And the Physical Training (PT) continues...

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And the Physical Training (PT) continues...

PT, PT ... how I love and hate PT! I just completed my semi-annual Army Physical Fitness Test (APFT) during the last week of October, and I was very happy to pass with a decent margin and score. I had been working hard on my sit-ups -- my Achilles heel to be sure! -- and I completed that portion of the PT test without too much pain or torture, and actually felt an improvement. This was the first APFT in which I wasn't too terribly worried about passing the whole enchilada, a nice change from my previous stress levels where the APFT is concerned. Did I still stress about it? Sure I did! That's how I roll, and I am far from being a PT stud. I continue to be a work in progress.

And how is this for irony? I am the oldest Army Nurse Corps officer in my department, but I'm also the only one that had to take the PT test! Everyone else has a temporary profile for one thing or another, so I was flying solo. No pressure, right?! Haha. I felt like I had to make a good showing to represent my nurses! My medics were proud of me for doing as well as I did, and my senior medic/shift leader even came back to run the last few hundred yards with me to support me when I was sucking wind at the end of my two miles. ?

I used a couple of apps on my phone to improve my sit-ups and push-ups -- the apps are from Rittr Labs, and they help you reach however many continuous sit-ups and push-ups you want to do. My push-ups are already pretty good, but I figured they could use improvement as well. My current daily regimen involves running a mile on the treadmill (at the gym or at home -- I have a lovely Sole treadmill in our exercise room at the house, great investment!), and then doing sit-ups and push-ups on alternating days. Even on my workdays I have time to get this in before I go to work; it takes me a total of 15-20 minutes to complete everything, and if I have time, I run further than a mile. I feel so great when I work out daily!

Another thing I didn't realize was that running shoes have a pretty short lifespan, and even more so if you're running on them every day. I bought my last pair of shoes, Reebok Runtones, about a year ago, and it is recommended (probably by the running shoe industry, haha) to get new shoes every 6 months. After I'd run about 9 days in a row, I started to notice some heel pain. I figured it was time for a new pair of running shoes (and my husband pointed out that perhaps I also needed a day off from running!), so I bought a nice new pair of Nikes, the In Season TR model with a comfy footbed. And by the way, military folks, if you're not in the habit of asking at every store for a military discount, start doing that! As an active duty newbie, I used to forget. But a lot of stores give us discounts, and my running shoes were 20% off at the sporting goods store where I bought them!

I'm happy to report that my heels are pain-free once again in my new shoes. I also discovered that Rittr Labs has apps for squats and pull-ups, so I'm going to incorporate those into my workouts as well. I especially need to work on the pull-ups, because the Army is currently test-driving a revamped APFT and they are considering adding dead-hang pull-ups. Oh boy. The new test information can be found here: http://www.armytimes.com/news/2011/03/army-first-look-at-new-pt-030411w/ with a follow-on story about more changes here: http://www.armytimes.com/news/2011/09/army-new-pt-test-could-get-more-demanding-091011/. I don't know when it'll happen, or if, or even what the standards will be for my gender and age group, but I want to be prepared. Even though there is no formal PT for our department, we are expected to work out on our own; the fact that some are not doing it is reflected in unsuccessful APFT attempts. Consistency is a huge factor. I promised our excellent leadership at Ft. Sam Houston that I wouldn't be a member of the four-mile club (just doing the two two-mile PT tests a year), and I meant it. Fitness is and will always be a defining factor in the Army, and commitment to fitness is just as important as commitment to service; you cannot have one without the other.

That's enough for today ... it's time to go running!

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Lunah

About Lunah, MSN, RN

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Pixie.RN: a short green-eyed redhead, very tattooed, former paramedic, ED/trauma RN, educator, infection preventionist/epidemiologist, Army veteran (66T). Avid reader, new mommy, addicted to good shoes, allnurses, and her smartphone.

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Specializes in Emergency, Med-Surg, Progressive Care.

It's great to hear that you're doing well on your PT tests. I myself despise the PRT (the Air Force equivalent), and unfortunately being a National Guardsman doesn't grant me the use of any athletic facilities around where I attend school. From the looks of the proposed PFT, I'd wager that it will be used as a force-shaping tool to trim down the size of the Army once the wars are over. I've had fleeting thoughts of "going green" in hopes of becoming a Black Hawk pilot, but dead hang pullups are not in my repertoire of events :o

Keep up the good work, ma'am!

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Specializes in EMS, ED, Trauma, CEN, CPEN, TCRN.
From the looks of the proposed PFT, I'd wager that it will be used as a force-shaping tool to trim down the size of the Army once the wars are over.

EXACTLY! Which is why I'm serious about doing some pull-ups!! LOL. If I want to be a lifer, I need to work hard. I don't want to sham, you know? You know. :) Come to the green side, we have cookies! And Blackhawks. :D

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Congrats on passing!!! I'm 38 and hopefully after completing my MSN (FNP) I can join the Air Force. I'm just curious, how old are you? Feel free to not answer, I know its quite a personal question, I was just wondering because you wrote that you were the oldest.

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Specializes in ED, CTSurg, IVTeam, Oncology.

Love those PT stories as they certainly bring back memories. I remember we used to do rifle PT (with the older M14s) and then do our daily two mile runs with them. But then, I was a young buck at 19 'n change. If I had to do it now, I'd probably have my STEMI into the second sit up, LOL...

Good luck, and thank you for your service!

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Specializes in EMS, ED, Trauma, CEN, CPEN, TCRN.
Congrats on passing!!! I'm 38 and hopefully after completing my MSN (FNP) I can join the Air Force. I'm just curious, how old are you? Feel free to not answer, I know its quite a personal question, I was just wondering because you wrote that you were the oldest.

As my profile says, I'm 39.

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Specializes in EMS, ED, Trauma, CEN, CPEN, TCRN.
Love those PT stories as they certainly bring back memories. I remember we used to do rifle PT (with the older M14s) and then do our daily two mile runs with them. But then, I was a young buck at 19 'n change. If I had to do it now, I'd probably have my STEMI into the second sit up, LOL...

LOL ... yes, I hear stories about such PT from my prior service husband (he joined in 1987) and my stepfather, who was in the Army during Vietnam and beyond. According to my stepfather, the PT test used to include the low crawl and the grenade toss. Hahaha

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