Ok, I did a US Army style PT test today consisting of 2 mile run, and 2 minutes of timed pushups and situps. Here are my stats from today:
Weight: 148.4 lbs
Height: 5'9"
Bodyfat: 9.8%
Pushups (2min): 80
Situps (2min): 61
2 Mile Run: 14:58
It should be noted that the order above is the order I did the events in. I don't normally do Army-style situps and it really hurt me on the test because my hip flexors were much more involved than my abs were while doing the situps. This goes to demonstrate yet another reason why the Army is ditching the situp as a measure of abdominal strength (it only took them 30 years to realize it). Well, not being prepared to overly work my hip flexors, I hit muscle failure at 61 (with a good bit of time left) and simply could not do anymore situps. Doing a 2 mile run following hip flexor muscle failure is INCREDIBLY difficult, and I think my run time would have been significantly better had the exercise been crunches instead of full situps, but what's done is done. For anyone in the Army, my total PT score was a 259 out of a possible 300.
As a side note, despite the US Army's ban on VFF's (Vibram Five Fingers), they do allow "barefoot" shoes with a closed toebox. I was doing sprints prior to starting my BBS workout in VFFs, but for the PT test I wore Merrell Trail Glove. My feet are incredibly sore. My hip flexors are SUPER incredibly sore. My back is a little sore, and my chest is a little sore. My calves are two rocks of soreness attached onto my legs with what feels like clamps. So yeah... REALLY SUPER INCREDIBLY sore.
Sore is a good thing though, it's a definitive signal from your body that you put forth a lot of effort. Of course, reading on about DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness) you will find that it frequently occurs as a result of greatly stimulating infrequently trained muscles (i.e. doing exercises you don't normally do). Whatever the true cause for DOMS, it's still good to know my body is converting this pain into more muscle fibers for increased strength. Thanks pain.
In closing... I hated that stupid PT test, and I'd much rather have done my BBS workout. I can't stand running, and want it to be over with the second I start. I can't wait for next week's workout, I feel like this weeks speedbump is only going to make me work that much harder next week.
I never liked the sit-up because of the pain I felt in my spine with each rep.
ReplyDeleteI actually started on the Body By Science protocol two Sundays ago using super-slow variations of the Primal Blueprint Fitness workouts (I know, I know, body weight is kinda taboo but I had no problems with balance and I was able to go to failure with my workouts). However, I only felt "sore" for the moment after the workout this week, and today I'm starting to look "slimmer" but I'm not sure if that's due to my muscles recovering or the result of my fat metabolism. Are you experiencing anything similar with your routine?
Yeah, I've actually lost a bit of fat, but I can definitely see some mass increase though slight). I went from around 10% to 9.4% currently. It's hard to judge though because my pre-workout has creatine (among other things) in it, and I think I could just be looking bigger post-workout. Higher weights (in theory) should increase the fatigue level. Dr. McGuff explains in his book about it, but basically you might not be tapping your third order fast twitch muscles (as I understand it, but I'm no expert or doctor) and that's why you're not seeing as much size increase?
DeleteI'm guessing it's because the workouts focus on my core (chest, abs, back) more than the arms (which was my gauge when I asked the question). I do notice progress in strength, and some size in my torso. Would it be wise to maintain my current workouts until my arms get involved, or will that be counterproductive to my core muscles? I am doing the recommended reps and time span, so I'm positive I'm hitting those muscle fibers (until I am unable to move from one place in at least ten seconds).
DeleteYou could try adding some dips in there too maybe?
DeleteHey man, not sure if you're still around. If you are, this is my report:
ReplyDeleteI did your pt test on a workout day because I just couldn't bring myself to miss a workout for situps. So after benching and deadlifting heavy (personal bests for me): Pushups 37, Situps 40, run, an embarrassing 19:24. Total army score = 176 (40 years old). When I re-test at the end I'll be sure and do the PT test after benching and dling too!
I kind of flaked on the rest, work got too crazy. Hope this is interesting to you.
Thanks for doing it! I'll make a separate post now with your PT test scores and protocol!
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