workouts while underway?

[dedicated]

Wanting to enroll in the SWCC program is something I am anxious to do, but being underway ALL the time makes it difficult to condition properly. In port its not a problem, but while underway there is obviously no way to swim. Pushups, situps, dips, running, pullups and weight conditioning can all but done. I was told the bike is the next best thing? Any opions, ideas or suggestion are appreciated.



Thanks

[Kinnikinik]

Depending on the ship there is usually a treadmill. Run on that. I find that treadmills are a great way for me to improve my speed since I can monitor myself and "punish" myself for being lazy.

Basically I set out either a time limit to run or a goal distance. You don't have to run 10 miles, 1.5-3 miles is sufficient, especially if you have a tight work schedule. I also like to just run for 20 minutes. That way you have a physical goal to reach and you know if you are cheating yourself. This applies for bikes as well, though I am not a big fan they are effective if you work at it. No cycling while you read a book. Turn that resistance knob up and crank those legs.

Now, I generally do a crecendo workout on the treadmill. I start off at 6 or so (adjust this to your running ability) and crank it up 0.5 every few minutes. Where my punishment comes in, is if I feel like I am wussing out, I crank it up a notch or two, or I raise the elevation of running. The treadmill makes sure I keep up, and after a while you work harder so you don't punish yourself anymore. Don't forget to do a cooldown and jog afterwards.

Concentrate on pushups, situps, and pull ups. I like to do them on watch. I did 50 pushups every hour for my 12 hour watch. That is 600 pushups per watch, per day. I combined that with working out in the gym and when I would go to quarters a bunch of guys and me would do a pyramid set of pullups on the local angle iron. We started off doing 1-2-3-4-5-5-4-3-2-1 and got all the way up to pyramids of 15+ by the time cruise was over.

Situps... I really liked inverted situps. You have to be very careful of your back (note:any back pain and you stop) but I would hang my feet over the shoulder press machine and hang upside down and do sit ups. I got amazing ab strength that way. I did that as part of a comprehensive ab workout though. If your abs and back are not strong right now I suggest holding off on that until they get stronger. Inverted situps can be very hard on your back and you need the lateral support (especially on a rocking ship) to be able to do them without hurting yourself.

One final thing, set a crazy goal you want to do on the ship. One thing for me since I am lacking on my shoulder press strength (too many years of swimming), I wanted to be able to do 15 inverted pushups, basically standing on my hands with my feet up on a wall. So, I started by just propping myself up and holding it. Then I lowered myself and just did negatives. Finally I worked my way up to being able to crank them out. Part of working out is discovering how your muscles and your body interact. Experiment with your exercises and concentrate on which muscles are being used when. Turn your hands a different way when doing push ups and think about how that changed what muscles you are using. The most effective guys out on the grinder aren't the biggest guys with the most muscles, they are the guys who figure out how to work with the muscles they have.

Note that you can always find time to work out underway. One of the most effective ways to do it is to talk to your chain of command and get a "workout group" together. It has been my experience that if the group is sanctioned by the chain of command, that they are much more likely to let you out to PT... oh say during working hours.

I hope that helps and keep me posted on how everything is going.

One final thing... workout healthy. Be always aware of your situation and do not hurt yourself. That last rep on the bench press on a swaying ship may not be worth it if the bar ends up on your neck. There are some special considerations to keep in mind while working out onboard a ship. Do it safely.

OK, one more thing, if you can find a rowing machine, whose things rock for legs and back. Make sure you are doing full extensions all the way to your toes and are using your big muscles, not your litte ones like your forearms and biceps. Those will tire out first and will cheat your big muscle groups on getting their exercise.

K

[dedicated]

Thanks for the speedy reply. So you think the best substitution for not being able to swim would be running as opposed to cycling? It's weird. I was told to cycle double the time you would normally swim, but the bike is kicking my butt compared to swimming. I wish we were going to be in port more. The inability to be swimming is really bothering me.

[Kinnikinik]

Cardio is cardio. You aren't going to be riding a bike in SWCC, so why would it be better for you for swimming? Might as well run and get good at that while increasing your cardio and then work on swimming technique when you get home.

One thing you may do is talk your MWR into getting a swimming machine. Ever seen the Chuck Norris workout kit? Its basically the same thing. That will work your swimming muscles and give you some good cardio as well.

Check out this web site. Many ships have HUGE budgets for PT gear and since swimming is a part of the PFT, you should have no problem convincing them to pay the price tag.

http://www.vasatrainer.com/

Actually, I challenge you to pursue this and get some of these on the ships. They are a great training aid! Tell me how it goes.

K