Pushups- Try Reading Here First- Merged Thread

[Fry]

LoL, I've visited those threads/posts frequently. Prehaps every day is too much... but I only do one set of the pushups, just every day... sometimes once in the morning and once at night.

 

[SemperFidelis]

AHHHHH I PASSED THE FITNESS TEST!  ahaha i know its not the biggest deal in the world to you people, but to me, it was since I was panicking over the damn pushups...but I Did it!! Thanks for all your advice , it really did help!!

 

[paracowboy]

AHHHHH I PASSED THE FITNESS TEST!   ahaha i know its not the biggest deal in the world to you people, but to me, it was since I was panicking over the darn pushups...but I Did it!! Thanks for all your advice , it really did help!!

well done.
Fry, you are not putting enough effort in. One set a day is not nearly enough. 

 

[jerrold]

Just some information from an older guy.  To prepare for BOTC I have been running 4x per week and I weight train (also push ups and sit ups) during the other days (and once on a day when I am running - generally the timed one).  For running, I do 2 days of LSD (Long Slow Distance), one day of a timed intermediate run (usually about 5 km) followed by a time trial for 2.4 km.  It took a couple of weeks to get up to the longer distances, however, my timed run changed from 11:54 to well under 10:00 in a month.  The weight training (chest, back, shoulders, bi's, tri's, traps, and legs) really helped the push ups (and running too).  I would do 5 sets of sit ups and push ups.  I was amazed at the progress in so little a time frame.  I would have to agree with those that recommend giving muscles a rest; due to the rest, my body has been more than ready for the next workout.  Also, increasing the reps for sit ups and push ups every day really helps advance ones conditioning.  And burning through the pain (just ensure it is not an injury) really moved things along too.  Oh, and one more thing, for the timed run, I used my vehicle to verify the distance on a road, at 1.2 km to a destination and then the return.  To help increase my velocity, I would time myself at the halfway point and then, based on the time thus far, try to shoot for a certain time on the 2nd leg of the run.  It really propelled my progress.  Lots of luck.

 

[CallOfDuty]

  I understand that giving your muscles a break, and a chance to rebuild themselves is a must.....but.....here's my question for anyone who's been through basic training.  Do your instructors make you do push-ups only every SECOND day so that your muscles can rest and rebuild?????.  I doubt it, so I figure you might as well do them every day, like you will be doing during basic.  I find doing them every day, three times a day has really worked for me.  I do more and more everyday and I'm getting some really good chest strength.
  Cheers everyone
Steve

 

[paracowboy]

well, if it's working for you, keep it up. Your body is adapting to it, apparently. Good for you.

 

[Mojo Magnum]

In prep for BMQ I have measured out an eleven kilometer course.  Each morning I walk the 11k route. (getting ready for those long marching sessions)

Around noon I run 2.5 k on the treadmill as fast as I can.

While i am walking the 11k each day, I alternate the treadmill on day one with weight training on day two. 

My weight loss has been good, but I am finding it a challenge to keep it up.

Perhaps it's my diet.  Not enough carbs maybe?

 

[paracowboy]

weight loss? Or fat loss? Are you losing inches but not weight?
And those long marches you are preparing for will be done with weight on your back. I'm not sure I understand what you hope to accomplish by walking.
A couple klicks is a start, but you'd best start increasing the distance.
Is there some reason you can't do cardio and strength training on the same day, several days a week?

 

[Mojo Magnum]

truthfully, the scale has not been going down so I assume fat loss,

Is there some reason you can't do cardio and strength training on the same day, several days a week?

no.  just habbit. and truthfully, again,

I'm not pleased with the results I've been getting.  While I feel like I am doing something.  I feel as though I'm putting forward a great deal of effort with little results.

hence my post.

 

[jerrold]

I found that since I alternated cardio and strength on different days that I progressed much faster.  It could be that everyone's experience is unique.  As far as every day for sit ups and push ups, I was in the military before (went through basic in '88 in dreaded Cornwallis) and we had plenty of PT and other opportunities for push ups etc. (usually if you screwed up or sometimes when buddy did).  So, I guess you could end up doing push ups etc. almost every day (unlikely on weekends though ... we were left alone to do the mountains of tasks assigned for the weekends).  I guess the point I am trying to make is that whatever works for you, you likely should do.  I just found that I could quickly achieve the results necessary to function in Basic more quickly using my method (and from experience, just meeting the entrance requirements will leave one open for a big shock once on Basic - a lot of the guys/gals found this out when  I went through before).  Oh, and for anyone that might know, the recruiters keep saying that I will find Basic kinder and gentler this time round.  Don't know what was so out of line last time ... just lots of swearing and intimidation.

 

[paracowboy]

truthfully, the scale has not been going down so I assume fat loss,

Is there some reason you can't do cardio and strength training on the same day, several days a week?

no.   just habbit. and truthfully, again,

I'm not pleased with the results I've been getting.   While I feel like I am doing something.   I feel as though I'm putting forward a great deal of effort with little results.

hence my post.

my advice would be to forget the walks unless you've got weight on your backwhile doing it.

Start doing cardio and strength training on the same days. One in the morning, one in the afternoon/evening. Do a 2, 3, or 4 day on cycle, and then take a day off.

Don't worry about weight.

Have you read my thread in the training forum? If not, give it a read, and see if it helps.

Now, talk to me about your diet. Actually, pm me about your diet.

 

[hoote]

I am mostly doing calesthenics to build strength (pushups, chinups, dips, situps).  Sometimes I really push it and end up quite sore the next 1-4 days.  Should I still do my workouts every other day or wait until the soreness is completely gone. 

Thanks,
Hoote

 

[paracowboy]

it varies. Where is the soreness? In the muscles, or in the ligaments and tendons? Being sore and working out sometimes, is okay. Constantly working through soreness can be a symptom of over-training.

pm me with details about your workout and the soreness, etc. We'll see what we can discover.

 

[bluecollared]

Hey all,

Please forgive me if this topic has been discussed to death already, but I've read so many conflicting posts on how to do proper push ups that I'm hoping someone could give me some clarification.

I can do 30+ sit-ups, run 2.4 KM in under 10 min, but I'm soooo nervous about the push ups. I can do 25+ no problem, but everyone seems to have a different opinion about how they should be done. I've also read many other posts with people saying different recruiters want them done differently.

I've watched the push ups video on the CF Recruiting website, and those people are just doing regular push ups, nothing fancy. I've already read the explanation of the push up in the application package and they seem to be describing regular push ups. Those I can do. But I've read some posts saying that your elbows have to be touching your body and you have to touch your chest to the floor. I'm just more than a little nervous that I'm gonna show up for my test and be told none of my push ups counted and to start all over and fail.

If anyone could shed some light and possibly put my mind at ease I would GREATLY appreciate it. And again I'm sorry for bringing up something that's already been discussed many times I'm sure.

Also, while I've got your attention, I feel like I'm a little on the light side and I'd like to put on some muscle mass quickly. Does anyone know if those powder protein products are any good?

Thanks!

Mike

 

[SierraAir]

Dude, stop worrying.



A lot of people freak out about the fitness test, but I found the push-ups to be the easiest. All the PSP staff guy asked me to do was to keep my hands under my shoulders. It's really quite simple. And it's only 19 or 20 push-ups. Here's a little trick I did that had me doing lots of push-ups in no time. Everytime I walked through my bedroom door I did 20 push-ups, and each week I would increase the number by five. I was doing 50 with no problem at all in no time.

 

[Jaxson]

Make sure you see the difference between a muscle pain, and a pain the the tendon, after a week of pretty bad pains i went to see my doctor, he asked me to tell him what was wrong and had me go through some simple movements with my arm. Well after about 20 minutes in the office of me doing stretches and movements and telling him where each hurt, he came to the conclusion that i had a strained tendon and now i cant workout for a couple of weeks, this all resulted from me ignoring a pain that i should of looked into sooner.

 

[paracowboy]

you don't want to gain weight for Basic. Relax. You sound like you are more than physically able to pass the PT test.

 

[Mojo Magnum]

I am interested in an answer to this as well.  With four week till basic it is crucial that I/we squeeze out the best results possible.  When I am sore, I ussually wait until the soreness is gone.  As you say 1 to 4 days.  But....staying away too long can result in lost progress.

So, assuming it's just muscle soreness.  Do we wait? or do we keep going?

 

[paracowboy]

if it's just muscle soreness, push on. Take an occasional extra day off, to let the muscles heal a bit. But, even on off days, do a set or two of each movement to flush the muscles with blood and move the lactic acid out of the muscles. You will get sore. This is the body attempting to adapt to the unknown stressors being placed on it. If the soreness is in the tendons or ligaments, STOP. But, decide whether you are truly sore, or just feeling crow-like.

For those of you who have led sedentary lives until now, the body is particularly unused to the extra exertion, and will get sore fast. That's the bad news. The good news is that you will make tremendous gains in strength and endurance rapidly. Far faster than athletes who do this crap every day. As you demand more effort from the body, it will learn to adapt quicker, making gains harder to achieve, this is called plateauing and is way above the concerns of most of the readers, so I'll just shut the hell up now.

 

[Island Ryhno]

You may also want to try bananas and L-Glutamine, both are excellent for muscle soreness.  8)