Hello to tall the t-men out there. I am in my junior yr of highschool and next yr i will be a senior. It has always a dream of mine to save people and help them. i have been interested in the pararescue division of the airforce for a long time now.
This division is a special tactics team deidcated to removing people out of hostile territory that have been wounded or are in distress. Now i have about one year to train for it.It consists of running, swimming , diving, among other things. Im also a bit on the ectomorphic side. I dont want to label myself as ahardgainer because i never really stuck with a good diet plan for a long time. I would really appreciate your help on how i can get myslef in top phsical condition as well as maybe putting on some muscle mass(20 pounds?) in one year. I am wel aquainted with exercise technique and have barbell free weights at my disposale and limited dumbbells. Your help would very much be appreciated. Thanks alot(sorry about the long post)
I’d suggest heading over to http://www.specialtactics.com/ - check out the forums and read the site. They’ve got a lot of info on STTs (PJs especially) and quite a few very good prep workouts.
Perhaps there is a routine for you at www.renegadetraining.com - by Coach Davies? I betcha he’d have quite a bit of good, solid advice.
As for diet, have you read the FAQ section yet - it has loads of info regarding training AND diet. It provides you with links to just some of the glorious articles here on T-Mag. Also, The Diet Manifesto and The Essential Berardi. Basically any diet/nutrition article by John Berardi. Must reads. Definitely.
Bro, do NOT try to gain 20 pounds if you want to get through PJ training!!! You need to work on muscular ENDURANCE and cardiovascular endurance too. They dont give 2 shits about how much you weigh. They care about how strong you are pound for pound and how long you can keep that strength up. I have been in the AF for almost 10 years now, and have worked out with PJ’s off and on and most of them are smaller than me, but much leaner and stronger pound for pound. Just my 2 cents worth… I would recommend lots of running and lots of heavy high-rep work in the weight room. Or even some intense circuit training. Damn I can not believe that I just said that, but it’s how I feel. Good luck on your endeavor through the PJ world and in the AF!!!
Just want to echo JSs sentiments. The guys who do well in special forces, in spite of Hollywood’s efforts, are not the Awnold types. They look more like the average triathlete. Don’t work towards gaining weight. Work towards functional strength, and let your weight fall where it may.
Go to this link and check this book out:
http://store.yahoo.com /getfitnow/ofunstatairf.html
When I was in the Air Force 18 years ago, we used to room with them. I was in EOD (Disarming Bombs) and the put us in the barraks with the Pararescue. They used to wear flourencent orange shoelaces (not sure if they do that now). Whenever they would enter or leave the barraks, they were required to do 50 push-ups.
The drop out rate/failure rate is very high for Pararescue. They would lose more people in the water than anything else. You better be a fish. Half your training should be in the pool. I would second what JS wrote above as well. They are more concerned with endurance.
There is a web site: www.specialtactics.com and they have a forum that deals with physical training, they have tips and techniques along with swimming and water confidence. Hope this helps
I agree with everthing said so far. There have been quite a few articles published on PJ training. Read them all. Also the more you know ahead of time the better positio you will be in. Start studying Standard and Advance First Aid, join the local EMTs and get their training. Check out air Force Educational website site for their medical training inforamtion. And Best of Luck.
Just checked www.specialtactics.com/index.shtml
Good website. Will help alot.
Just one word of warning: Stay out of the Green Toad Bar (if it still exists).
The only glorious thing about being in the pararescue is the name. They have extremely high physical requirements. Don’t expect to make it the first time you try unless you have amazing cardio, great muscular endurance and a high intelligence level and even then there is no guarantee that you will make it. As noted in the previous messages, special forces guys are usually not the big muscular guys.
Thanks for the help,i really appreciate it.