Ultimate Fitness Thread

[flgator92]

Old post but interesting I think for prepping for OCS. I think bodyweight exercises are a great measure of fitness — albeit not necessarily absolute strength. A lot of absolute strength is simply a function of mass. There’s a reason football players at the NFL combine bench 225 like it’s nothing (aside from being strong and in shape): they weigh well over 225 in most cases. Makes it easier. Weightlifting strength is dependent on body mass to a large extent.

When I was considering Marine OCS, I did pull-ups — a lot of them. (Still do. Best way IMO to get strong back/nice lats/build pullin strength. Way better than the pulldown machine.) Marines have to do fewer pull-ups, sure. But Marine Officer candidates should be shooting for around 20+ — not the minimums. To induct into OCS you have to do 8 minimum but that won’t get you selected.

The new APFT is cool in theory. But, if you’re a fit and strong person, I don’t think doing 60-70 pushups in 2 minutes is too high a bar — that’s just my view of it. The new APFT is impractical and unwieldy, and some folks in the Army are starting to lament about it because it’s difficult and costly (time and money) to administer, so we shall see how it goes.

 

[Deleted member 67144 scul]

I don’t think doing 60-70 pushups in 2 minutes is too high a bar

They aren't regular push-ups. They're release push-ups, so you lower your torso to the deck, lift your hands off, then put them back down and push up. It's also the third event in the ACFT. I think one of the best parts of the ACFT is replacing situps with leg tucks and in fact one of the goals was to reduce injuries incurred by the current APFT. Situps are an excellent way to strain your lower back, especially when you're cranking them out at diarrhea speed.

are starting to lament about it because it’s difficult

That's part of the point. It's meant to do more than test your muscle memory in your pecs/tris/delts and hip flexors.

 

[flgator92]

Situps are an excellent way to strain your lower back, especially when you're cranking them out.

Yeah, I completely agree that sit-ups suck and cause problems, but I also tend to think that deadlifting is gonna cause more problems with lower-backs down the road than sit-ups ever caused — particularly with soldiers who don’t do deadlifts in their normal exercise/ physical fitness routine and try to max the weight to max the event.

And when I said lamenting about the test being more difficult, I meant adminstering the test and not the actual events—haven’t heard anything about the events and their difficulty: https://mtntactical.com/knowledge/7...bat-readiness-test-proposed-replacement-apft/

 

[wangj231]

Just a little bit of perspective. I love lifting - like squat/bench/deadlift/clean&jerk/snatch, but it seems like OCS wants lean people who are moderately strong. I used to hate it but now I just kind of roll with it. Started running 25-40 miles a week with maybe less heavy squats and my body has changed a lot. Decreased my 3 mile by 5 minutes and lost 10 lbs (although most of it muscle ).

I'm moving less weight than I was before, but my strength to bodyweight ratio is much better now. I am skinnier than I prefer to be but I think the compromise is worth it.

That being said, I'm happy the new ACFT is testing some heavy weights since it is definitely relevant.

 

[colonial-aviation]

What’s the morning PT routine at OCS?

 

[aribjc]

What’s the morning PT routine at OCS?

form up outside nimitz at like 5 am, jog to the field, do a lap, do some streches, have a reasonable easy pt session for 35-45 minutes, cool down circle/strech, go eat

 

[aribjc]

form up outside nimitz at like 5 am, jog to the field, do a lap, do some streches, have a reasonable easy pt session for 35-45 minutes, cool down circle/strech, go eat

unless you have to do indoor pt in which case that sucks to be you

 

[Meyerkord]

What’s the morning PT routine at OCS?

To add to what aribjc said, some days will be calisthenics, some days will be running. The runs are sometimes 3 miles (1.5 with your class team, 1.5 at your own pace) around the base so just be prepared and try not to fall out. The sunrises are fantastic, so look forward to come cool views. Indoor PT usually consists of either running around Kay hall, sprinting down the P-ways, or more calisthenics.

 

[flgator92]

To add to what aribjc said, some days will be calisthenics, some days will be running. The runs are sometimes 3 miles (1.5 with your class team, 1.5 at your own pace) around the base so just be prepared and try not to fall out. The sunrises are fantastic, so look forward to come cool views. Indoor PT usually consists of either running around Kay hall, sprinting down the P-ways, or more calisthenics.

With respect to the calisthenics, is it circuit workouts like you see at Marine OCS/boot camp: push ups, pull ups, abs? Or is it different entirely?

 

[Meyerkord]

With respect to the calisthenics, is it circuit workouts like you see at Marine OCS/boot camp: push ups, pull ups, abs? Or is it different entirely?

It's mostly stations of exercises like lunges, leg lifts, push ups, burpees, squats, mountain climbers, crunches, side-straddle-hops (jumping jacks), etc. You won't do pull ups at OCS.

 

[Birdbrain]

I still don't know why OCS can't call jumping jacks a jumping jack. It's not trademarked like Velcro (hook and loop).

 

[Seniuram]

The only bad thing about PT was the occasional trip to the sandpit immediately after when you were deceived in to thinking you were going to chow.

 

[colonial-aviation]

On the 1.5 mile IST run, how much did y’all’s performance degrade compared to your usual? I’m able to consistently run a good low/sat high score and since I’m borderline I don’t have much margin now.

 

[CashJefferson]

On the 1.5 mile IST run, how much did y’all’s performance degrade compared to your usual? I’m able to consistently run a good low/sat high score and since I’m borderline I don’t have much margin now.

I have not yet been to OCS, but I have heard that if the weather is bad you run it indoors in a gym. I think doing that would cause you to run slower than usual. Tighter turns tire your legs out faster.

 

[flgator92]

On the 1.5 mile IST run, how much did y’all’s performance degrade compared to your usual? I’m able to consistently run a good low/sat high score and since I’m borderline I don’t have much margin now.

What do you weigh if you don't mind me asking? I used to weigh around 165lbs when I was thinking about going to Marine OCS and getting a 3 mile time to 18:00 (which I did), but now I clock in around 185-188 and I can't do that anymore. It's just harder to run, more weight to carry. I'd just recommend not worrying too much about it right now and just focus on getting that run time down some more. Even if you run 7 minute pace, that's still a 10:30 time. It's just six laps -- think about it like that!