[.ca] The Official United States Navy Seal Workout (ISBN 1578261228)

Pick up your swim fins and run with me!:
I got this book as a companion piece to Flach's book on Marine Corps fitness. The author Andrew Flach is a fitness expert, joined by a well-known freelance photographer, Peter Field Peck. This book is part of the Five Star Fitness Series that looks at the kinds of workouts of all the branches of the military. My father was in the military, as are many close friends, and I have always admired their fitness achievements - thus it makes sense I might opt for a military-inspired fitness programme. This book is not simply a workout book. It is an introduction to the Navy SEALs. There is more to SEAL fitness than just doing push-ups and beach/swimming workouts. When you are in BUD/S training, the mind is shaped as much as the body. To help with this history and mindset, the authors consulted (according to the credits) officers from the Pentagon and the Navy Special Warfare Centre in California. In addition to the workouts listed here, there are pictures and essay snapshots of what potential SEALs actually endure in training. This book also gives some basic history of the SEALs, and what it takes to be one. The very first page asks the reader - can you swim 500 years in 12.5 minutes, do 42 push-ups, 50 sit-ups, eight pull-ups, and then run 1.5 miles in 11.5 minutes? If so, you've just passed the bare minimum entrance requirements for the SEALs. This is tough stuff! The heart of the book discusses the various exercises that are used in the SEAL training. Many of these are common to other workout programmes, but some are unique. This includes stretches, upper-body, pull-ups and dips (as a separate item), running and swimming, lower body, and abdominal training. Pull-ups are listed as a separate section for good reason - while the push-up is considered the 'classic' military exercise, in fact the pull-up is more strenuous, and more determinative of one's ability to really pull one's own weight. This includes many variations of the pull-up, including the 'cliffhangers', a special side-oriented pull-up strongly identified with SEAL training. There is a section on the 'O' course, the obstacle course. It is unlikely that any particular reader will have access to an obstacle course like those at SEAL training, but looking at this, one gets the sense of the toughness of the training, and there are various parts of the course that can be somewhat duplicated in 'the real world'. The book has a section on nutrition (as every fitness book seems incomplete without at least a gloss of this topic), and is rather more full than other nutrition sections I've seen in earlier books in this series. Do be careful not to follow this guide for caloric intake if not doing the workouts - adding thousands of calories to the intake without spending them on exercise will not help fitness at all There are listing for prep workout programmes for those getting ready for SEAL traning, and then a five level listing of full-body workouts under the 'official' SEAL section. These are in fact developed by the authors and their consultants - SEAL training, like much of military training, is constantly evolving, and some of it is classified, and some requires equipment civilians and/or individuals are not likely to have. So, allowances must be made for this. The photographs are utilitarian and useful - black and white, not glossy and colourful; the point here is the exercise, not the subject exercising. This is a tough programme, but one that will yield results, given dedication and discipline.

Excellent for beginners and intermediate fitness buffs:
This book is basically the BUD/S warning order with lots of cool pictures and little motivating tidbits of info thrown in. It provides a "canned," structured, remedial fitness program for beginners and intermediate fitness buffs. The good thing about this workout is that its progressive, structured...and realistic. It involves no use of weights, just calisthenics, stretching, running and swimming. The simplicity of the workouts is the great thing about it. I could see most men being able to follow this workout and get into solid physical condition. Its also an excellent book for a young man aspiring to go into the military. You can complete the workouts in this book, then move onto more advanced type workouts. If you are not an aspiring SEAL, you could eliminate or cut back some on the swim portions of the workouts. And still get a fine workout.

Excelent for young to middle age to stay in good shape:
I purchased this book so I could stay in shape and compete with the younger kids in the youth sports I Coach. This book is excellent and easy to read and follow. Good Pictures and great routines for beginner to advanced. This book got me in the mood to excersize and keeps me there.

A solid primer on Navy Seal Conditioning:
This book is an excellent primer on Navy SEAL conditioning. Seems to be pimarily for people interested in setting the stage for the kind of intense training that being a SEAL entails without demanding that they subordinate their entire lives to a Navy SEAL's fitness priorities. Basically, I'm this type of person. I have no chance of matching the physical prowess of a Navy SEAL, and thank heavens this book doesn't require me to. What it does is open the door to using the kinds of exercises that will keep me in great shape and even enable me to raise my workout intensity a notch or two without severely altering my lifestyle. The workouts are all straightforward and well-presented, and I felt comfortable mixing them into my regimen. Pretty cool. I recommend it.

"The only easy day was yesterday!":
This book is amazing, it helped me get into the best shape of my life! This book is not for the faint hearted though, but for those who are serious about fitness! The program centers around cardio conditioning with lots of swimming and running! I have completed several Military Fitness programs and this book is one of the best! If you have the drive, the Navy SEAL Workout can change your life! When I was 17-18 yrs old, I could run a 7 min mile and I thought I was in the best shape of my life. I was an All-Provincial (Ontario, Canada) track & field athlete in the 4x100m relay and the 100m sprint. My body fat was about 11% or 12% and I felt good! That was then, I am now 30 yrs old and can clip off a mile in under 6 mins, my body fat is around 10% and I feel better than I ever did, thanks mostly to this book! You get a feel for what the SEALs go through in their training and a great appreciation for physical fitness once you're done the program! Aside from the fitness aspect, this book is very well written and easy to understand and use. I can appreciate fitness oriented books, I am a writer myself (Backyard Sports for Kids) and this book recieves my full endorsement. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is serious about getting into the best shape of their life! The U.S. Navy SEALs are among the world's best and they certainly live up to their motto, "The only easy day was yesterday!"