[Military Guys] How best to train for PJ (USAF)

O

ODiE

Veteran X
So for those of you who saw my last thread, I'm about to go to MEPS and take my ASVAB. Hopefully i meet the physical requirements for Pararescue, not to concerned about the ASVAB.

I've been training, hiking, swimming, running, and doing lots of flutter kicks focusing more on endurance and lots and lots of repetitions versus what I was doing previously. I've been wait training on my own since October and put on 20 lbs. I was 6 foot and 130 and 10% BF I'm sitting at a shy over 150 now at 9% BF. Was focused more on lower reps higher weight to build up strength but the requirements are far more endurance focused. Here's the basics of the PAST:

20-Meter Underwater Swim. (Pass/Fail).
500-meter surface swim. Must be continuous. Lower time = higher score. 13min or less
1.5-mile run. Lower time = higher score. 10:30 or less
Chin-ups (One Minute). Must have perfect form. More = higher score. 8 or more
Flutter-Kicks (2 minutes). Must have perfect form. More = higher score. 50 or more
Push-ups. (2 Minutes) Must have perfect form. More = higher score. 50 or more
Sit ups. (2 minutes) Must have perfect form. More = higher score. 50 or more

That's just get into the PJ training pipeline which is definitely the hardest in all of the USAF. It's often called Superman Training.

There's only about 300 PJ's in all of the USAF and I want to be one of them.
 
ask scuba, he was a pj

i party with an ex pj here in italy

he's a 40 year old guy who swims 1000 meters every morning and works out every afternoon and is insane shape
 
Thanks, didn't know there was a PJ on the boards. That's kinda like having a Navy SEAL on the boards but even less common.

Right now I do 3 sets of as many push-ups as I can possibly do. This area needs improvement.

chin-ups are no sweat for me

I used to swim a lot so not to worried here but I need to get my ass back in a pool.

the running and stuff I'm not worried about but being built like a bean pole (a pretty fit one though) has me concerned when it comes time to do endless pushups and holding up logs and shit.
 
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good luck odie, i had some guys that were in amazing shape in my basic training flight that went to the PJ training (7 total). only one of them made it deep into the training, and he failed out because of injury

edit: you are also FORCED to drown... and then they revive you
 
not trying to put you down or anything, but if you intend to get into the pj program right after joining, you better be seriously fit. as in, the one of the most fit guys in the air force. because that's all they take.
 
the military loves running.

i guarantee they will place more emphasis on running than anything else.

run more.
 
Wow, those tests are pretty weak. I consider myself out of shape and I could do most of those positively.
 
Focus on swimming, running, and push-ups.

For all the guys in my BMT flight that tried out, the swimming was by far the most difficult part. All of them were in great shape, but got their asses kicked by the pool. Do not underestimate this test.
 
ParoxysM said:
Wow, those tests are pretty weak. I consider myself out of shape and I could do most of those positively.
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the minimum isnt that difficult to reach (but dont forget you do these tests consecutively as well) but people applying for special forces dont typically do the minimum
 
ODiE said:
wait training on my own since October
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How long can you wait now after all that training? For me it depends... if it's waiting for my wife to try on a cart full of crap at Target, then I'm not that great at it. Waiting in line for concert tickets I tend to be able to wait longer without getting frustrated. Do you have a wait training partner? I don't seem to be able to find one that has the same waiting times as I do, it sucks.

Anyhow good luck with your wait times, keep up the good work!
 
I had the highest swim qual that you can have as a marine but I doubt it's anything compared to pararescue.

I remember I had to tread water for 30 mins for one of the later parts and save a teacher that was acting like he was drowning(the fucker tried to bring you down with him). This was 9 years ago so I don't really remember shit.
 
I did rap last week and read up on SERE and PJ. They are both equally as intense, though PJ definately takes the prestige cake. Hit up USAF PARARESCUE - That Others May Live for pretty much all the info. They do waterboard you endlessly to see your limits but mostly the exhaustion which is compounded by fatigue and all the physical reqs. But truly its all mental so just test your options, consider the realities thats its gonna suck, and how much do you really want it. If you are sure you are ready, best of luck to you.

.gang
 
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