BRUCK // PHYSICAL TRAINING PLAN

Physical Training Plan

 During my college years, I spent just shy of two academic years pursuing a commission in the U.S. Navy by way of the OSU Naval ROTC Unit. It didn't go well, partly because I wasn't as academically inclined as I ought to have been, but also because my commitment to physical fitness left a great deal to be desired. The high point of my fitness efforts came during the Summer of 2001, when I attempted to work through the BUD/S Warning Order Workout, with limited success. Every now and again, I'd make a diminishing effort to begin again, always without success. All the while, I dreamed of finishing the workout outlined in Stew Smith's The Complete Guide to Navy SEAL Fitness, and maybe even transitioning into the regime from Pavel Tsatouline's Power to the People!: Russian Strength Training Secrets for Every American.

Around 2015, I built a modified BUD/S Warning Order workout plan. I recognized the need to modify the existing plan, replacing that effort either with distance walking with some additional weight, or with swimming. Then, in January of 2017, an unexpected medical incident revealed a key piece of context: a congenital circulatory abnormality that was impacting my cardiovascular endurance without me realizing it. That little revelation helped me to understand why running any further than a couple hundred yards always made me feel like I was going to die. Of course, many sedentary years, coupled with a transition from semi-active professional positions to a long series of desk jobs, added some undesired weight to the mix. So, in light of my diagnosis, my hope is to now complete a modified sequence. At some point, we all have to realize that we're never going to be Navy SEALs, but that we can pursue a higher level of fitness than we've settled for in the past.

Of course, it really would have been nice to have known that a global pandemic would last more than just a few weeks so that I could have planned to make an organized, deliberate effort to engage in some structured exercise over the course of those first few months... At any rate, success will be measured based upon the following criteria from the Navy SEAL Physical Screening Test (SEAL PST).

  • 500 yard swim (maximum 12:30, competitive 8-9:00)
  • 2 minutes of pushups (minimum 42, competitive 100)
  • 2 minutes of situps (minimum 52, competitive 100)
  • maximum pullups (minimum 8, competitive 15-20)
  • 1.5 mile run in boots and pants (maximum 11:30, competitive 9-10:00)

    I mean... That's pretty straightforward, right? And I suppose I can figure out a reasonable alteration for that damned run. My proposed four phase fitness plan is presented in the table below. Phases I and II are my modified creations, whereas Phases III and IV are modified only by changing "Running" to "Yomping" - I may not be destined to be a Navy SEAL, but I can still use Royal Marines terminology, right?

    YompingSwimmingPush-UpsSit-UpsPull-UpsDips
    Phase I, Week 11.25 miles x 8 lbs2 x 15 mins4 x 5 MWF4 x 5 MWFN/AN/A
    Phase I, Week 21.25 miles x 8 lbs2 x 15 mins4 x 5 MWF4 x 5 MWFN/AN/A
    Phase I, Week 31.25 miles x 12 lbs2 x 15 mins5 x 5 MWF5 x 5 MWFN/AN/A
    Phase I, Week 41.5 miles x 12 lbs2 x 18 mins5 x 5 MWF5 x 5 MWFN/AN/A
    Phase I, Week 51.5 miles x 12 lbs2 x 18 mins4 x 10 MWF4 x 10 MWFN/AN/A
    Phase I, Week 61.5 miles x 16 lbs2 x 18 mins4 x 10 MWF4 x 10 MWFN/AN/A
    Phase I, Week 71.75 miles x 16 lbs2 x 21 mins5 x 10 MWF5 x 10 MWFN/AN/A
    Phase I, Week 81.75 miles x 16 lbs2 x 21 mins5 x 10 MWF5 x 10 MWFN/AN/A
    Phase I, Week 91.75 miles x 20 lbs2 x 21 mins4 x 15 MWF4 x 15 MWFN/AN/A
    Phase I, Week 102 miles x 20 lbs2 x 24 mins4 x 15 MWF4 x 15 MWFN/AN/A
    Phase II, Week 135 mins x 25 lbs4-5 x 20 mins4 x 15 MWF4 x 15 MWFN/AN/A
    Phase II, Week 235 mins x 25 lbs4-5 x 20 mins4 x 20 MWF4 x 20 MWFN/AN/A
    Phase II, Week 335 mins x 30 lbs4-5 x 25 mins4 x 25 MWF4 x 25 MWFN/AN/A
    Phase II, Week 440 mins x 30 lbs4-5 x 25 mins4 x 25 MWF4 x 25 MWFN/AN/A
    Phase II, Week 540 mins x 35 lbs4-5 x 30 mins5 x 25 MWF5 x 25 MWFN/AN/A
    Phase II, Week 640 mins x 35 lbs4-5 x 30 mins5 x 25 MWF5 x 25 MWFN/AN/A
    Phase II, Week 745 mins x 40 lbs4-5 x 35 mins5 x 30 MWF5 x 30 MWFN/AN/A
    Phase II, Week 845 mins x 40 lbs4-5 x 35 mins5 x 30 MWF5 x 30 MWFN/AN/A
    Phase II, Week 945 mins x 45 lbs4-5 x 40 mins5 x 30 MWF5 x 30 MWFN/AN/A
    Phase III, Week 13 x 2 miles4-5 x 15 mins4 x 15 MWF4 x 20 MWF3 x 3 MWFN/A
    Phase III, Week 23 x 2 miles4-5 x 15 mins5 x 20 MWF5 x 20 MWF3 x 3 MWFN/A
    Phase III, Week 33 x 3 miles4-5 x 20 mins5 x 25 MWF5 x 25 MWF3 x 4 MWFN/A
    Phase III, Week 43 x 3 miles4-5 x 20 mins5 x 25 MWF5 x 25 MWF3 x 4 MWFN/A
    Phase III, Week 52/3/4/2 miles4-5 x 25 min6 x 25 MWF6 x 25 MWF2 x 8 MWFN/A
    Phase III, Week 62/3/4/2 miles4-5 x 25 min6 x 25 MWF6 x 25 MWF2 x 8 MWFN/A
    Phase III, Week 73/4/5/2 miles4-5 x 30 min6 x 30 MWF6 x 30 MWF2 x 10 MWFN/A
    Phase III, Week 83/4/5/2 miles4-5 x 30 min6 x 30 MWF6 x 30 MWF2 x 10 MWFN/A
    Phase III, Week 93/4/5/2 miles4-5 x 35 min6 x 30 MWF6 x 30 MWF3 x 10 MWFN/A
    Phase IV, Week 13/5/4/5/2 miles4-5 x 35 mins6 x 30 MWF6 x 35 MWF3 x 10 MWF3 x 20 MWF
    Phase IV, Week 23/5/4/5/2 miles4-5 x 35 mins6 x 30 MWF6 x 35 MWF3 x 10 MWF3 x 20 MWF
    Phase IV, Week 34/5/6/4/3 miles4-5 x 45 mins10 x 20 MWF10 x 25 MWF4 x 10 MWF10 x 15 MWF
    Phase IV, Week 44/5/6/4/3 miles4-5 x 45 mins10 x 20 MWF10 x 25 MWF4 x 10 MWF10 x 15 MWF
    Phase IV, Week 55/6/6/6/4 miles4-5 x 60 min15 x 20 MWF15 x 25 MWF4 x 12 MWF15 x 15 MWF
    Phase IV, Week 66/6/6/6/6 miles4-5 x 75 min20 x 20 MWF25 x 25 MWF5 x 12 MWF20 x 15 MWF


    So, how's it going? Well, not exactly as planned, but I've gotten started. My initial focus has been swimming, and since my wife has been very insistent that anything short of five swim workouts per week basically doesn't count, I've managed - just barely in a couple of cases - to maintain a track record of at least five lap swimming sessions per week since mid-August 2024, with just a couple of exceptions. I'd spent several weeks adding push-ups, sit-ups, and machine-assisted pull-ups.

    A couple of weeks in, I ended up developing what I presumed to be tendonitis in my left elbow - presumably resulting from the pull-ups, because that's when it tended to flare up - but which my physician assistant buddy suspects to be lateral epicondylitis, best known as "tennis elbow." I decided to take a week off from my gym workouts, but continue with the swimming. As I write this, I still haven't resumed the gym workouts yet. At some point, I may reintroduce the push-ups and sit-ups, but omit the pull-ups, and see what my results are.

    YompingSwimmingPush-UpsSit-UpsPull-UpsDips
    Phase 0, Week 1N/A5 x 23 minsN/AN/AN/AN/A
    Phase 0, Week 2N/A5 x 23 minsN/AN/AN/AN/A
    Phase 0, Week 3N/A5 x 23 minsN/AN/AN/AN/A
    Phase 0, Week 4N/A5 x 23 minsN/AN/AN/AN/A
    Phase 0, Week 5N/A5 x 23 minsN/AN/AN/AN/A
    Phase 0, Week 6N/A5 x 24 minsN/AN/AN/AN/A
    Phase 0, Week 7N/A5 x 24 mins4 x 5 MWF4 x 5 MWF3 x 3 @ 80 lbs. MWFN/A
    Phase 0, Week 8N/A5 x 30 mins4 x 5 MWF4 x 5 MWF3 x 3 @ 80 lbs. MWFN/A
    Phase 0, Week 9N/A5 x 30 mins6 x 5 MWF6 x 5 MWF5 x 3 @ 80 lbs. MWFN/A
    Phase 0, Week 10N/A6 x 30 mins6 x 5 MWF6 x 5 MWF5 x 3 @ 80 lbs. MWFN/A
    Phase 0, Week 11N/A5 x 30 mins4 x 10 MWF4 x 10 MWF3 x 40 @ 90 lbs. MWFN/A
    Phase 0, Week 12N/A5 x 30 minsN/AN/AN/AN/A
    Phase 0, Week 13N/A5 x 30 minsN/AN/AN/AN/A
    Phase 0, Week 14N/A3 x 30 minsN/AN/AN/AN/A
    Phase 0, Week 15N/A5 x 30 minsN/AN/AN/AN/A
    Phase 0, Week 16N/A5 x 30 minsN/AN/AN/AN/A
    Phase 0, Week 17N/A4 x 30 minsN/AN/AN/AN/A
    Phase 0, Week 18N/A6 x 30 minsN/AN/AN/AN/A
    Phase 0, Week 19N/A5 x 30 minsN/AN/AN/AN/A
    Phase 0, Week 203 x 30 mins3 x 30 minsN/AN/AN/AN/A
    Phase 0, Week 215 x 30 minsN/AN/AN/AN/AN/A
    Phase 0, Week 225 x 35 mins2 x 30 minsN/AN/AN/AN/A

    More to come.

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