Thread: Advice needed on preparing for the military

Alright so heres a quick run down of my overall position. Im 25yrs, and currently 6"0' 230lbs down from 292lbs almost exactly a year ago. I recently got laid off and so I have been trying to make the best of my down time and really concentrate on my fitness and eating. I have also decided that I would like to join the airforce(hopefully in the next 6-9months) and am looking for a general plan and critique of my overall routine, supplements etc..


Currently I do cardio in the form of a 2mile jog(takes me about 18min) five days a week, along with lifting weights three to four days a week generally keeping it to chest, shoulders, lower back and abs and do 4 sets of 15 three weeks then 3 sets of 8 for a week and try and add and change up the overall routine about once a month. Im not completely strict with what I do on what days and such, but I am consistent in that I dont take random days off for no reason. I only take sunday completely off unless my body is hurt or very sore and then Ill try and take sat and sun together off, but rarely during the week will I not workout in some fashion. So far I havent hit any major plateaus or anything and am happy with my progress so far. Im much stronger, have more energy, look better etc.... However now Im looking to start prepping myself for basic training. I will also be starting brazilian jujitsu and boxing three days a week which will push my cardio a bit more too.

I feel as if Im strong enough as I am now to do well with BJJ and basic, however I know my cardio isnt where it needs to be for both. I can jog for miles at a time without struggling real hard, but add in just two sprints of 30yards and Ill be gassed for a couple minutes at a time. On top of that when rolling or sparing I get muscle fatigue when the action is pushed for more then 30sec-1 min at a time even though Im not out of breath.


So my question is, how should I be muscle training for intense workouts? Should I add more sprints and intense cardio? Add more reps and drop weight when lifting? I also feel as if carrying around this extra weight is really hurting me as well as Im tired of seeing it so I would really like to drop weight without bulking up. For a long time I took a lot of protein, ate a lot of protein, as well as took creatine. I stopped taking both creatine and protein powders for about a month and it almost seems as if Im loosing weight faster and havent lost any strength. Is protein supplementation something I should keep up with with my goals of leaning out, and also creatine, how will it effect my cardio? From the way I feel my body responds Im inclined to get back on the creatine, cut back on the protein supp(60g a day instead of 100ish) and lift light with more reps.. Maybe say 4 or 5 sets of 15-20?

As everyone on here knows, I am opposed to protein supplementation. It is easy to get enough protein from a proper diet, too much protein can be harmful to your kidneys, and no credible expert (in my opinion at least) will tell you that you are better off getting protein from a powder than from food.

I would do a bit more cardio, and would do interval training to really kickstart my cardiovascular fitness. And eat "clean", mostly fruits and vegetables.

Hope this helps, MAKE IT HAPPEN!

Feel Great!: josephbedford.blogspot.com

You need to add some quad dominant (squats) and rear chain dominant (deadlift, SDL, RDL, cleans) movements to your routine. You are also doing too little cardio too often. I would recommend doing cardio only 3 times a week and doing a short run (3 miles/20 minutes) once, HIIT once (I prefer hill sprints) and a long run (5-6 miles/40 minutes) once a week.

I agree with joebedford, protien powders and ceratine are not generally necessary, they are the final 1% you might need to address after you are doing everything else perfectly for a few years.