I want to join the army but i am completely out of shape. i am mostly worried about the run. Can anyone help?

Question

i work a 9 to 5 and don't want to pay for a gym membership but will if extremely necessary.

Answer 1

had a similar problem back in the day. Here are some tips to help you out.

1) Eat healthy. Don't starve yourself or you will end up binge eating. If you want to lose weight, aim for about 1lb a week (requires that you cut 3,000 calories from your diet during the week). Anything more then 2lb a week and you will probably gain it back. Make sure you get all the necessary vitamins and minerals (take a multi vitamin if you have to). Avoid fad diets and supplements. Follow the food pyramid guide to caloric intake (it works better than anything on the long term). Drink a lot of water too.

2) Stretch after a 10 minute warm-up before every workout. This will reduce your chance of injury, increase range of motion (i.e. your stride), and may help reduce soreness after exercising.

3) Exercise.

-Running: you need to run 2 miles for your PT test so I suggest doing long runs one day then sprints another day. Start out with a mile as your long run day. Gradually increase the distance until you can hit 4-5 miles continuously. For sprints, do sprint/walk or sprint/jog; so every 30 seconds you switch. As you become a better runner, increase the time to 1 min running and 1 min jog/walk. Do this for 15-30 min.

-Body weight exercises. Doing push-ups, sit-ups, crunches, pull-ups, squats, etc. will help in your overall fitness. Do these in sets and gradually increase the amount of repetition as you become stronger. Do each exercise till muscle failure. You can also cheat on some exercises if you can't do them normally. For example, you can do push-ups on your knees and use a pull-up assist machine (or someone to hold your legs).

-Weight training will also improve your overall fitness. Work on all your muscle groups and give yourself enough rest between workouts of the same muscle groups. For example, if you do upper body one day, don't do it again for another 1-2 days.

-Cross training with a bike and swimming can also help a lot. I found swimming and using a stationary bike to be useful when my knees were injured.

Some other tips that may help:

-Avoid eating out when you can. If you do, choose healthy options.

-Remember, 3,000 calories is 1 lb. This means that if your body burns 2,000 calories in a day but you ate 3,000 calories, you have roughly gained 1/3 of a pound. Try to burn ~428 calories a day to lose about 1lb a week.

-Treat yourself once a week or so. This way you don't miss some of your favorite unhealthy foods too much and end up eating 2 quarts of ice cream at once.

-Get some good running shoes ($60-100) that fit well. Along with good socks, these will help prevent injury (foot, ankles, knees) and blisters.

-Remember to avoid fad diets and supplements (including protein shakes). The average American diet has more than enough protein and the body is only able to absorb so much before it becomes urine. Unless you eat almost no meat/dairy, I would not recommend any protein shakes.

-Exercising with a friend will help keep you motivated and prevent you from slacking. They can also help you with some exercises and stretching.

Stay motivated and remember why you are exercising. Don't get depressed if you don't improve fast. Some things take time and the more you do now the less you have to do later (and less pain). Good luck.

Answer 2

You don't need a gym - all you need is a pair of running shoes and a place to do sit ups, push ups and pull ups (pull ups are not an event on the Army physical fitness test but they are great for building strength.  Start slowly - walk two miles then work into a jog and finally a run.  Same goes for push ups and sit ups - don't kill yourself so you can't move for days afterwords - start slow with small sets and work your way up.  Not sure how old you are but the link below has the standards for the Army physical fitness test.

http://www.hooah4health.com/4You/apft.ht...

Answer 3

The Army will get you into shape.  You will run a good deal in BCT.  If you don't want to join a gym, start jogging at your local high school track.

Answer 4

dont wait to let the army get you in shape

start running now......

all the time

run till you cant anymore

if you want a career that takes hard work and determination

get of yahoo answers and run!!!!!!!

run!!!!!!!

why aRE YOU STILL READING THIS YOU SHOULD BE RUNNING

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

good luck

Answer 5

They will get you in shape but you may think you are going to die first. Start running every day and build your self up gradually.You can do it. You will think they are going to kill you even when you are in the best of shape. But after it is over and you look back it is a feeling of pride that can't be surpassed.  

Answer 6

You need to start getting yourself into shape before you go to BCT.  While you're there you're fitness level will probably improve drastically but a lot of guys in my company had problems with stress fractures because they weren't used to all the physical activity.  Also start working out early--in the Army we do more before 9 than most people do in a day.

Answer 7

Don't worry. The Army will get you in shape. You can run without going to the gym.

Answer 8

Then suit up early in the morning or after work and start running.  Tape some exercise shows and get in shape.  You want to be in some kind of shape before basic or you will regret the day you were born.  

USAF Veteran

Answer 9

Go Talk to a recruiter most have a program set up to get new recruits into shape for basic.

Vet-USAF / Bodybuilder, college student

Answer 10

Allright, first off Basic Training or OSUT are from 9 to 14 weeks long.  You have physical training every morning for about an hour each morning.  Even if you are totally and completely out of shape at the beginning you will be able to pass the APFT at the end of the cycle.  but in the mean time you can do some work on your own.  Do situps and pushups every day and run at least two miles.  You'd be surprised how quickly your body will become used to this and you'll have very little trouble later.  Good luck to you.

Answer 11

Well it depends on how old you are.  It's one thing if you are a normal SIZED person and in the range of 18-25, it's another if you are 32 and 5'7" and 225 pounds.  If you are in reasonable shape in terms of body type, height and weight proportionate, then you can do it.  If you are overweight and older, I wouldn't suggest it.