The Definitive Spec Ops Resource
THE DEFINITIVE SPEC OPS RESOURCE FOR FITNESS AND SELECTION
UBRR training day followed by a ruck march. Are you keeping a log of your times on your runs and rucks? And with the warmer weather upon us, you should be paying much stricter attention to hydration during the rucks.
Training:
More Preparation for the UBRR:
3 x 20 pushups
3 x 20 sit ups
3 x 20 crunches
3 x 20 dips or until muscle failure
3 x 20 side planks
4-mile rucksack march (45-pound minimum) over varied terrain, note your time
Stretch well after completion
We’ve been revisiting some of the posts we’ve made earlier and are getting out and doing refresher exercises, getting some land navigation and other tasks in. This one will deal with everyone is SF’s favorite pastime …Rucking.
Everyone has their own tips of the trade and the vast majority of them are good. The main thing is that you have to find what works best for you. What I’m doing here is just giving you the benefits of my own experiences and hopefully, they’ll work for you. They did for me.
I recently got an email from Sean T. who asked a good question about rucksack marching and specifically in how the load was packed. He wrote, “I’ve read numerous articles about how the load of your rucksack should be distributed over your hips. I’m having issue [sic] with rubbing on my hips and low back pain. Is it because I’ve packed the weight too low?”
I take it from Sean’s message that he took the “distribute the weight over the hips” bit to mean that he was packing his load down low. No, and it is a common mistake among beginners and people carrying heavy rucks for the first time.
Your weight should be packed up high between the shoulder blades. If your ruck has radio pouch up high, that is where the sandbag or weight plates belongs. I prefer sandbags because it will mold to your pack and back and doesn’t have any sharp edges that can rub you on a ruck.
The guys over at GoRUCK sell some nice molded plates that will do the trick and they take all the guess work out of it. But like I said, I prefer the sand routine but use whatever works for you. In the video below, I have a 45-pound bag in my small ruck that I use for short hikes that we take with us.
We covered boots at length in our earlier article. I have several broken in pairs that I take on hikes depending upon the conditions. For the purposes of this exercise, I wore my heavier duty Merrell Sawtooth boots. We had a bunch of rain that dropped over an inch overnight and it was still misting out there on the day we did the video. Later we got another inch plus. The trail was muddy, very deep in places and the Sawtooth’s deeper tread pattern was probably a bit better for that day.
Water and staying hydrated is very important even on a day where it is a bit raw out and is raining on you. You’ll still sweat and dehydration is a killer. On this particular day, although it was raining a bit, we still drank constantly, keeping the hydration level up.
The trail we used is a closed loop so it was up-down with very little flat terrain involved. When rucking it is best to lean forward and getting the arm swing going from side to side rather than a typical running type swing back and forth.
When it comes to increasing speed, I don’t recommend that you run with a rucksack on your back while in training. They’ll be times in your selection course or the qualification course that you’ll have to make up time or want to pick your pace, especially on the downhill slopes. At those times, you’re going to have to do what you must, but for training purposes don’t do it. Learn to increase your speed without running. Running with a ruck will hurt your knees and back…take it from the guy with two arthritic knees.
I like to lengthen my stride on the downhill slopes, some guys will tell you the exact opposite. Again, find out what works for you and stick to it. But the bottom line is, don’t resort to running to increase your speed. You’re going to have to learn to ruck quickly without running sooner or later, and there’s no time like the present.
The standard is a 15-minute mile pace to pass the courses, you should be aiming to go lower than that. We were keeping a 14:30 pace on our practical exercise video, which means we’ll have to step it up as well. Back in the day, I used to maintain a 13-minute per mile pace which would bring myself in with around 20-25 minutes to spare on a 12-miler.
On one certification 20-miler at Ft. Bragg, our team maintained a 13-minute mile pace for the entire length of the course and that was with two 7-8 minute breaks built in to change socks and catch a breather. Of course, since the movement wasn’t considered tactical and was mapped out along a road, our communications supervisor strapped a boom box atop his rucksack and we rocked to AC-DC and Metallica. Much better than the sound of boots scuffling for 20 miles. We ended up with the best time in the battalion that night…the staff when learning of the music…were not amused. Always look for an edge, right?
If anyone else has any questions, feel free to send them along to [email protected] and I’ll be glad to answer them and we may use it in our next video.
Photo courtesy of US Army
Shoulder work in the gym is the order of the day along with some speed work. The sprints will definitely help with your overall cardio fitness, build some explosion and will serve you well with your endurance. It is also a functional part of your job in Special Operations. There will be plenty of times where you’ll have to sprint short distances with your gear on. It will test you in a different manner than a distance run. This is a system that some NFL teams use to increase their speed.
Training:
More Preparation for the UBRR:
3 x 12 Lat Pulldowns, behind the neck (go as heavy as possible)
3 x 12 Lat Pulldowns, front
3 x 10 Dumbbell Side Raises
3 x 10 Dumbbell Front Raises
3 x 10 Dumbbell Shoulder Press
3 x 8 Shoulder Shrugs
40-Meter Sprint, walk back to the starting point
50-Meter Sprint, walk back to the starting point
60-Meter Sprint, walk back to the starting point
70-Meter Sprint, walk back to the starting point
80-Meter Sprint, walk back to the starting point
90-Meter Sprint, walk back to the starting point
100-Meter Sprint, walk back to the starting point
Stretch well after completion
Continue to prep for the UBRR. Leg Day at the gym. Go for the lighter weights and more reps in the squats to build up a bit more of endurance. The sled is always a good way to build up power and explosiveness. Then a three mile run at a good pace, faster than the standard.
Training:
3 x Pullups 10 reps
3 x Front Squat 20-15-12 reps (lighter weight)
3 x Goblet Squats 20-15-12 reps (lighter dumbbell)
3 x 10 Sled push (heavier weight)
3 x 10 reps Dumbbell lunges
3 x 20 Sit-ups
3 x 25 Crunches
3-mile run
Stretch well after completion
In some of our previous articles, we’ve tackled the issues of preparing yourself to pass the Land Navigation course which is always a very tough one. Today we’ll do a practical exercise on finding your location if you are unsure of your exact map placement.
The official term is Resection for finding your exact location on a map by determining the grid azimuth to at two or more well-defined locations that can be pinpointed on the map. For greater accuracy, the desired method of resection would be to use three or more well-defined locations.
For the purposes of our practical application, we used only two but obviously, three or more is ideal. There are three methods of using resection, using the map and compass method, the straightedge method and the modified method. In this exercise, we used the map and compass method, but we’ll go over the second two as well.
Map and Compass Method
The intersection of the lines is your location. Determine the grid coordinates to the desired accuracy, an eight-digit grid being the preferred accuracy for our purposes.
Straightedge Method:
To accurately find your position, the successful navigator must:
Where the intersection of the lines meet on the map is your location. Determine the grid coordinates to the desired accuracy. You then should be able to get an eight-digit grid coordinate and find your way to your point.
Modified Method:
The modified method is the least preferred and the least accurate method but is useful in certain situations. If you’re not certain of your exact location but are located on a linear terrain feature such as a road, creek or similar body of water, this can pinpoint your position.
Your location is where the line on the map crosses the linear feature. Determine the grid coordinates to the desired accuracy, for our purposes an eight-digit grid coordinate.
Check out the attached video, we’re still trying to iron out some issues with these, it is process. But it does show you the practical exercise to get the correct information.
Photo courtesy of 19th Special Forces Group
Monday we’ll focus on some speed work with the shuttle runs rather than a longer duration. By now after the training program has been in effect for a while, your feet shouldn’t be bothering you too badly after the ruck march from Sunday.
Training:
More preparation for the UBRR
2 x 1-minute Pushups
2 x 1-minute Sit-ups
2 x 1-minute, Crunches
2 x 1-minute, V-ups
2 x Dips as many as possible to muscle failure
10 x 40-meter shuttle run
Stretch well after completion
A little warm up and a good long Sunday ruck march. As always be sure to stay hydrated during the ruck march. It should be a habit that will carry over to Selection and training afterward.
Becoming dehydrated during a long training event such as a ruck march or long range movement is a guarantee for bigger problems and failure, keep sipping on the water during the course.
Training:
Warm up
2 x 20 Pushups
2 x 20 Sit ups
8-mile rucksack march over varied terrain. Try to keep your pace better than the standard. And mark your times in your workout log book.
Stretch well after completion
Back in the gym this morning before heading out for a run. We’ll break up the routine next week with some speed interval running, that will help to build up your short area quickness and speed.
Training:
More Preparation for the UBRR:
3 x 12 Lat Pulldowns, behind the neck (go as heavy as possible)
3 x 12 Lat Pulldowns, front
3 x 10 Dumbbell Side Raises
3 x 10 Seated Bent-Over Delt Raise
3 x 10 Dumbbell Shoulder Press
3 x 10 Arnold Dumbbell Press
3-mile run
Stretch well after completion
Over time, the longer you are around Special Forces units and troops the more you will hear the latest catch phrases and words that essentially re-invent the wheel. Everyone while trying to build a better mousetrap is giving us a new vocabulary to learn, which is fine as long as we don’t lose sight of the ball.
When we’re talking about fitness and preparing not only for Selection but for a career in Special Operations it is building a complete level of fitness which will carry you thru a career and get you back again. To carry close to the insane amount of gear around all day long and be able to fight while carrying it requires strength, stamina, and speed.
And the best exercise to prepare for all of that? The squat.
Squats are probably the most misunderstood and least taught exercise in the military. Why? I have no idea but there is no better exercise for helping build overall fitness…oh, yeah the correct catchword now is functional fitness. The conventional military steers soldiers away from those exercises and they shouldn’t be. It should be in everyone’s pre-Selection program.
I’m no exercise physiologist or personal trainer but after a long time in the saddle, I know what works. Squats build strength, and that is what you’ll need. If the man beside you goes down and you have to carry him, his gear for 100 meters at a dead sprint, that isn’t going to take a marathon runner, it is going to take a guy who has the strength and stamina to do just that.
The operators in the units know this. They incorporate squatting now in their physical training programs because they build overall strength and muscle, increase flexibility, and prevent injuries, build core strength, build healthy bones and joints and helps you maintain mobility and balance. The special operators today are training smarter and doing the workouts that give them the most benefit to doing their jobs.
No one likes leg day at the gym because it is frequently the hardest workout of the week. Squats are a functional exercise for special operations because so much of what you do is tied in directly with the movement itself.
And squatting will improve your speed, just take a look at the best world class sprinters. They all have the maximum development of their glutes, quads, and hamstrings. It isn’t a coincidence that they are all built like that.
The issue is doing them correctly, and many people don’t. One guy that I swear by (and this isn’t a paid endorsement by the way) is Dr. Aaron Horschig. He’s a regular on Twitter @SquatUniversity as well as Instagram and YouTube. His videos are a must watch and he regularly goes thru the questions and issues that most people will have.
He also shows video demonstrations of other core stability exercises that will help with your overall “functional fitness”. His book, “The Squat Bible” is out on Amazon.com and is worth checking out. He’ll help you achieve your goal, even if you’re a not-so-young guy with arthritis in both knees.
Professional athletes have the luxury of off-seasons, and preseasons where they get to train up and get their bodies prepared for the rigors of their season. In Special Operations, every day is the World Series or the Super Bowl.
The individual units and the operators must get creative and take advantage of any kind of down time away from missions to keep themselves in peak condition. This is especially true when it comes to rest and sleep as well as nutrition.
Squatting should be a regular part of any pre-Selection workout along with other core building exercises. It will increase your overall functional strength and mobility, increase your vertical jump and explosion, increase your sprint times, as well as your balance and upper body strength.
So, it is Friday and it must be Leg Day at the gym….Let’s go do some squats.
Photo courtesy DOD
Continue to prep for the UBRR. A second Leg Day this week as we’ll blast them good today in the gym. Make note of your times in the run and your workouts in your workout log book.
Training:
3 x 10 Pullups
3 x Front Squat 20-15-12 reps (lighter weight)
3 x Goblet Squats 20-15-12 reps (lighter dumbbell)
3 x 10 Barbell Squats
3 x 10 reps Standing Arnold Press
3 x 10 Romanian Lunges
30 x “V” ups
3 x 1 mile run with 1-minute rest in between. Run those as fast as you can
Stretch well after completion