Basic Training PT question

[JDG]

Hello everyone. I‘m new to this board (great site by the way!) and have a question regarding the physical aspect of basic training.

If all goes well, I plan to apply for a position as a MARS Officer in the Navy, entering under the DEO program. I‘m fairly athletic, and am confident that I can pass the physical test fairly easily, but I‘m just wondering how much they step things up in basic training.

Running is not much of a problem for me. I have been running 3.8 KM 5-6 times a week for the past month or so in about 20 minutes. Situps are also no problem. If pushed, I can probably do 40 at a time.

The only thing I am wary of is push-ups. The main reason is that I have the absolute worst possible build for doing push-ups; small chest & long thin arms. I can manage 20 at a time with decent effort and 30 if I really push myself. Anything more is very difficult for me.

My question is: On the average day in Basic Training, how many push-ups are recruits expected to do? How many sets? How many reps? Do you have to do progressively more with each new day? Is there a set number, or do some recruits do more than others based on physical ability, etc..?

Would appreciate any info. Thanks!

 

[Recce41]

Hey
If your at that level, don‘t worry. 1. PT for Navy courses is next to nil.
2. PT over all has gone down, recuits are babied now. Its gone from an *** Kickin in my time 22 yrs ago, to a hug and a kiss.

Sgt J.
Canadian Decoration, Chief of Defence Staff Commandation
Bold and Swift / Airborne

 

[rolandstrong]

Don‘t worry about it. As I recall we started with 15 lame crotch drop push ups and ended by doing at least 50 by the end of course...I concour with the previous response...phys ed is not the challenge for basic that it used to be know for. Mind you, I did mine 9 years ago...and will be doing it again this winter....

 

[Ian]

Hello,

I was just on a portion of the basic officer training course in St-Jean, Quebec, which as under the DEO entry you would probably attend. There were naval candidates in my platoon, along with air force and army.

Physical Training in basic training should not pose a problem for you. It starts at low difficulty and it does not ramp up much; the runs never exceed 5 kilometers and in our case were done at a very slow pace. Roughly half of the PT for us was as a collective (formation runs, stretcher PT, marches, etc) but a fair amount was PT to your own abilities, such as with the PSP staff and circuit training, where the burden is on you to push yourself as far as you can and that‘s basically all.

We did on occasion do sets of 50 push-ups, but not everybody in the platoon could do that many, and as long as an effort was shown I believe all was well. Typically they were around sets of 20; different platoons did different amounts - others did more, others did less. As an aside, if you don‘t like push-ups, don‘t fall asleep during classes and don‘t allow your peers to do so either.

It probably is easier than it was in the past (i only say probably because i don‘t really know), but just keep working on being as able as you can be; aim for the top.

Good luck,

 

[Jungle]

You are all corect in stating that things are easier than a few years ago... but today‘s recruits (generally) can‘t take the PT we used to do. Basically, they are out of shape. According to a briefing I received not long ago, CFLRS is going back to testing everybody at the beginning of the course using the CF EXPRESS test (20m shuttle run, not the steps). Those who fail the test will not carry on with training. The statistics prove too many who fail the PT test end up injured or quitting before the end of the course, resulting in a waste of time, money and effort. So, if you plan to join the CF, ensure you can pass the CF EXPRESS before you show up...

 

[rolandstrong]

Here is an article related to what jungle is saying.

http://www.dnd.ca/menu/maple/vol_2/Vol2_3/expres_e.htm

Does anyone out there know when this is to be implemented?

:rocket:

 

[silverhorse86]

we do that test in our high school gym class and it is really easy to do

 

[Korus]

PT for Navy courses is next to nil.

Then you haven‘t seen how much PT we had on the BMQ I just finished... Very little, which is too bad. Way too much classroom stuff, though I‘m hoping SQ will be better wrt PT...