True Spec Ops Workout

RangerRN507

So I've been an Airborne Ranger for 6 years now and recently I was reading an article on "how to train like spec ops" and it was TOTAL BS!!! I've never trained or seen my men train like they showed in this article so I thought I would give an example which I did just a few hours ago of how an Airborne Ranger actually works out. This was an Arm focus routine.

1) 1 mile run @ 6:30 pace

2) seated dumbbell curls 4x10-12 @ 35lbs ea.
super set with : Tricep Extensions @ 80lbs

3) 1 mile run @ 6:30 pace

4) straight bar cable curls 4x12-15 @ 57.5 lb mark
super set with : straight bar press down 4x 12-15 @ 72.5 lb mark

5) 1 mile run @ 6:30 pace

6) VERY strict military press 4x6-8 @ 115lbs
super set with reverse curls EZ bar 4x10 @ 50lbs

7) Sieh Monster hill ( set treadmill to 10min pace or 6mph, every 20 seconds increase grade 1 full percent till you run the 20 seconds at 15*)

So this is the kind of thing my team does normally to train. the goal is not to necessarily be the fastest runner ever, or to go win a powerlifting competition but the goal is to be a well rounded balanced athlete in all things, to be able to run fast, maneuver quickly and have the strength to fight and win in close combat when necessary.

Asherah29

Man... this makes me feel outta shape! I bet you get awesome burns though!

RangerRN507

Man... this makes me feel outta shape! I bet you get awesome burns though!

I almost throw up all the time, and normally afterword I will just lay down on the mats and let my body cool down for a while, but the best part is the drive home with the windows down

Cherimoose

Seated curls?? Doesn't seem nearly as functional for a soldier as, say, flipping a tractor tire.



I agree that most of the "How to train like a ____" articles are BS.

Asherah29

Man... this makes me feel outta shape! I bet you get awesome burns though!

I almost throw up all the time, and normally afterword I will just lay down on the mats and let my body cool down for a while, but the best part is the drive home with the windows down

i totally would have puked

brianpperkins

An ODA does things differently. So does a SEAL team. The Night Stalkers then take a different slant on fitness. AF pararescue have yet another approach. So much for lumping all "Spec Ops" fitness into a one size fits all description.

RangerRN507

An ODA does things differently. So does a SEAL team. The Night Stalkers then take a different slant on fitness. AF pararescue have yet another approach. So much for lumping all "Spec Ops" fitness into a one size fits all description.

Your implying that an ENTIRE unit trains the same way, there are Rangers who do Xfit, powerlift, body build, its all a means to an end, I'm not saying that the entire Regiment does my arm routine but what I am saying is this article claimed we do an *kitten*-ton of pushups and sit-ups all day which is ridiculous...or tire flips...I don't flip tires I just DL. Now perhaps different groups will focus on particular events more...for example I don't need to swim as much as a SEAL does and a nightstalker probably isn't totally concerned with hand to hand like I am but overall we mostly do stuff like this not tire flips and rope climbing all day,

Sam_I_Am77

Nice post, thanks for serving our country.

I do a lot of research in my Master's program, and I ran across some research (by mistake actually) that talked about tactical teams doing a form of CrossFit but throughout the circuit when fatigue started to settle in; that they would have the soldier / tactician have to make a hard decision. In some cases, they may even do it at a shooting range and have to choose between friendly and non-friendly targets. Some of the research found that a fair % of the time, the wrong decision was made due to fatigue. Because of this, some groups were changing how they approach PT training. Curious if you've heard or seen any of this or what you think.

Sam_I_Am77

Seated curls?? Doesn't seem nearly as functional for a soldier as, say, flipping a tractor tire.

Nothing wrong with doing 1 bicep exercise for maintaining elbow flexor health, sometimes injury prevention and stabilization of certain joints is more important especially in the military.

brianpperkins

An ODA does things differently. So does a SEAL team. The Night Stalkers then take a different slant on fitness. AF pararescue have yet another approach. So much for lumping all "Spec Ops" fitness into a one size fits all description.

Your implying that an ENTIRE unit trains the same way, there are Rangers who do Xfit, powerlift, body build, its all a means to an end, I'm not saying that the entire Regiment does my arm routine but what I am saying is this article claimed we do an *kitten*-ton of pushups and sit-ups all day which is ridiculous...or tire flips...I don't flip tires I just DL. Now perhaps different groups will focus on particular events more...for example I don't need to swim as much as a SEAL does and a nightstalker probably isn't totally concerned with hand to hand like I am but overall we mostly do stuff like this not tire flips and rope climbing all day,

You're the one that labeled this workout as what a Ranger does ... not what is at most a single team leader's workout plan.

RangerRN507

An ODA does things differently. So does a SEAL team. The Night Stalkers then take a different slant on fitness. AF pararescue have yet another approach. So much for lumping all "Spec Ops" fitness into a one size fits all description.

Your implying that an ENTIRE unit trains the same way, there are Rangers who do Xfit, powerlift, body build, its all a means to an end, I'm not saying that the entire Regiment does my arm routine but what I am saying is this article claimed we do an *kitten*-ton of pushups and sit-ups all day which is ridiculous...or tire flips...I don't flip tires I just DL. Now perhaps different groups will focus on particular events more...for example I don't need to swim as much as a SEAL does and a nightstalker probably isn't totally concerned with hand to hand like I am but overall we mostly do stuff like this not tire flips and rope climbing all day,

You're the one that labeled this workout as what a Ranger does ... not what is at most a single team leader's workout plan.

Fair enough. and Im a Squad Leader. not that I took offense or anything

RangerRN507

Nice post, thanks for serving our country.

I do a lot of research in my Master's program, and I ran across some research (by mistake actually) that talked about tactical teams doing a form of CrossFit but throughout the circuit when fatigue started to settle in; that they would have the soldier / tactician have to make a hard decision. In some cases, they may even do it at a shooting range and have to choose between friendly and non-friendly targets. Some of the research found that a fair % of the time, the wrong decision was made due to fatigue. Because of this, some groups were changing how they approach PT training. Curious if you've heard or seen any of this or what you think.

well everybody does stress shoots, we did one where we jumped in, rucked 20 miles then had a series of skedko drags that ended in moving across a range firing on targets its always a great but you cant always combat focus your workout nobody would enjoy that and one truth I've come to learn is that if you don't enjoy training you wont put your all in to it. which is why we don't do kit runs and buddy carries every day because that would ruin moral

RangerRN507

An ODA does things differently. So does a SEAL team. The Night Stalkers then take a different slant on fitness. AF pararescue have yet another approach. So much for lumping all "Spec Ops" fitness into a one size fits all description.

Your implying that an ENTIRE unit trains the same way, there are Rangers who do Xfit, powerlift, body build, its all a means to an end, I'm not saying that the entire Regiment does my arm routine but what I am saying is this article claimed we do an *kitten*-ton of pushups and sit-ups all day which is ridiculous...or tire flips...I don't flip tires I just DL. Now perhaps different groups will focus on particular events more...for example I don't need to swim as much as a SEAL does and a nightstalker probably isn't totally concerned with hand to hand like I am but overall we mostly do stuff like this not tire flips and rope climbing all day,

You're the one that labeled this workout as what a Ranger does ... not what is at most a single team leader's workout plan.

Fair enough. and Im a Squad Leader. not that I took offense or anything

And its purpose wasn't to represent the regiment I meant it to argue against the publicized version of what we do...which none of us do

Cherimoose

I ran across some research (by mistake actually) that talked about tactical teams doing a form of CrossFit but throughout the circuit when fatigue started to settle in; that they would have the soldier / tactician have to make a hard decision. In some cases, they may even do it at a shooting range and have to choose between friendly and non-friendly targets. Some of the research found that a fair % of the time, the wrong decision was made due to fatigue. Because of this, some groups were changing how they approach PT training.

No surprise that decisions are tougher when fatigued. What were the changes to the training? I presume it was to include decision-making drills like shooting into the workouts? That would make a lot of sense.

Seated curls?? Doesn't seem nearly as functional for a soldier as, say, flipping a tractor tire.

Nothing wrong with doing 1 bicep exercise for maintaining elbow flexor health, sometimes injury prevention and stabilization of certain joints is more important especially in the military.

Curls are fine provided that soldiers also do dynamic, multi-joint exercises that mimic real combat situations.. for example curling a sandbag and flipping it into an overhead press, to simulate picking up gear and tossing it over a wall. Most injuries happen from complex movement patterns that are unfamiliar or untrained, so diversity should be the backbone of training.

Sam_I_Am77

so diversity should be the backbone of training.

I very much disagree with that. I think do key lifts that are important to making one stronger in a way that means their goals is what's important. Varying certain acute variables over time to allow adaptation to happen and then continue to progress is important. To me "diversity" sounds like WOD, which is garbage for building strength; the body needs to adapt in-order to get stronger and that just doesn't typically happen in a WOD environment. If you want to talk WOD's and aerobic work capacity now that's a different topic.

One can easily argue that injuries stem from mobility issues leading to muscle overcompensation and inadequate recovery, which the inadequate recovery issue is a likely reason for deployed combat soldiers.

Cherimoose

so diversity should be the backbone of training.

I very much disagree with that. I think do key lifts that are important to making one stronger in a way that means their goals is what's important. Varying certain acute variables over time to allow adaptation to happen and then continue to progress is important. To me "diversity" sounds like WOD

I think we're on different wavelengths. By "diversity", i mean a diversity of neuromuscular skills to match those encountered in combat. Sort of like practicing football to get good at football. Curls & barbell lifts are obviously important for a football team, but it's secondary to actually practicing football, or at least mimicking the skills & movements used in the game. In combat, the movement skills required includes:

- moving in all 3 planes of motion (not just the sagittal plane).
- handling objects of unusual / bulky dimensions (vs. a barbell)
- moving on & over varying / unpredictable surfaces
- crawling, climbing, dragging, jumping, and similar skills

All of these are common sources of injuries & failures, but all can be trained to allow adaptations to happen.

Sam_I_Am77

so diversity should be the backbone of training.

I very much disagree with that. I think do key lifts that are important to making one stronger in a way that means their goals is what's important. Varying certain acute variables over time to allow adaptation to happen and then continue to progress is important. To me "diversity" sounds like WOD

I think we're on different wavelengths. By "diversity", i mean a diversity of neuromuscular skills to match those encountered in combat. Sort of like practicing football to get good at football. Curls & barbell lifts are obviously important for a football team, but it's secondary to actually practicing football, or at least mimicking the skills & movements used in the game. In combat, the movement skills required includes:

- moving in all 3 planes of motion (not just the sagittal plane).
- handling objects of unusual / bulky dimensions (vs. a barbell)
- moving on & over varying / unpredictable surfaces
- crawling, climbing, dragging, jumping, and similar skills

All of these are common sources of injuries & failures, but all can be trained to allow adaptations to happen.

There we go, okay we're on the same page.

RangerRN507

all that conversation occurred over me doing bicep curls???!!! lol did anyone think maybe I just wanted a pump? not everything has to be "functional" or have some direct correlation to combat in order for it to be valuable at some point I want to look and feel good also so bigger pumped up biceps are just as important to me as anything else. If I just went to the quad every day and flipped a tire around in my armor and hucked sand bags over walls I would just be demoralized because my workouts would be gay as aids. like I said earlier if you don't enjoy what your doing you simply wont put your heart into it. so I would get a better workout doing it this way than by some super-combat-ultra-focused-workout and I outperform guys all the time Ive received medals for outstanding fitness in the military and I probably only do a body-armor (kit) run once or twice a year