thanks for answers, everybody.

Andy: Yeah, I have studied also force recon routine. I'm sure it's really good routine but I remember reading that Pavel said that it aims more to "operational fitness" and before selection you should do training based more to things which are tested in selection.

Other problem with force recon workout is that at the moment I just cant do that kb work.

Stephen: Your guidelines sounds pretty good also.

It reminds me about Pavels and Dan Johns article about sf soldier "Victor" and his training.

I'm just wondering how I should structure the workouts and keep progression intelligent.

Strength work should probably be easy strength style whole body workouts two times a week?

How about endurance work?

I have also thought that at least navy seal John Faas used to train with Pavels principles. Has Pavel told or wrote anything about Faas' training or about training of other supermen like him?

I'm also wondering how should I plan to develop my workcapacity without overtraining all the time?

 
 
this would be my take now from what i see in your first post

Day 1 Easy Strength deadlift/military press/pullups(weighted)

2 March/hike/run with Back pack say 1 to 2 hours, hills if possible

3 Easy strength squat/bench press/chinups

4 swim/skiing (cross trainer?) training 1 hour

5 Bodyweight circuit training (burpees, crunches and pushups, were always very popular with instructors i remember lol)

6 long slow run, easy endurance style

7 REST/EAT

 

thats just my own ideas, i am sure there are some better qualified people out there :)

 
 
Hey Rigor, you mentioned the l2-3 disk which is a specific thing to state. Did you see someone to reach that diagnosis? How did you hurt yourself in the first place? Regardless of the answer, you need a physiotherapist to help you make that better. Disks are more often made worse by repetitive strain other than sudden injuries, so even though a slow progression in training volume may seem to be safer, you won't know until it's too late. Would love to hear more about this disk problem. Disks and long ruck marches are old enemies.
 
Rigor, I am with Joe—get that disc checked out.

I would focus on back, leg, and ab strength.  I will give you some recommendations once you find out your restrictions from the doc.
 
 

 

Thanks also for joe and pavel,


You are both right. I have to get my lower back recovered. Thats one reason I chose to study law enforcement and not the military things yet. Dysfunction is a few years old, and I'm not sure where it came from. 


However, I have visited at least two physioterapists, two doctors and one osteopath (is that right word?).


They all have said just the same thing. "You have to strengthen your abs, and strech your hamstrings". Only the army doctor said on last summer that I might have a little bit of skoliosis, but she didnt do anything more.


Doctors have taken also 1 x-ray photo, but they said there wasn't anything wrong.


However, I have noticed on my own that L2-3 disk feels like its a bit "too deep" in my back. And it feels like I'm overextensing my lower back although it doesnt seem like that on the mirror. 


And propably the psoas muscles and hamstrings are too tight and they force my hips to tilt a little bit. So I have started to pay attention to that and strech. Especially the right side.


I know that I have to fix this problem, but I think that I can also train things which are not hurting, because doctors haven't said that there is any problem. 


Movements which don't feel normal are movements where I have to bend forward a lot  like most kettlebell moves. I also do deadlift with really clean form and light weights. Then again eg. hanging leg raises feel really good.


Have any recommendations how should I continue from here?


And how should I train when my back starts to feel 100%?
 
Rigor, you need to get another medical opinion—from a doctor who works with serious athletes and lifters.  It will be worth the hassle.
 
 

No disk injury!


Now I went to a doctor, who works with athletes.


He checked my spine, posture and some of my movement patterns.


He diagnosed that I havent got disk injuries. However some minor muscle imbalances appeared. And he gave me advices for those. Basicly streching daily (psoas, hamstrings, quads especially). He said also that I have to pay more attention to perfect form when I do movement patterns similar to deadlifting.


In the end, we discussed about my plans and he said  that in his opinion ruck training etc. is fine, if I do it progressively in long haul and as long as back feels fine. I could have ordered new visit for doctor check for summer, but I just can't afford it until next autumn.


He talked also about option for preparing for law enforcement spec ops selection. It is true that it requires same kind of abilities. There is just less rucking and more fighting/grappling and more strength requirements.


Though I can go those try outs only after 3 years. 


Do you think its possible to prepare for both selections in 2-3years in same time?


In both selections, they say that you have to be "good at everything" (strength, power, endurance), how the hell is it done? I know that there are people like that but I dont know how to get there.


So now Pavel and everybody else, do you have ideas how should I construct my plan?
 
Up, one last time.

No new ideas?

I found this pavel's answer about late great john faas' preparation for buds over ten years ago:


"Com. StormSix, a lot of high rep snatched. Pullup ladders and GTG. Pushups (because the PT test required them). Running and swimming nearly daily with near max relaxation. Some sparring. Heaby abs: FCTs, Jandas, spider lifts. Full splits."

Would this be good template? Is there any more precise guidelines for this?

Personally, I feel that my pullups are good enough (23 pullups on wednesday, 25 chinups on last summer), and all the other aspects are my weaknesses, especially my workcapacity,( without getting overtraining symptoms)...
 
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