From warmups to workouts MAXIM Gains Guru ALEXA TOWERSEY teams up with former Commando NICK CALDWELL to share some tough tips on how to achieve military grade strength and Special Forces fitness…
I’m a military brat. My Dad was a major in the British Army, my mum a medic specialising in gunshot wounds. That’s how they met – rumour has it I was conceived on a boat back from a posting in Cyprus. I was born in Scotland, christened in Edinburgh Castle and subsequently attended military school in England, Ireland and Germany until I was 10 before we moved to New Zealand. One of my first ever memories is of me sitting on my Dad’s foot begging him not to leave the house to go to war.
I applied for the NZ Army when I was 17 and attended a ROSB – Regular Officer Selection Board – the same year. I loved the physicality of the testing. I thrived off the pressure and I enjoyed being one of the only four people to pass the fitness test. BUT, while my parents wanted me to be an officer, I wanted to be in the frontline – fighting the good fight – and being told that it wasn’t an option for women at the time, shattered my dream. I pulled a sickie and went home.
It wasn’t until I moved to Australia nine years ago that I revisited my military history. I signed up for The Cadre Camp – a 36-hour abridged version of SAS Selection held at The Mill Gym in Perth, run by serving SAS officers. I took a camera crew from Channel Nine with me and they aired all my ugly crying faces on national TV. It was one of the hardest yet best and most rewarding things I have ever done. But 36 hours was more than enough. I can’t even imagine having to last six weeks!
So, for this, my regular MAXIM column, I decided to ask Nick Caldwell – former Commando and co-founder of The Mill Gym – to give me a breakdown of exactly what it takes to be part of the Special Forces today. Read on to find out how you can achieve military grade strength and fitness.
FROM ZERO TO HERO: What You Need To Know
As the saying goes, keep your squats low and your standards high. The standards for the Special Forces Entry Test (prior to Selection) include:
- A minimum of 12-months service in the ADF (Australian Defence Force)
- Passing the psychological and aptitude testing
- 40 x cadence push-ups
- 12 x cadence pull-ups
- 3.2km run with 8kg webbing gear + 4kg weapon in under 16 minutes
- 1.5 hour pack-march for maximum distance with a 28kg pack and 4kg weapon
- Swim test which includes two minutes of treading water then a 400m swim in uniform
GROUND ZERO: Becoming Battle Ready
The majority of training “Special Forces Style” places a focus below the waist – the glutes, hamstrings, calves. These are the muscles that translate to speed and power – the ones that will get you from A to Z the quickest without getting shot, the ones that will help you pull a fallen comrade to safety. For once in my life, I can assure you that size does NOT matter. And the Special Forces don’t care what you look like – they don’t want a close-up, and chances are if you decide to forego your shirt mid workout, you’ll be laughed out the door. F–k the six pack, this is all about developing an impressive strength to weight or power to weight ratio when it comes to all of your major lifts.
The Deadlift (180% BW)
Squat (150% BW)
Overhead press (70% BW)
Lunges (75% BW)
Bent-over rows (80% BW)
Farmers-carry (50% BW/side for 50m)
THE WORKOUTS
Top three sample Workout Days from The Mill Gym’s General Special Operation Forces Preparedness (SOFPREP) program.
| DAY 1 | DAY 2 | DAY 3 |
| Session 1: Run @ 12kg 20 minutes Sprints (no weight) 200 x 4 (1:1) 400 x 3 (2:1) 1:1 means the rest is the same as the work. 2:1 means the rest is double the amount of the work. | Session 1 30 minutes of 30sec on/30secs off on your choice of either: Airbike Rower Shuttle Runs (10m) | Session 1 Pack March @ 35kg for 1.5 hours |
| Session 2: 12 x Back Squat @ 55% 12 x Bench Press @ 55% 12 x Front Squat @ 55% 12 x Bent Over Row @ 55% 5 rounds. EMOM* x 10 minutes: 15 x Burpees *EMOM Every Minute on the Minute. | Session 2 Run 1.2km Straight Into: 5 Rounds – GHD situps x 10 – Pullups x 20 – Pushups x 30 – Squats x 40 Straight Into: 1.2km Run | Session 2 Recovery |
All programs available from www.themillgym.com
TOP TIP: Warmup
Regardless of whether you’re a desk jockey, weekend warrior or seasoned veteran, a solid warmup can be a game changer when it comes to making a workout more efficient and effective. It elevates the heart rate, primes the Central Nervous System (CNS), prepares the muscles for movement and in doing all of the above, helps protect against potential injury.
Complete 2 Rounds of 10 Reps:
Shoulder Dislocates
Inchworms
Spiderman
Lunge & Twist
Wall Squats
Scorpions
Followed by 2 rounds of:
20M HIGH-KNEE RUN
20M STRAIGHT-LEG MARCH
20M HIGH-HEEL RUN
THE HERO WOD: “Burn The Boat”
Over the past 10 years we’ve come up with a test that gives an aspiring candidate an understanding of the baseline level of General Physical Preparedness (GPP) you would need to commence a specific military Selection training program. The full test is too long to detail here but try this version instead.
- 2km row (for time)
- Rest for 2 minutes
- 2 minutes of maximum push-ups
- Rest for 2 minutes
- 2 minutes of maximum pull-ups
- Rest for 2 minutes
- 2 minutes of maximum Kettlebell snatches @ 24/16kg
- Rest for 2 minutes
- Tabata squats (Tabata = 8 x 20 secs work + 10 seconds of rest)
- Rest for 2 minutes
- 2 minutes of maximum Burpees
- Rest for 2 minutes
- 1.6km run (for time)
Burning The Boat
The phrase “burn the boats” originates from a story about the Spanish Conquistador Hernan Cortez when he began his conquest of the Aztec empire in 1519. The story goes that by giving the order to burn the ships on which he and his men had just arrived, he had eliminated all options other than to keep moving forward and succeed in their conquest. In the SAS, this term is about mindset, attitude and work ethic – going “all in”, and giving yourself no other option but to get it done. There are a lot of things that you won’t have control over when it comes to external events, but you always have absolute control over how much preparation you do and how much effort you put in.
By ALEXA TOWERSEY
For the full article grab the November 2021 issue of MAXIM Australia from newsagents and convenience locations. Subscribe here.
