So, I have decided to join the Army National Guard as a Cav scout in the 19 Delta. I know my push up’s and sit ups are going to be cake, its just the freaking running, which I havent done seen my senior year of highschool football… where I weighed about 170 lbs. Since then I have bulked up to about 214 and haven’t even thought about much cardio.
I guess the only real way to try and maintain what I have so far throughout basic and AIT is by eating every bit of every MRE that I get. I was just wondering if any military guys here had any advice that I could use. I figure a 14:00 two mile run is a good goal to aim for before I go into basic, and while there and AIT I would like to see myself maintain at least 195 lbs, I just hope thats not asking for too much.
It’s been 9 years since I went through basic training (Air Force) so things might be slightly different, but I didn’t do any running beforehand, could barely finish 2 miles my first week, but finished just over 12 minutes my last week. I wouldn’t worry about time too much because it’ll comen naturally throughout your time at camp. And you eat chow hall food except for toward the end you spend some time in the field.
Oh, and I always get asked if basic is hard. It’s not hard, it just sucks.
This question comes up at least once a month and I never get tired of answering it.
I’ll be the secomd to say, basic isn’t that hard, it just sucks. It is more of a mental challenge than a physical one. It is designed not to weed out the weak, but to get everybody through it. Patience will help you much more than conditioning, although patience is pretty hard to train up on.
As America gets fatter and lazier, and recruitment numbers go down, the standards of basic drop. If you can run two miles regardless of time, you will pass the time limit before basic is over. That being said, the better prepared you are now, the easier it will be down the road.
Be prepared to lose some size. It happens, don’t worry, don’t try to fight it (you’ll lose), it will come back. Size and strength isn’t an Army focus, endurance and conditioning is. It is a common belief that excess muscle is just dead weight.
Work on your running. I won’t get into detail about how, but if you can run 2-3 miles without hurting, you will be good. Speed will come after conditioning. Keep up the weights if you like, but practice your pushups and situps. 50 of each is a good starting goal, if you are in good shape, you can easily do more.
Prehab, prehab, prehab. Most soldiers at some point deal with knee and lower back problems. Little time in the Army is spent strengthening these areas. Work on it now (and keep it up through your career) and save pain down the road.
Condition your feet, starting now. Wear heavy boots. Try to go on long walks at least once a week. Blisters suck, and a little thing like that can delay graduation until they heal. I’ve seen more guys fall out of marches due to blisters than any other reason.
Study those workbooks the recruiter gave you. You will learn it all later, but if you can go in knowing basic drill, general orders and rank structure, you’ll have an edge over most.
That’s all I have for now, please feel free to PM me with any questions.
[quote]lazyaxus11 wrote:
So, I have decided to join the Army National Guard as a Cav scout in the 19 Delta. I know my push up’s and sit ups are going to be cake, its just the freaking running, which I havent done seen my senior year of highschool football… where I weighed about 170 lbs. Since then I have bulked up to about 214 and haven’t even thought about much cardio.
I guess the only real way to try and maintain what I have so far throughout basic and AIT is by eating every bit of every MRE that I get. I was just wondering if any military guys here had any advice that I could use. I figure a 14:00 two mile run is a good goal to aim for before I go into basic, and while there and AIT I would like to see myself maintain at least 195 lbs, I just hope thats not asking for too much. [/quote]
As an old 11-Bang Bang, when I went thru basic I went from 220 to 195 (not much, if any was access fat). The service has changed a lot as far as basic training is concerned, but be prepared to loose some weight. I, personally never thought about it and by the time I went to jump school(2 months after basic ended), I gained more than I lost. Grunts are a different breed; weight loss is no big deal, we will get to eat soon enough! In cav? I would bet that during AIT you will have time to pick up training again.
[quote]lazyaxus11 wrote:
So, I have decided to join the Army National Guard as a Cav scout in the 19 Delta. I know my push up’s and sit ups are going to be cake, its just the freaking running, which I havent done seen my senior year of highschool football… where I weighed about 170 lbs. Since then I have bulked up to about 214 and haven’t even thought about much cardio.
I guess the only real way to try and maintain what I have so far throughout basic and AIT is by eating every bit of every MRE that I get. I was just wondering if any military guys here had any advice that I could use. I figure a 14:00 two mile run is a good goal to aim for before I go into basic, and while there and AIT I would like to see myself maintain at least 195 lbs, I just hope thats not asking for too much. [/quote]
As an old 11-Bang Bang, when I went thru basic I went from 220 to 195 (not much, if any was access fat). The service has changed a lot as far as basic training is concerned, but be prepared to loose some weight. I, personally never thought about it and by the time I went to jump school(2 months after basic ended), I gained more than I lost. Grunts are a different breed; weight loss is no big deal, we will get to eat soon enough! In cav? I would bet that during AIT you will have time to pick up training again.
As an old 11-Bang Bang, when I went thru basic I went from 220 to 195 (not much, if any was access fat). The service has changed a lot as far as basic training is concerned, but be prepared to loose some weight. I, personally never thought about it and by the time I went to jump school(2 months after basic ended), I gained more than I lost. Grunts are a different breed; weight loss is no big deal, we will get to eat soon enough! In cav? I would bet that during AIT you will have time to pick up training again.[/quote]
Whatever leg, you know you were at sick call every day so you could skip out on the PT and get in the chow line early…I kid, I kid.
As far as basic goes, they will get you in shape enough to pass the run, the shape you show up in will decide how painful getting in shape will be
As an old 11-Bang Bang, when I went thru basic I went from 220 to 195 (not much, if any was access fat). The service has changed a lot as far as basic training is concerned, but be prepared to loose some weight. I, personally never thought about it and by the time I went to jump school(2 months after basic ended), I gained more than I lost. Grunts are a different breed; weight loss is no big deal, we will get to eat soon enough! In cav? I would bet that during AIT you will have time to pick up training again.
Whatever leg, you know you were at sick call every day so you could skip out on the PT and get in the chow line early…I kid, I kid.
As far as basic goes, they will get you in shape enough to pass the run, the shape you show up in will decide how painful getting in shape will be[/quote]
HOLY CRAP!!! LMAO. When I read the first part of that, my blood pressure started to make my eyes bulge. Ya got me, just watch yer back now.
[quote]lazyaxus11 wrote:
So, I have decided to join the Army National Guard as a Cav scout in the 19 Delta. I know my push up’s and sit ups are going to be cake, its just the freaking running, which I havent done seen my senior year of highschool football… where I weighed about 170 lbs. Since then I have bulked up to about 214 and haven’t even thought about much cardio.
I guess the only real way to try and maintain what I have so far throughout basic and AIT is by eating every bit of every MRE that I get. I was just wondering if any military guys here had any advice that I could use. I figure a 14:00 two mile run is a good goal to aim for before I go into basic, and while there and AIT I would like to see myself maintain at least 195 lbs, I just hope thats not asking for too much. [/quote]
I joined the Army in 2001 as a 19K (m1 tanker). After basic I went to the 3d ACR so I was friends with many scouts.
So, you’re afraid of running. Don’t be. As a 19D, running will be your bread and butter (make sure you pick out the right shoes as shin splints and falling arches hurt like hell) If you can’t run now, don’t sweat it. You will have plenty of time for that later.
There is also the issue of AIT.
As a cav scout, you go through OSUT (one station unit training) not AIT. What this means is that after 9 weeks of basic, your drill seargent will have a formation and announce to everybody, “Gentlemen, YOU are NOW in AIT. Congratulations. Now BEAT YOUR F 'N FACE!!!”.
19D CAV SCOUT HOOAH! First in the field & the last to leave. If you ain’t CAV, you ain’t S**T!!!
Well done that man, proud to have you! Be ready to become one of the most versatile & deadly assets on the battlefield.
14min is a good start goal. Best run schedule I ever had was 30 min fast run (don’t worry about distance); 45 - 60 min long slow run (don’t worry about distance) & intervals each once a week.
Intervals begin with 6x100m sprint (jog back to start point). When you can do it without heaving, move up to 6x200m, then 6x400m then 8x400m. Using these 3 types of run, you get speed & endurance.
OSUT should still suck (if not why not) & you will loose mass. You can put it back on later. Clue in & listen to the D/S. A lot of them are combat vet’s from Najaf, Fallujah & Sadr City that I worked with. Their knowledge will keep you alive.