Physical Standards

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nzrower

5-Year Member
Joined
Aug 8, 2010
Messages
7
Hey there,

I hope no one minds me intruding here, but I am a soon to be applicant for the New Zealand Defence Force which will hopefully involve them sending me to ADFA the Australian Defence Academy.

I was just wondering what the most efficient method is to increasing your physical standard scores. I have 6 months until I will be officially tested and I need to make the most of that time.

At the moment I can only do a couple of push-ups so that is the arena that I am most worried about.

Crunches/Sit-ups I am not as worried about but any efficient workouts for increasing my numbers for those would be good.

Running is a interesting one for me also. I am a rower so I have good cardiovascular fitness but it is different to that of a runners fitness. The longest really ever run is about 4 miles but that wouldn't be at an amazingly fast pace. So any ideas on how to get my body used to running would be great.

Hope someone can offer some help
thanks
nzrower
 
I would suggest doing intervals for the run. I'd also work on pullups to work that upper body strength. Keep up the rowing and maybe add some rock climbing and cycling. Cross train.
 
I'm sure lots of others will chime in, so you've asked at the right place. USNA asks applicants to work up to a three mile run at a 6 1/2 minute pace. My DS is working on this and will continue until the end of June. For now he's running three miles on our High School track. He runs 1 lap (1/4 mile) then walks for 1/4 of a lap, runs another 1/4 mile, then 1/4 of a lap, and repeats these cycles until he just can't go anymore, which is usually over 3 miles. He will continue this, gradually stopping the walking part and increasing his speed until he gets to the 6 1/2 minute pace. He's alternately "running bleachers." As far as push-ups and sit-ups go, he says that you just have to do them often. I'm personally working on this too, just for my own health. If I'm watching TV, I do push-ups or pull-ups during commercials until I can't do any more, then repeat the same during the next commercial. You do need to give your body a break from the push-ups and pull-ups about every third or fourth day, but don't stop the running. Be sure to eat healthy and DRINK LOTS OF WATER! This is what we're doing, I'm sure others will have different suggestions.:thumb:
 
Hi. My son is a rower as well, and I am not really sure that I agree with your statement that cardiovascular fitness for rowing is different for running. Rowing, from what I can observe, is a total body workout and does a lot for your cardiovascular fitness. That said, my son runs - a lot - to further boost his endurance. If he isn't on the water or the erg, he is running.

One of the best things he did was to go to the local YMCA and sign on with a core fitness trainer. My old-school way of thinking about gym workouts involved a short warmup on a treadmill followed by lots of free weight training. His trainer turned that on its head. She focused on nothing but core exercises. Imagine holding on to a medicine ball, arms extended, then hopping from one bosu ball to another on one foot. If you can envision that, you get the idea of what she had him doing. Or you can check out YouTube. This series gives you the general idea. The link is to the beginner exercises, but you can see the more advanced related videos.

The results have been tremendous. He's a junior (17 yo) rows as a lightweight (6' 2", 154 lbs) and he dropped his 2K score from 7:02 to 6:45 in about 6 months. That's a pretty decent time for a lightweight junior, and he feels fairly confident that he can be in the 6:30s by the time spring crew ends.

In any event, his training for crew has put the military academy's CFA (candidate fitness exam) in a whole new light for him. He will probably focus on pullups a little, but the core training that he is doing has put him in a pretty good spot for both crew and the fitness standards of the academies.
 
I'm a rower, so I definitely understand how hard it can be to train for other things and balance rowing as well. I also visited ADFA this summer as part of a Civil Air Patrol program, so I got really excited when I read your post. :smile:

If you aren't really running much, I would suggest adding light 20-30 minute runs either in the morning or evening. Those have really helped me keep me from getting shin splints, plantar fascitis, etc etc, without completely draining me before practice.
 
What I've come to find out is that the simplest way to get better is to just keep doing whatever it is you need to do. For pushups just go until you fail, then take a little break and try again. Same thing with situps. For running I generally did 2-3 days a week distance and 2-3 days sprints (alternating) to work my legs in a bunch of ways. Also, I swam for my high school team and I have to say I think other than running, swimming is the best way to get into shape, and it's really good for your body (hard to get hurt or anything like that). Just my advice, I'm sure others have programs and plans that will no doubt be more effective.
 
If I'm watching TV, I do push-ups or pull-ups during commercials until I can't do any more
Click to expand...

I do the same but find there is still a lot of commercial left after I have to stop. :biggrin:
 
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