Navy Seal Pushup Program

Okay, I admit it. Some might say that I'm too ambitious for my own good. The way I see it: I just like to test my limits. Nothing wrong with that, right?

So, with the new year, I decided to take on something most women would not be interested in: the Navy Seal pushup workout. Okay, let's be realistic here. I'm not G.I. Jane. I wouldn't even describe myself as athletic. However, I think I can certainly tailor the program to make it more realistic for me while still challenging myself at the same time.

So, what does the Navy Seal pushup program entail? Here is an excerpt taken from military.com and written by Stew Smith.

On ODD days: Do 200 pushups in as few sets as possible in addition to your regularly scheduled workout of cardio exercises. You can still do upper body workouts on these days if you are already on a program. This is a supplemental 200 pushups using maximum repetition sets (4 x 50, 8 x 25 ... it's your choice how you get to 200).

On EVEN days: Do 200 pushups throughout the day. This can be little sets of ten done every half hour or fifty pushups done four times throughout the day.

RULE: If your maximum is under 50 pushups, do 200 a day. If your maximum is above 75, do 300 pushups a day.

Repeat the ODD/EVEN routine for a total of 10 days. Then take three days off and do NO upper body pushing exercises that work the chest, triceps, and shoulders. Then on day 14, give yourself the pushup test (one or two minutes depending on your PFT). I would not recommend this workout more than once every six months, since it rather challenging on the same muscle groups repeatedly.

I started the ten-day program yesterday, January 1st. I have decided to scale the pushup count down to 100 total instead of 200. Also, I am doing "girly pushups" as I am quite the novice still. There was once a time I could manage a few regular pushups, but not lately. My plan is as follows :

ODD days: 4 sets x 50 (I can't do 50 straight, but my goal is to do them as quickly as possible)

EVEN days: 20 sets x 10 throughout the day

Report: Yesterday, I did 100 pushups and 100 burpees. My arms and shoulders ache a bit, but I am still able to do sets of 10 push-ups easily.

Today, as of this writing, I have completed 9 sets of 10 push-ups and have one more set to go.

Unfortunately, I did not do any assessment of total pushups prior to starting the program. That was poor planning on my part, but oh, well...

My goal is to be able to do 50 military-style pushups by midyear.