How Losing Weight Can Make You Fit to Serve

As the Military Gets Pickier With Recruiting, showing up to see your local recruiter out of shape, overweight and/​or with less-than-average ASVAB scores will crush your dreams of serving quickly.

During the past 15 years of writing about military fitness, this is not a new problem (overweight or out-of-shape recruits). However, in a period of downsizing, the military has the ability to select only those who are ready to go and fully qualified. Here is a very common email from a young man seeking to serve his country but knows he has a journey to get there:

I want to lose weight to join the Navy. However, I barely work out now, and I'm over 300 pounds. Any advice? -- Rob

Rob, there are many issues that are causing young men and women from being able to serve. Recent estimates show 75% of Americans ages 18--24 are ineligible to serve. Overweight and out of shape is about a third of the reasons why people cannot join, but also there is the lack of a high school diploma, low ASVAB scores, a criminal record, medical issues and even out-of-regulation tattoos.

So it is tough to join, and you really have to work hard now and get closer to the height/weight standards before seeing a recruiter. At your current weight, you may want to give yourself a year of training, getting in shape and losing weight in order to be fully ready to serve.

Barely reaching the minimum standards and not getting into an average/above-average condition could yield more issues for you down the road, such as injuries at training, failing to meet standards at training, and either getting kicked out or remaining in a limbo status while you try to recover from injury or build up to standards.

Specifically for you and others in the 280- to 300+-pound weight zone:

1. Focus on non-​​impact aerobics while this heavy. Your knees, shins, feet, back and joints will thank you for not running at this kind of weight for any amount of distance. Instead of running, it is recommended that you spend a good amount of time improving your cardio conditioning by swimming, biking, using the elliptical training, rowing or walking until you drop 40-​​50 pounds.
2. When you are not doing cardio, add resistance training to build your muscles, which will help you burn more fat over time. Don't just diet and do cardio. Adding weights from circuit training workouts or calisthenics like the ones on which you will be tested (push-ups and sit-ups) is a needed routine in your schedule.
3. Eat better. Limit breads, pastas and extra carbs (sugars). Eat more raw fruits and vegetables for carbs and grilled or baked lean meats for protein (chicken, turkey, beef, fish) but never fried. Drink a lot of water. Depending on your weight, you can add 50%-75% of a gallon a day to your drinking. Stop drinking soda, sweet teas and juices; they are loaded with sugar. Drop the sugar for best results.
4. Arrange your cardio days and build up over time to 45-60 minutes a day for 5-6 days a week. Do upper-body and core exercises Monday, Wednesday and Friday and lower-body exercises on Tuesday, Thursday and/or Saturday as you progress.

A sample routine would look like this:

But there are FREE 45-Day Beginner Plans/Lean Down Food Plan available as well for starters:

Once you get through the 45-day plan for beginners, this will be the next level of workouts you may want to try. Some ideas for beginner, intermediate and advanced workouts can be found at the Military Fitness Ebooks page.

Eventually, you will have to start preparing for the Navy PFT. After you have lost the first 40-50 pounds, running will be the next progression. Check out beginner running plans for logical progression plans: beginner running plans for timed runs/distance.

Stew Smith is a former Navy SEAL and fitness author certified as a Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) with the National Strength and Conditioning Association. Visit his Fitness eBook store if you're looking to start a workout program to create a healthy lifestyle. Send your fitness questions to stew@stewsmith.com.

Want to Learn More About Military Life?

Whether you're thinking of joining the military, looking for fitness and basic training tips, or keeping up with military life and benefits, Military.com has you covered. Subscribe to Military.com to have military news, updates and resources delivered directly to your inbox.