The Navy’s elite SEAL commandos are considered among the fittest men on the planet. The demands of the SEALs’ special operations missions demands the running ability of a sprinter and a distance runner, along with the strength of a power athlete and the ability to swim for miles in open ocean water. Once a SEAL candidate has completed his training at BUD/S (Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL), he is allowed to follow whatever workouts suit his personal taste. While in training, however, there are numerous exercises used to get SEALs into fighting shape.
Push-ups
The push-up is the basic conditioning and disciplinary exercise of the SEALs in BUD/S, just as it is throughout the U.S. military. Push-ups strengthen the muscles of the chest, shoulders and arms, as well as develop core strength in the abdominal and lower back regions through static contraction and stabilization during the exercise. SEAL candidates will perform hundreds of push-ups on any given day during their training. Over the course of BUD/S, an aspiring SEAL will complete tens of thousand of push-ups. The muscles developed by the push-up are critical to SEAL missions, both for combat use and patrolling with heavy rucksacks full of mission-essential equipment.
Flutter Kicks
Like the push-up, the flutter kick is used throughout the military for discipline and conditioning. In SEAL training, candidates may be required to switch back and forth between the two exercises with no pause, allowing them to develop cardio conditioning as well as the abdominal and hip flexor strength that the flutter kick creates. Like push-ups, SEAL candidates can expect to complete tens of thousands of flutter kicks during the training process. Even more so than the push-up, the flutter kick develops the muscles most critical to the SEALs underwater demolition and SCUBA missions, since the flutter kick is basically a replication of the kick stroke used underwater for propulsion.
Boot Strapper Squats
The boot strapper squat is also referred to as a “deep knee bend.” It is a variation of the true squat. To complete the boot strapper, the SEAL candidate squats down until he can touch the top of his combat boot with his finger tips, and then stands back upright, to complete one repetition. This strengthens the muscles of the legs, which are important to SEALs both due to their diving missions, and because they may be required to move long distances overland with heavy loads in order to complete a mission. BUD/S students may not complete as many boot strappers in training as push-ups and flutter kicks, but they will still complete thousands of repetitions of this exercise.
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