Push-up Improvement Plan 01 – Get 30 Points in 30 Days!

Q.

Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert,
Hello! Thanks for all that you do! I have an Army Physical Fitness Test (APFT) in a month and wanted to improve my score. My weakest area is push-ups. What is your favorite workout for push-ups? Thanks!

Sincerely,
Specialist Bill S..

A.

Specialist Bill S,
Hello! Thanks for the compliment! If you follow Push-up Improvement Plan 01 and give it your absolute best for at least 30 days, you will probably increase your score at least 30 points in the APFT. Push-up Improvement Plan 01 has worked for hundreds of Soldiers worldwide! Now it's your turn!

Here is how it works:

1. Perform a good warm-up (5 minutes).
2. Perform a few stretching exercises (5 minutes).
3. Begin the push-up exercise in the close grip position. Continue as long as you as you can in this position.
4. Assume an authorized rest position.
5. Slide your hands outward to the normal grip position. Continue as long as you as you can in this position.
6. Assume an authorized rest position.
7. Slide your hands outward to the wide grip position. Continue as long as you as you can in this position.
8. "Go to muscle failure!" Warning: Do not let your back sag. Do not lift your hands or feet off of the ground. Do not perform this program on your knees.
9. Rest when you reach two-minutes. Track your progress by taking your total number of push-ups and writing it down on a piece of paper, or on a DA Form 705. If you would like to see how many points you achieved, try our fitness calculator.



10. While resting for 2-3 minutes, watch Push-up Improvement Plan 01 on video (You may also want to perform crunches during your rest period). Once you have rested for a few minutes, perform the following push-up progression according to your fitness level:
    • Basic – 1 set of 1 minute
    • Intermediate – 1 set of 2 minutes
    • Advanced – 2 sets of 2 minutes each
    • Extreme – 2 sets of 3 minutes each
    Lastly, allow your body to recover for 1-2 days before performing this program again. In fact, if you are trying to train at all three events of the APFT, use our 30-day workout calendar in order to achieve best results!

Following are the steps to perform standard push-ups for the Army Physical Fitness Test (APFT):

Push-up standards

• Start:Balance your body on your hands and feet with your back forming a straight line. Look forward and keep your feet together or up to 12 inches apart. Note: Different arm positions engage different arm, chest and shoulder muscles. The closer your hands are together, the more triceps muscles you engage.


• Actions: While keeping your abdominal muscles tight, drop your body straight down by bending both elbows until the upper part of your arms become parallel to the ground. Return to the start position. Note: Do not look down toward the ground during this exercise. Maintain a forward focal point at all times.

Try it for a month and email me your progress at sgtken@gxonline.com. Like many other Soldiers, you may see a huge increase in your energy levels. Stay the course!

HOOAH!
SSG Ken Weichert a.k.a. "SGT KEN"

Ken Weichert (a.k.a. “SGT Ken”) is a Six-time Soldier of the Year, Master Fitness Trainer and veteran of Operations Iraqi Freedom and Desert Storm. Ken and his wife Stephanie, a Certified Personal Trainer, founded START Fitness, a group exercise and hiking business that delivers military-style workouts to Soldiers and civilians since 1998. Ken and Stephanie have led thousands of Soldiers to better health through Operation Fit to Fight, a tactical fitness instructor training program designed to prepare Soldiers for Basic Combat Training, deployments, leadership schools and post-deployment reintegration. Operation Fit to Fight creates tactical athletes who lead by example and are ready to perform necessary duties in response to natural disasters or in defense of our country! Ken and Stephanie currently produce health and fitness programs for GX magazine, and for the National Guard website.

Comments

[#1 Posted by: John]

awesome, but what if you can't even do one pushup?
(yes I really am that pathetic)
:(

[#2 Posted by: Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert]

Don't worry, if you cannot perform a single push-up yet. Perform this program from your knees, or from your hips. Eventually, your arms and chest muscles will get strong enough to support your whole body. Stay the course! HOOAH!

[#3 Posted by: spitfiremkii]

How do you deal with mental blocks? I can max bench 375lbs, however getting past 40 pushups is a nightmare of pain for me!

[#4 Posted by: Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert]

Your bench press is very impressive! Keep in mind, only push-up training helps with push-up performance. Bench press training is great for the chest and arms muscles, but will not help you with push-up performance whatsoever. It really depends on your goals. Meaning, are you in the military? If that is the case, perform less bench press training and more push-up training. If you are not in the military, determine what you want to perform better with, bench press or push-ups. My advice is to take one of your chest training days and to use that day to add more push-up training and less bench press training in order to diversify your workouts. Stay the course! HOOAH!

[#5 Posted by: Ron Lethcoe]

Hey Ken,
And there you are!! Way to go Bro..ttyl, Ron

[#6 Posted by: Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert]

Ron! Hope you are doing well! HOOAH!

[#7 Posted by: ryan]

What is the best way to get past the running part of the APFT?

[#8 Posted by: Richard]

Hey Ken, I can get a perfect score on the push up test but for some reason I can't make it across monkey bars. I don't know what my problem is. Can you give me some advice for that? -Richard

[#9 Posted by: MSgt Arnold]

Hey Ken, I can get through everything pretty well on the fit test with the execption of the run. I would like to improve my score to get the max, but as I get older (50 soon) I get slower. How can I get faster as I get older?

[#10 Posted by: SSG Ken Weichert]

Ryan and MSG Arnold,
Hello. Hope that you are well! My favorite running training strategy is to perform interval training (http://1800goguard.com/fitness/fit.php?v=459&p=1&a=true). Bottom line, perform interval training at least twice a week for 4 weeks and you will see a tremendous improvement in your running speeds. Let me know how it works for you! HOOAH!

Richard,
Hello. Thanks for reaching out! Regarding 'Monkey Bars', what I would do is to perform some pull-ups, hang on the bar on your last pull-up for 60 seconds, 3 sets each with at least 3 minutes rest in between sets, on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and for 4 weeks. Bottom line, you need to strengthen your back and arms muscles for the pulling and gripping strength in order to be ready to perform monkey bar training. Let me know how this works for you. HOOAH!

[#11 Posted by: Airborne Cheesehead]

SSG WEICHERT:
Just wanted to say thank you from an 82nd Airborne vet. Had the chance to get a taste of your hardcore motivation at the Urbanathlon last year. It was a great experience!

A quick note to anyone who may be struggling on their PT scores, always remember that it is mind over matter: if you don't mind, it don't matter. I used to be in terrible shape in high school, but I found the motivation to succeed. I MAKE EVERYTHING A COMPETITION. Try exercising with a partner, and LEARN TO HATE LOSING. I eventually earned a PT score of 350 on my final APFT, and represented my battalion in a regimental PT competition.

All men are created equal, but it it what is in your head that determines your successes and failures.
AIRBORNE ALL THE WAY!

[#12 Posted by: Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert]

After four years of writing for National magazines and military and civilian websites and receiving thousands of email and letter responses, this is, by far, the best advice ever! Thanks for reaching out! Stay the course! HOOAH!

[#13 Posted by: Jewels]

Hi Ken, Thank you so much for all your excellent advice! The link you provided on #10 is for push-ups, but the question was about running. Can you provide a link for running interval training? I am also going to take your advice for the push-ups. Should I alternate running one day and push-ups the next? Where should I fit sit-ups in? and do you have a video for sit-ups also? I am a complete newbie. Thanks!

[#14 Posted by: Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert]

Regarding the link provided above for running interval training, go to the link (that will take you to the main Guard fitness page), click on AEROBIC, click on RUNNING INTERVAL TRAINING (in either PDF, MP3, or VIDEO). Hope this helps! HOOAH!

[#15 Posted by: Alonso]

Hi im going to be jining in a few months and i want to know what would be a good work out routine to be ready for the time i get enrrolled i ahve at least 4 months to prepare thanks

[#16 Posted by: Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert]

Alonso,

Hello. Thanks for reaching out! If you are joining soon, download the free workout embedded in the program above titles "30-day workout calendar". It worked for thousands of other new Soldiers all over the country! HOOAH!

[#17 Posted by: Skip]

I can only do 10 sets of these at a time before I have to rest for a few seconds is this a good start for me? I have never been that good at pushups to begin with, but I hope with this I can get to my goal of 40-50 in two minutes.

[#18 Posted by: Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert]

That is a great start! Keep up the training. Remember, your recovery periods. Share your progress with me in a few weeks. HOOAH!

[#19 Posted by: James]

Hi Sergeant Weichert,

I am rejoining the Australian Army after a 20 year break (I will be 45 in January) and I find I am having some issues with Pull-ups.

I also need to make sure in the process I do not ignore the Push-up (25) and Sit-up (50) requirement in my training.

The second problem is the "Beep test" which I have never been tested on before, I know the equivalent distance/time, should I run to that or is recreating the test more important?

Any tips?

[#20 Posted by: James]

Hi Sergeant Weichert,

I am rejoining the Australian Army after a 20 year break (I will be 45 in January) and I find I am having some issues with Pull-ups.

I also need to make sure in the process I do not ignore the Push-up (25) and Sit-up (50) requirement in my training.

The second problem is the "Beep test" which I have never been tested on before, I know the equivalent distance/time, should I run to that or is recreating the test more important?

Any tips?

[#21 Posted by: Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert]

James,

Hello! I think that it is great that you are going back into the service! Regarding your fitness test training, I like to add pull-up training to my push-up training day. The moment that I reach 'muscle failure' on pull-ups, I go to a fixed horizontal bar that is approximately four feet off of the ground and perform more pull-ups with my feet on the ground and my body at an angle and underneath the bar. This helps me to exploit the muscle strength needed for pull-ups. Regarding the 'Beep Test', I would perform interval training (http://www.1-800-go-guard.com/fitness/fit.php), click on AEROBIC, click on RUNNING INTERVAL TRAINING in either PDF, AUDIO or VIDEO. This will help you with the style of training necessary to perform well with 'shuttle runs' ('Beep tests'). Perform this training for a few weeks, and let me know how it works for you. Stay the course! HOOAH!

Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert

[#22 Posted by: robert]

I'm reenlisting into the army after a 8 year gap for college and family matters. When I was in I had a problem with shin splints stress fractours in my legs during the pt run. Can you give me some advice on this matter.

[#23 Posted by: Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert]

What kind of body composition do you maintain and what kind of running shoes do you wear?

[#24 Posted by: Rich]

I am now 64. I used to come close to maxing the old PT test. Three years before I retired my back went out while training a bomb dog. I retired in 1987. I have since had three back surgeries and walk with a cane. I feel that if I could streaghthen my legs that I would not need the cane. I have degenerative discs in my back. Any suggestions? Thanks.

[#25 Posted by: Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert]

I, too, understand back injuries. I was partially paralyzed in High School after an illegal face-mask and tackle on the football field. I crushed my L4 and learned to walk, jog and run, again. I dealt with a great deal of muscular atrophy and understand the need to train the abdominals and lower back muscles. I have a great core training routine for you on AUDIO, or you can download a PDF or watch the VIDEO on any of the other core training routines (http://1800goguard.com/fitness/fit.php?v=459&p=1&a=true). Click on CORE, once the page loads from the link provided above. Always seek the advice of your physician, first. Keep me informed of your progress! HOOAH!

[#26 Posted by: John]

Great article I started doing this routine as of yesterday. Right now I can only do a max of 15 pushups in all three of these configurations, but I am still trying hard. How many should I be able to knock off in a row after the 30 days do you think if I really stick with this every day? How many should I be doing every day? Yesterday I started this and did 100 total. I do plan on entering the service early next year and pushups are my main weakness right now.

[#27 Posted by: Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert]

Thanks for the compliment, John! I perform this push-up routine 3 times in a row, with 3-5 minutes rest in between sets, on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. In 30 days I see a 30 repetition improvement, or better! Remember your rest periods on Tuesday and Thursday. Those should be days where you perform more cardio training and NO push-up training whatsoever. Your abdominal work should be every day. If your chest muscles are still very sore on Friday of each week, perform one set of this routine only. Hope this helps! Stay the course and let me know how it works for you. HOOAH!

[#28 Posted by: Mailman]

Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert,

Great program so far! My old pushup max was 25 before I started, but now I can't do too much because all of the goal post pushups really wear me out. Before, I'd crank out 20 normal pushups easy, without breaking a sweat. Now, when I try to do the pushup routine, I barely make it a minute, and I'm actually sweating! Great stuff! I can't wait to see how much I've improved in three weeks or so.

I'd really love to see a situp routine, but right now, I can't even get one proper situp. I can do crunches fine, but no luck with situps. Any advice? Just continue with crunches/flutter kicks, etc?

Thanks again for the great workout material,
Mailman

[#29 Posted by: Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert]

Mailman,
Hello. Thanks for reaching out! I am glad to hear that Push-up Improvement Plan 01 is working for you and that you are reaching muscle failure early in your efforts! Regarding Sit-ups, go to the National Guard website fitness section http://1800goguard.com/fitness/fit.php?v=459&p=1&a=true and click on CORE, and follow the program called 8-MINUTE ABS. Follow this for two weeks, four times a week. Next, add the FULL SIT-UP program to the entire routine for another two weeks, at least four times a week. Let me know how it works for you! HOOAH!

[#30 Posted by: Richard Velez]

I was wondering how many push up
are you require to do. And also sit ups.

[#31 Posted by: Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert]

How many push-ups and sit-ups are required in the Army Physical Fitness Test (APFT)? Use the DA Form 705 that is in the article, find the scoring section for you by using your age and gender, and find where it reads 60 points. Anything above 60 points in each event is passing. HOOAH!

[#32 Posted by: Mailman]

Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert,
Thank you for the advice! The 8 Minute Ab routine is pretty brutal, but the more I do it, the easier it seems to get. I'm having to stop more than I would like, but I'm sure I'll get where I need to be pretty soon!

The pushup program is working great too. The other day, I stepped in front of the mirror in the bathroom and saw something on my arm. Seems my biceps jumped up in size almost overnight! Plus, I'm noticing a lot more definition in my arms and chest already, and it's only been about two weeks! (I weigh around 285, so I'm pushing up a lot of weight!) So far, the number of pushups I'm able to do with the program hasn't increased much. I usually end up burning most of my energy on the close grip, doing around 16-20 of them, then about 6-8 normal pushups and 2-4 close grips. I do a lot less on the second and third sets (when I do a third set, which usually ends up being 4-5 close grip pushups, 1 normal pushup, then falling flat on my face).

However, the other day I got curious and after doing all of my other exercises, I decided to see how many normal pushups I could do before failure, which ended up being 25, the same max amount I had been doing before, but AFTER I had already done the program for the day!

Anyway, enough yacking from me. Thanks again for the help! I'll be sure to give you another update in a few weeks!
Mailman

[#33 Posted by: Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert]

Mailman,

Hello. Your body is reacting very fast! This is great! The next step is to send me your current eating habits, what you eat, when you eat, and how much you eat, in a log covering four days. This way, I can make a proper assessment. You can send it directly to sgtken@gxonline.com. Regarding cardio training, are you running or walking? How much cardio training are you doing?

HOOAH!

SGT Ken

[#34 Posted by: James]

Hi Sergeant Weichert,

Well I am following your advice and am very impressed, the most notable improvement (I haven't tested my pushups yet), but I notice that I can now do 4 pullups when only a week ago I could do 1!

I looking forward to my next "self assessment" (which I use the US Army APFT Test standards) to see how my other scores improve!

[#35 Posted by: Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert]

James,

Hello. Thanks for the compliment! Please keep me informed of your progress. Stay the course! HOOAH!

Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert

[#36 Posted by: ScubaSteve1317]

hey SSG Ken,
I'm 17 and i just wanted to see how i would do on the PT test so my dad got a copy of the test and i preformed it by military standards and this is what i got 82 push-ups, 96 sit-ups, and 11:23 on the 2 mile. i know these are already good scores but i was wondering how i could do even better before i actually have to take my PT test?

[#37 Posted by: Mailman]

Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert,
Cardio... Well, I try, at least. I walk briskly for an hour or so about four times a week, and one of those times about an hour and a half. Sometimes more, sometimes less. It mostly depends on when I can get out to the park.

Occasionally, I run. I purchased a decent pair of running shoes for my big wide flat feet from a local specialty running store and I only wear them when I'm going to be running. But, every time I run, it doesn't take very long for my shins and calves to start hurting. I always stretch before I run, but I might not be stretching enough. I always take a few days off of running after doing it, because I have to. It may be because of weighing 280+ lbs, or it could be because I haven't had to run in about six years (which I was not even that good at back then)... Or both. I've read that the pain is probably just shin splints, and I just need to get used to it and run more, and take it easy when I do run.

I've tried different methods of building up to running, one of which was the "Couch to 5k" plan that ended up being a little too ambitious for me. Running for a minute then walking for a minute made my shins hurt pretty quick. A few days ago, I tried running for ten to fifteen seconds, then walking for ten to fifteen seconds, but ended up with the same pain after a while.

So, mostly I stick with walking, and only run about once, sometimes twice, a week. I am wondering, Staff Sergeant, what do you recommend : run on flat, hard pavement, or run on soft, but uneven dirt? Does it really matter that much?

I've considered other cardio alternatives, but buying a bike is something I cannot afford right now. I may try joining a gym and using an exercise bike or elliptical machine, but I'd rather not have to if I can actually run comfortably outside, or if walking is just as good. That, and I like being outside, especially now that it's cold.

If you have any ideas or solutions to my cardio conundrum, Staff Sergeant, I could definitely use them. Thanks again for the advice, and for wanting to provide me with more of it! I'm recording what I eat now, which I'll send you in two or three days.

Mailman

[#38 Posted by: Annette Kissling]

Thanks for the post SGT Ken. Looks like a lot of thought went into this. Like many females, I struggle with the push up. This blog rocks! So much information here.

[#39 Posted by: Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert]

Scuba Steve,

Hello. Thanks for reaching out! Stick to my plan called Operation Pushing for Points (pdf in the blog above). I have seen two people improve over 60 points in 30 days. Try it, and let me know how it works for you. HOOAH!

SSG Ken Weichert

[#40 Posted by: Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert]

Mailman,

Hello. Thanks for reaching out! Feel free to email me directly for more specific advice to help you reach your health and fitness goals. HOOAH!

SSG Ken Weichert

[#41 Posted by: Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert]

Attention Readers,

Hello. Thanks for reaching out! Stephanie and I now have over 50 people that are sending us emails directly with personal updates on how this program is helping them grow stronger and achieve more points in the APFT! Keep the comments coming! We will continue to do our absolute best to provide you cutting-edge workouts and nutrition advice to meet your needs. Stay the course! HOOAH!

SSG Ken and Stephanie Weichert

[#42 Posted by: LT Mmike]

SGT Ken,

Started working towards my APFT and have had one issue after another. Currently, the one that is causing me the most problem are my shins. The muscle on my right shin seems to stop working, kind like the muscle gets so tired and I can't lift the front of my foot as I'm running, yeah, wierd, so my foot feels like a brick on the end of my leg and slowed me down enough that I missed my APFT run. Of course then I start to favor it and it feels like my left shin is starting to get shin splints. What do you think? A friend said something about a "compartment" squeeze where it's too tight and cutting off the blood to the muscle?

[#43 Posted by: Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert]

Mike,

Hello. Thanks for reaching out! What kind of shoes do you wear? What is your height, weight and age?

I can help!

Ken

[#44 Posted by: justine morris]

I can do 45 push ups in 1 minute
but only 22 sit ups in 1 minute.
How can I get to be able to do 35 sit ups in 1 minute?

[#45 Posted by: Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert]

Justine,

Hello. Thanks for reaching out! We also have a sit-up improvement plan in another blog called "Operation Pushing for Points". Try that and let me know how it works for you!

HOOAH!

SSG Ken Weichert

[#46 Posted by: Jon]

Im currently deployed to Iraq and wanna start to get ready for Special Forces training when i get back to the states. What are some more effective ways to get in shape for that other than daily PT?

[#47 Posted by: SSG Ken Weichert]

Jon,

Hello. The event that challenges SF applicants the most is the ruck-run. Although the ruck-run is not designated as a 'run' at all, jogging much of the event is necessary in order to achieve the time and distance goal.

So, I would pack 65 pounds into your favorite rucksack and let your feet do the walking, and sometimes the jogging.

Hope this helps!

HOOAH!

Staff Sergeant Ken Weichert

[#48 Posted by: Aaron Toler]

Hey SSG Weichert. I am 18 years old and I'm not going to lie I am a little bit over weight. I am 6'0 and 210. I'm thinking about joining the army and I really don't know where to start out with a work out plan to get ready for basic training. How long do you think I should workout for before I go to the army. Thanks for all you do!

[#49 Posted by: Aaron Toler]

I forgot also I have a problem with doing push-ups in the right position. Everyone says I keep my butt up too far and when I try to keep my back straight I go right back to it after a few push-ups. How can I also fix that. Thanks for your help.

[#50 Posted by: Jarret Lyles]

I'm trying to get into the Army having problems losing the weight my size measurement was good but my gut. I need as much advise as possible on how to lose my gut.