Getting in Shape... The Army Way

Tjohnson3861
Tjohnson3861 Posts: 3 Member
edited December 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
Hey all!

So I am planning on joining the Army soon. My timeline completely depends on me and my ability to meet the physical fitness standards that are currently in place. The first place I need to start is losing lbs and body fat.

I am currently at 281lbs and a 41% body fat. I started a 1200 cal high protein low sodium diet last week (03/28/19) ( I was at 289lbs and 49% body fat) and so far have lost 8lbs and 9% body fat just on the change. I have a feeling I will plateau soon and need to figure out ways to meet the 26% body fat standard the Army has while maintaining the ability to do the following in PT:
Sit ups in 2 min
45-73
Push ups in 2 min
39-68
2 mile
14:12-17:00 min

I am currently no where near this standard and am hoping to get some advice to move that direction quickly.

I am highly motivated and hungry to get this done, just need the tools to do so.

Thank you everyone!

Tyler

Replies

  • ahoy_m8
    ahoy_m8 Posts: 3,054 Member
    MikePTY wrote: »
    Congrats on starting your journey. I do want to make a couple of notes though. I hope you don't take this as discouragement.

    How are you measuring your body fat percentage? It is not possible to lose 9‰ of body fat in only 8 pounds at your size. Even if you were to lose 100% of your loss in body fat, it's about 2.8 pounds per percentage based on your weight. So you would need to lose quite a bit more body fat than to lose 9%. If you are using a scale, they are notoriously unreliable for body fat percentage. The army uses neck and waist measurements, so you should start with taking those. That will give you an idea of your body fat percentage according to army standards.

    Additionally, 1200 is generally considered too low for a male. The amount recommended is no less than 1500. I'd recommend eating at least that. If you don't properly fuel yourself, you'll lose muscle in addition to fat. That won't help you meet army standards for body fat and it will also hinder your progress on the physical requirements.

    There's no reason you should plateau soon, however you won't keep losing 8 pounds a week. A good portion of that loss was most likely water weight due to the change in your sodium intake. If you stay cinssiten wihh your calorie intake, you will continue to consistently lose weight.

    I know you would like to get this done soon, but rushed weight loss isn't good for you and won't serve you well either to get in the army or once you are in it. Staying steady and consistent will get you there in the appropriate time.

    QFT!
  • mom23mangos
    mom23mangos Posts: 3,070 Member
    Didn't the army PT test change to include deadlifts and stuff?
  • puffbrat
    puffbrat Posts: 2,806 Member
    mom23mangos wrote: »
    Didn't the army PT test change to include deadlifts and stuff?

    I was thinking that too.

    https://www.armytimes.com/news/your-army/2018/08/01/heres-an-early-draft-of-the-armys-new-fitness-test-standards/
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,436 Member
    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1080242/a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants/p1
  • Cassandraw3
    Cassandraw3 Posts: 1,214 Member
    puffbrat wrote: »
    mom23mangos wrote: »
    Didn't the army PT test change to include deadlifts and stuff?

    I was thinking that too.

    https://www.armytimes.com/news/your-army/2018/08/01/heres-an-early-draft-of-the-armys-new-fitness-test-standards/

    I don't believe the new standards take effect until late 2020, so based on likely progress, he will be close to the cut-over.
  • slbbw
    slbbw Posts: 329 Member
    What height are you. You are talking about dropping 25% body fat. Even if we are being super aggressive 1-1.5% per week is really a maximum and not long term sustainable. 2lbs is the recommended max and that is under 1% for you. So going with a 1% figure that will be 25 weeks or 6 months minimum at a very aggressive pace more likely a year. What does soon look like to you in terms of joining? You want to give yourself a reasonable set of expectations. Set yourself up with a 6 month goal. Drop your calories to something you feel is maintainable, 2000 calories is a good starting point. Keep that for two months, while also tracking how much you are exercising. figure out the numbers, how much are you eating, how much are you working out and how much weight are you losing. Use those numbers to figure out where you can get to by the 6 month mark. Get there and then reassess your goal for the Army at that point.
  • Tjohnson3861
    Tjohnson3861 Posts: 3 Member
    Thank you everyone! I had some of my facts WAAAY off base. I went out and bought a soft tape measure and did my measurements for both neck and stomach (around the naval in an equal fashion as instructed), this is the same method used by the Army to determine body fat percentage.

    Here are all of my numbers as of 04/04/2019
    Height - 72 inches
    Neck - 19 inches
    Stomach - 52 inches
    Age - 28
    Weight - 279

    According to the Army calculation (and this is something that I know is disputed but it is the standard I have to hit) I am currently at 35% body fat.

    I need to be at least 28% to meet entry standards.

    Where I would like to be is at 18% or a 38 inch waist. My total weight is irrelevant to me but those are the measurements I am striving for.

    I honestly don't have my burn out numbers yet for 2 mile, pushups or sit ups. I can update tonight when I have them for a baseline.

    I am hoping for a deployment window of no longer than October 1st, 2019

    Thank you everyone!
  • Maxxitt
    Maxxitt Posts: 1,281 Member
    On the fitness side of the equation, if you do too much too fast, especially at your size, the chance of injury is high and you'll be de-railed from your goal entirely. Spend time on general conditioning. If you have access to a gym, use the treadmill, elliptical and bike 3-4 days a week. A week or two into that routine, add in some full-body resistance training that includes planks and pushups to help with core strength and also to help maintain muscle as you lose weight. You WILL lose lean body mass but you want to minimize the muscle loss. After about a month of this, you'll most likely be ready for more intense physical work. But you need to fuel your body properly.
  • deannalfisher
    deannalfisher Posts: 5,600 Member
    also your weight isn't irrelevant...unless they have seriously changed things - first step is height/weight check. then if you don't meet those standards, you get taped which is when they do their bodyfat % calculation
  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 15,702 Member
    deannalfisher wrote: »
    talk to the local army recruiting office - sometimes they will offer PT options for people who want to join - to start getting fit

    However, everything I've ever heard about people making armed forces standards with the help of the organization involved short-term solutions without much attention to sustainability or the long term health of the individual in question.

    Weightlifters and boxers make weight... but I don't necessarily endorse their methods...
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