Air Force sit-ups?

Nohbody8

First of all, I apologize for all the new threads. I've been lurking on these forums for a couple of weeks and the questions built up as a result.

Second of all, I'm trying to prepare physically for my impending Air Force BMT (basic military training). After a nigh decade long hiatus from running, I think I've got that under control. What I need to focus on now are the 50 push-ups/sit-ups in a minute requirement. The push-ups will just have to come with conditioning so I'm not too stressed there. What does worry me are the sit-ups. Does anyone know what style of sit-up they insist upon at USAF BMT, if any? Are they full-fledged sit-ups or crunches? Hands behind the head or to the side? Elbows touching knees at the same time, alternately, or at all? Will someone or something be holding my ankles? I want to get used to doing them now how I'll have to be doing them then.

Theungry

God, how back asswards would it be if they made you do old school anatomically backwards sit-ups.

Sadly I don't have an answer to your question of what style they do require, but I would suggest you pick up some pilates dvds or take a few classes. There is currently no better way to strengthen your abdomen, and it also help you with both the running and push-ups.

Lucky7

To be completely honest, unless you're horribly out of shape, dont even worry about it. You will do sooooooooooooo...oooooooo..oooo man pushups and situps that by the end it will be no problem. When I joined (right out of high school) I could do any of the pt requirments but by the end of basic i had gone from a 20 minute mile and a half down to a 10 minute, and from 30 pushups to 60 and from 30 crunches to 60. The "crunches" that you do in basic are typical situps.

Nohbody8

Lucky7 wrote: »

You will do sooooooooooooo...oooooooo..oooo man pushups and situps that by the end it will be no problem.

The "crunches" that you do in basic are typical situps.

That's kind of what I figured. I'd like to be able to give the instructors as little to use against me as possible though. Thanks for the info regarding the sit-ups though.

Iceman.USAF

*waves hands* 30 days till I commission!

Anyways, to do the "proper" AF situp, you want to lie on you back with your hands crossed over your chest (think, like a mummy) so you're right hand is on your left shoulder. Your legs should make an approximate 90 degree angle so your feet sit fairly flat. Now move your upper body up until your elbows touch your thighs. We just had a reg change for 2008 that says your elbows can touch ANYWHERE on your thighs, but I'm not sure how basic will view that.

You're supposed to count every time the person hits the floor. Most people count when you touch the knees, its a subtle difference but a fun fact to know.

Nohbody8

Iceman.USAF wrote: »

*waves hands* 30 days till I commission!

As in 30 days until you become an officer? Congrats! Could I e-mail you some questions by any chance?

Iceman.USAF

Absolutely.

Iceman.USAF@gmail.com

I might not have all the answers, but maybe I can direct you to someone who does.

Nohbody8

Cool. Expect something later tonight from Nohbody8@hotmail.com

By the way...

Theungry wrote: »

God, how back asswards would it be if they made you do old school anatomically backwards sit-ups.

...this sounds about par for the course.

Scrublet

Generally you have to touch your elbows to the upper half of your thighs. An important regulation: rest on your back in the down position, and you're done with whatever you have. All these regulations will be explained to you in painstaking detail before you take the test. Just start doing situps everyday and you should be fine.

MikeMcSomething

You usually have someone leaning on your feet too, you shouldn't have a hard time with it

Nohbody8

Right now, what I'm doing is running 2 miles on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. I plan on bumping that up tomorrow as I don't need to walk during the run anymore. On Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, I jump rope for thirty minutes. Should I just do push-ups and sit-ups every day, certain days, or does it matter? Should I just try to do as many as I can in a minute or sets?

Silvertree

Have you looked at the PDFs from Lackland's web page? http://tinyurl.com/2nxn4f The PDF "Are you ready for basic" has a picture of the proper form for sit ups. They also have a recommended work out for getting in shape.

I have to agree with Lucky. I wasn't in very good shape before I left and I passed with no problems. If you are working at before you go, you shouldn't have any issues.

Fizban140

To be honest, I would work on leg lifts or flutter kicks, they will kick your ass more than anything else. I exercised a little for basic and the only thing that really killed me was the flutter kicks with combat boots on. I couldn't even do them all, I couldn't even lift my legs.

Scrublet

My friends who have pumped up their pushups quickest have succeeded doing lots of smaller sets throughout the day every day. Keep in mind this is *NOT* how to lift intelligently or build up muscle; however it will improve your pushup reps correctly. Situps you can go ahead and do every day. Leg lifts and flutter kicks will help, but remember that a large part of situps are leg flexors. These are hard to work without doing situps themselves.

Cpgnition

Scrublet wrote: »

Generally you have to touch your elbows to the upper half of your thighs. An important regulation: rest on your back in the down position, and you're done with whatever you have. All these regulations will be explained to you in painstaking detail before you take the test. Just start doing situps everyday and you should be fine.

This is spot on. Arms crossed, fingers touching your shoulder (not grabbing the shirt, for some reason), elbows touch middle of thigh (not knees), shoulder blades touch ground, repeat. Ass must stay on ground.

Contrary to what others have said, for whatever reason, it seems like we missed PT a lot (>3 years ago), so I would highly recommend conditioning yourself prior to training. I've heard BMT has gone through some revisions (longer warrior week?), so things may be different. I would spend some time memorizing the rank structure.

Good luck. Remember, a lot of it is a game. It's engineered to stress you out.

Iceman.USAF

There's 2 weeks of urban combat training now if I remember correctly.

Deusfaux

IS there something weighing your feet down or not? that's a fairly significant difference

Iceman.USAF

In every one of my Air Force ROTC PT tests, yes. And we use the regulation of the "real" AF, so I think it's pretty solid. That being said, while doing regular PT, you'll just do them yourself probably. During PT Test, you'll work with a partner.

Scrublet

fingers touching your shoulder (not grabbing the shirt, for some reason), elbows touch middle of thigh (not knees), shoulder blades touch ground, repeat. Ass must stay on ground.

The reason for the not grabbing the shirt is that one of the rules is that your hands CANNOT leave your shoulders (or test ends). When you grab your shirt, you can make it look like your hands are still on your shoulders when actually you've gained a couple inches (which depending on your height can make a difference). To fight that, they put in the rule.

Nohbody8

Does anyone know how much time there is between the test for sit-ups and push-ups? I'm most likely being overconfident but I think the Warhawk fitness rank is do-able assuming I don't have to do the push-ups and sit-ups consecutively.

Gahmrious

They give you "adequite" time to rest between situps/pushups. You have someone holding your feet while doing the situps also, so that should really help you out.

Advice on doing more situps etc etc, a few months before I am scheduled for my PT test I will sit on a inclined bench and use a medicine ball and do situps with that. It really helped condition me for doing a lot of sit ups in a short amount of time.

If you have any other questions about the AF, feel free to PM me anytime here on the boards.

Cheers!

Mister Longbaugh

When I was getting ready for an Army pft I would do a lot of situps with nobody holding my feet, a lot of leg lifts and a lot of flutter kicks, all in two minute intervals.

Scrublet

Nohbody8 wrote: »

Does anyone know how much time there is between the test for sit-ups and push-ups? I'm most likely being overconfident but I think the Warhawk fitness rank is do-able assuming I don't have to do the push-ups and sit-ups consecutively.

Unless it's changed in the past year, the AF PT test is as follows:
1 minute pushups
60 second break
1 minute situps
60 second break
1 1/2 mile run

Fizban140

Scrublet wrote: »

Nohbody8 wrote: »

Does anyone know how much time there is between the test for sit-ups and push-ups? I'm most likely being overconfident but I think the Warhawk fitness rank is do-able assuming I don't have to do the push-ups and sit-ups consecutively.

Unless it's changed in the past year, the AF PT test is as follows:
1 minute pushups
60 second break
1 minute situps
60 second break
1 1/2 mile run

I just test a month ago I think the break is now two or three minutes, but that doesn't apply to BMT.

Iceman.USAF

5 minutes is standard. That is, most CO's give you 5 minutes.

Scrublet

I don't know if this an Active Duty standard or something. I haven't been in AFROTC this semester or the last one. . .before that, 60 secs was a HARD rule for the years I was in it, including Field Training. I'm nervous us ROTC/EX-ROTC guys are hijacking this.

Fizban140

Regardless only pansies need more than a minute break.

Iceman.USAF

Honestly, a minute should be fine. I literally just got back from a PT test (passed quite well actually) and we had probably 3 minutes in between pushups/situps. It's plenty of time.

mhiniker

Well this is only 9 years old, to the month! :P but I'll answer as I can set clear all questions. I'm now medically​ retired but served 12 years('03-'15) and served most of those years as a PTL(Physical Training Leader), earning 100% all but 2 or 3 of those years.

The Marine officially call their requirement a crunch, which is a smaller movement then the Air Force Situp.

COPIED from AFI 36-905
3.8.3.5. Complete Sit-up. A complete sit-up is accomplished when the upper torso of the member is raised off the floor/mat, the elbows touch the knees or thighs, and the upper torso is lowered back to the floor/mat until the shoulder blades touch the floor/mat. Elbows must touch the knees or thighs at the top of the sit-up, and the shoulder blades must touch the floor/mat at the bottom of the sit-up. Any part of your hands/fingers must remain in contact with your shoulders/upper chest at all times

Raising your torso and having your elbows contact your thighs at half height is Optimal if going for absolute effeciency, while this may be contested as "incorrect" it falls within the verbage! Same thing when lowering your torso, and the shoulder blades need to contact the floor. Flex your back sticking your shoulder blades down & outward so they contact sooner. When you feel contact, sit-up complete, switch to raising. If you Google "Air Force Situps Up"

The first video result you'll get is him explaining how to do them for AF Reserve-DON'T Listen this guy!
The second video, which I'll link is accurate!

https://youtu.be/ejnLBGaK0Fk

mhiniker

"3.4.4. The muscular fitness components (push-ups and sit-ups) may be accomplished before or after the 1.5-mile run or 2.0-kilometer walk according to the installation FACs established procedures. "

I always conducted first, as the Push-ups/sit-ups are alot less taxing on the cardiovascular(Lungs) system then running. As far as I know, or would imagine this is done Air Force wide!


3.4.5. There is a minimum 3-minute rest period between components.

Verbatim! Your PTLs don't have a choice to make it less, but they can make it more staying under the three hour maximum for the whole PT Assessment.

mhiniker

Fizban140 wrote: »

Regardless only pansies need more than a minute break.

What's your best score? *The assumption is not that great

AFI 36-2905-"3.4.5. There is a minimum 3-minute rest period between components."

mhiniker

Nohbody8 wrote: »

Does anyone know how much time there is between the test for sit-ups and push-ups? I'm most likely being overconfident but I think the Warhawk fitness rank is do-able assuming I don't have to do the push-ups and sit-ups consecutively.

3 minute is mandatory minimum, but 5 or 10 may be given generally.