Tag: strength standards

Operator Fitness Standards

Special forces soldiers are fascinating. The levels of strength, conditioning, and resilience required to perform at the highest levels of the military are impressive. Operators have to be fast and agile in close quarters battle and carry large loads over long distances with little sleep. But how fit do you have to be to make it through selection?

The US Navy Seals tracked 2,208 candidates through three years of Hell Week to identify the physical standards of those that successfully passed BUD/S. The study found that the best candidates and those less likely to be dropped for medical reasons were fast runners and swimmers with high levels of lower body power. These high endurance applicants are more resistant to fatigue, less injury-prone, and less likely to make technical errors when tired. The lower body power allowed soldiers to handle the rugged terrain during selection better.

The events with the most significant impact on completing BUD/S were the three and four-mile run, the 300-yard shuttle run, and the 1,000m swim with fins. The one-rep max deadlift score showed the most negligible effect on success.

The paper provides future applicants with the best and worst passing scores on each Naval Special Warfare Human Performance Assessment (SEAL PRT) test and Naval Special Warefare Preparatory (NSW Prep) School Exit Test.

EXERCISESBEST SCORESMART GOALSWORST SCORE
Standing Long Jump111 Inches90 Inches or more72 Inches
25lb Pull-up20 Reps13-15 Reps5 Reps
Body Weight Bench24 Reps10-14 Reps1 Reps
Deadlift 1 Rep Max2.33 x Bodyweight1.75 x Bodyweight1.5 x Bodyweight
5-10-5 Agility4.35 Seconds4.4 – 4.8 Seconds5.45 Seconds
300yd Shuttle Run56.0 Seconds60 Seconds or less67.7 Seconds
3-Mile Run15:33 Minutes18-19 Minutes22:37 Minutes
800-Meter Swim with Fins11:28 Minutes12-14 Minutes15:46 Minutes
1K-Swim with Fins14:10 Minutes17 Minutes or less19:11 Minutes
Push-up119 Reps90-99 Reps70 Reps
Sit-up109 Reps80-89 Reps61 Reps
Pull-up30 Reps19-21 Reps10 Reps
4-Mile Run21:48 Minutes27 Minutes or less30:00 Minutes
Fitness test scores of successful BUD/S candidates

A separate study of 1500 students from BUD/S classes found that ‘The leanest students completed Hell Week at a higher rate than students with more body fat.’ A body fat percentage in the range of 10-15% is recommended to improve performance and reduce the risk of injury.

How fit do you have to be to make it through BUD/S?

  1. Be able to run 3-miles in less than 19 minutes and 4-miles in less than 27 minutes.
  2. Perform a 300-yard shuttle run in less than 60 seconds
  3. Swim 1000m with fins quicker than 17 minutes
  4. Be tall and lean with a body fat percentage between 10-15%

Peter Coe’s Diagnostic Tests

Peter Coe was the father of Seb Coe, and an engineer turned middle distance coach. He approached his son’s training scientifically and helped Seb achieve 13 World Records and countless trophies and medals. Coe wrote a book detailing his training methods, strength and conditioning approach, and running workouts to help other middle-distance runners win.  

There are runners who seem to be performing quite well but are often, quite unknown to themselves, not reaching their full potential because of a lack of specific or all-round strength.

Peter Coe

In his book, Winning Running; Successful 800m & 1500m Racing and Training, Coe lists a set of tests and standards to help runners identify gaps in their overall conditioning. Once the gaps are identified, the runner can create a programme to address them.

TestStandardDetails
Balke TestRun as far as possible in 15 minutes. Divide the distance in meters by 15 to give the speed in meters per minute. Subtract 133 from this number, then multiply by 0.172, then add 34.4 to get oxygen intake in ml/kg/min.
Standard Broad JumpAthletes height plus 25%A standing long jump
Hopping Test10 hopsMark out a 25m track, one-legged hop the distance. Repeat on the other leg to identify imbalances 
50m Dash6.5 secondsAs the name suggests
Free Weights
– Curl50% body weight
– Press70% body weight
– Squat100% body weight
Sarjent Jump65 cmMeasure the maximum verticle jump
Harvard Step TestScore of 180Using a 20 inch (50cm) step and a metronome set to 120 bpm and perform 30 steps per minute (4 beats per step) for 5 minutes. Rest for 1 minute and count the beats for the next 30 seconds. Multiply the time in seconds by 100, divide it by the 30 second pulse count, and then multiply it by 5.5 to get your score. 
Height-weight Ratio10% less that the Dr Stillman formula result for your heightUsing Dr. Stillman’s formular  – give 50kg for the first 1.5 meters of height then add 2.5kg for each additional 2.5cm 
Percentage Body Fat8%
Muscular Endurance TestThe maximum number in a minute
– Press-ups50
– Squat thrusts50
– Sit-ups60
– Pull-ups20
Diagnostic tests for middle distance runners

Project 4 W/kg: Strength Phase Complete

This year’s fitness goal is to reach a Functional Threshold Power (FTP) of 4 watts per kg. To be a fast cyclist, you need to be strong and my approach is taken from an interview with six times gold medal track sprint cyclist Jason Kenny; get strong, convert that strength into power, and then build the stamina to hold this power for longer. I have a decent level of cardiovascular fitness from my 2000 mile challenge last year and I want to try and reach the goal as quickly and as smartly as possible so getting strong first is the goal.

Phase 1: get strong 

Jason Kenny has a one-rep max back squat of 180kg, between 2 and 2.5 times his bodyweight. Chris Hoy had a back squat max of around two times his bodyweight and a deadlift two and a half times his bodyweight. These numbers are for the best sprint track cyclists to have ever lived, focusing on events lasting up to 60 seconds. A two-times bodyweight squat and a two and a half times bodyweight deadlift represent the absolute maximum leg strength level needed to where strength is no longer an issue.  

I am interested in my FTP or the power on a bike that I can hold for an hour. A two times bodyweight squat would be nice but is a serious level of strength that takes a long time to build; getting there would probably not represent the best use of my time. Any cycling event over 4 km (the record is just over four minutes) is classified as an endurance event and should require a lower level of absolute strength that the shorter events of the sprinters. I am also aiming for a decent amateur level rather than a world-class one, so what level of absolute strength represents a reasonable target?  

Trainer road has strength standards for advanced cyclists they say represent the point at which the effort and extra muscle mass required to get stronger is not worth the benefit delivered:

Deadlift: 5 Reps 150% BW

Back Squat: 5 Reps 125% BW

Bench Press: 5 Reps 90% BW

Barbell Row: 5 Reps 90% BW

Pull/Chin-Ups: 15 Reps

Military Press: 5 Reps 55% BW

Trainer Road

Converting these numbers into a one-rep max for each exercise at my current weight of between 82 and 83 Kilograms, phase one requires a 142.5 kg deadlift and a 120kg back squat.  

How I got strong

Before you read how I hit these two numbers I want to warn you that this is not the way I suggest anyone go about it. Heavy, low rep deadlifts and back squats can get you in trouble if you don’t know how to do them and you need to build up to it slowly with significant effort paid to mobility. The risk of injury is higher if you are also pushing your bike or running training. Learn to squat properly, work through the necessary progressions like goblet squats, and reduce your endurance training to avoid injury.

With that out of the way, I took a unique approach for three reasons: 

  1. I already have decent form and came to this project with reasonable strength levels from training under Jon Albon’s Coaching. 
  2. I have had strength levels higher than the target lifts in previous years (at a higher body weight) when I spent some time focusing on Olympic lifting.
  3. I was using strength programs that I had carried out before and knew I could handle- I also know the difference between pain and injury.

If you want to get better at something you should do it every day. I already had a 142.5 kg deadlift from my half-marathon training so I just had to maintain this and get my squat max up. So I squatted heavy every day, taking advantage of working from home and sitting down all day. On the first day, I reached a max of 90kg before my legs started to shake in shock and defiance, giving me a baseline. I will talk about this programme in detail in another post but the basic layout is as follows:

  • I squatted every afternoon at some point between 16:00 and 18:00 working up to a heavy single rep.
  • I trained on the bike in the mornings five days per week with Monday and Friday off.
  • My bike programme included weights on Tuesday and Friday so I used these two sessions as my ‘heavy’ days with back squats, deadlifts, and heavy kettlebell swings.
  • On the other days, I worked up to a heavy single on my front squat as these are slightly lighter due to being limited by upper back strength.
  • Monday was a rest day so I did lighter sets of front squats.

I started this programme on the 29th of December and hit my 120kg max on the 18th of February. The last two weeks of this programme included working up to a 115kg back squat on Tuesdays and Friday and a 100kg Front squat on the other days.

Building consistency and volume on the bike

I needed a bike programme that would focus on power rather than longer efforts in keeping with my strength, power, then endurance strategy. I found a five-month Individual Pursuit (the 4km track event mentioned above) programme on Training Peaks by Phil Kilpatrick, the head coach of my local track in Derby. The first seven weeks of the programme focused on zone three ‘tempo’ rides with lots of 30-second spikes of power. After seven weeks in transitioned to weekly Tuesday night racing, giving me a nice amount of time to hit my strength target.

In hindsight, choosing an advanced programme as an intermediate rider (detraining intermediate rider) might not have been the fastest route to progress but it did not have a power test after the first day so I decided that if I waited till my first race to get a second power test then I could handle it. I only missed three sessions in the seven weeks so I think it was not the worst decision but there were a few Wednesday morning 7 am starts that I felt nervous about getting on the bike after looking at the training session planned and feeling my legs from the heavy squats and interval bike session the day before.

I committed to the five sessions lasting between 6-8 hour per week and built up my consistency and volume after my absence from the bike for the last 6 months. All the sessions were completed on my WattBike Atom using Zwift linked to Training peaks to automatically load that day’s workout. I aimed to wake up at 6 am each day and be on the bike for 7 am ready for the one and a half hour rides but some days these were moved to lunchtime if I slept in or if my legs were a little sore and I needed a few hours to wake them up.

On the whole, the mix of heavy squats and tempo rides worked well. There is something about training twice per day that makes your legs less sore and the squats and peddling seemed to help the other recover. The last time I did the squat everyday programme I remember hating stairs but I was saved this time around. Phase 1 complete, I now have the strength for a 4 W/kg FTP.  

Phase 2: Convert this strength to power

Phase two is all about the bike. Tuesday evenings are now for Zwift racing and squatting is limited to twice per week, Tuesdays and Fridays. As I am aiming for power, and with the velodrome closed, I guess the next best thing is Crit racing. Check back on Tuesday evening for an update. For squats, I am going to use Chris Hoys suggested workout of using a weight you can lift ten times (90kg) and doing eight reps, adding 5% (95kg) to the bar and doing six rep, then adding another 5% (100kg) and doing 4 reps. I will stick to two sets of five reps with the deadlift and I have just got a 40kg kettlebell to continue with Andy Bolton’s swing ladder.   

Let me know on Twitter if you are working towards increasing your FTP and what you find works.

Strength Standards and Assessments

I am currently reading Dan John’s excellent book Interventions. Dan John is one of the worlds top strength and conditioning coaches and presents his ideas in easy to understand and entertaining ways (think Yoda with dad jokes). The book lays out Dan’s approach when first working with a client, by first identifying a goal, then assessing where they are now, finally finding the shortest route between them.

A foundation for strength and conditioning, ideally developed at school and before 18 years old should contain the following:

  • The kettlebell foundation: Swing, Goblet Squat, Getup—  
  • The Barbel foundation: Military Press, Front Squat, Power Clean, Bench Press 
  • General Movement and mobility: Hurdle Walkovers, Farmer Walks, Cartwheels, Forward Rolls, Tumbling, Shoulder Rolls
  • Final stage: Deadlift, Back Squat, Sled Work, Prowlers and Car Pushes 

Dan also recommends that everyone should learn to swim, ride a bike and tumble and play as many sports, games, and movements as possible. These are skills that you learn once should stay with you for life. If you cannot do anything listed so far, that is what you need to work on before moving on.

For most people, those who are not professional athletes or special forces soldiers, their focus needs to move to keep the body as young as possible for as long as possible. Building and maintaining lean body mass (less fat and more muscle) and joint mobility should be the focus. The challenge is to do what you need to do in the gym rather than what you want to do. You can use two tools to keep you focused on what you need to do; a coach and constant assessment. You should assess mobility via the Functional Movement Screen (FSM) or alternative once every six weeks and assess strength every two months.

Absolute strength is the glass. Everything else is the liquid inside the glass. The bigger the glass, the more of everything else you can do.

Brett Jones

Dan provides some strength standards for enough strength so that strength is never the limiting factor in any physical pursuit. The standards are relative to bodyweight and so are extremely relevant to endurance athletes like runners, cyclists, and triathletes. It is tough to get big and lean if endurance athletes eat intelligently and programming strength and conditioning on building strength rather than size, they will find that they end up leaner and faster than those that skip weights in fear of putting on size.

The book Interventions list the six fundamental human movements, push, pull, hinge, squat, loaded carry, and the sixth movement (everything else). A good strength and conditioning programme should include all six of these movements and target achieving the expected standards in each of the exercises first, and then working towards the gamechanger standards.

Dan John’s strength standards for men

  1. Push 
    1. Expected = Bodyweight bench press
    2. Game-changer = Bodyweight bench press for 15 reps 
  2. Pull
    1. Expected = 8–10 pullups
    2. Game-changer = 15 pullups
  3. Squat 
    1. Expected = Bodyweight squat
    2. Game-changer = Bodyweight squat for 15 reps
  4. Hinge
    1. Expected = Bodyweight to 150% bodyweight deadlift
    2. Game-changer = Double-bodyweight deadlift 
  5. Loaded Carry
    1. Expected = Farmer walk with total bodyweight (half per hand) 
    2. Game-changer = Bodyweight per hand 
  6. Getup: One left and right, done with a half-filled cup of water

For those of us who like to challenge ourselves with endurance events, the overwhelming message from top coaches including Dan John, Charles Poliquin, Percy Cerutty, and Pavel Tsatsouline, is a solid base of strength is essential to performance, health, and injury prevention. Start working towards the ‘expected’ standards for strength at a minimum and have a long term plan to reach the game-changer standards and you will find that strength is never the limiting factor in any physical activity you do.

Dan John has a weekly newsletter, a weekly youtube Q&A, many excellent books (I would start with 40 years with a whistle) and articles, and a workout generator website that allows you to enter the equipment you have available and the days per week you want to train, and it will provide you with a strength programme.

You can find the extended standards with regressions for additional milestones and the woman’s benchmarks on Dan’s website.