{"id":963119,"date":"2026-11-08T15:18:13","date_gmt":"2026-11-08T15:18:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/963119\/"},"modified":"2026-11-08T15:18:13","modified_gmt":"2026-11-08T15:18:13","slug":"the-us-air-forces-21-day-fitness-plan-builds-strength-and-endurance-3-workouts-to-try-now","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/963119\/","title":{"rendered":"The US Air Force’s 21-Day Fitness Plan Builds Strength and Endurance \u2013 3 Workouts to Try Now"},"content":{"rendered":"

If there’s anyone to take inspiration from for our training programmes, particularly if we want to increase our fitness<\/a>, endurance and strength while developing mental toughness and grit, it’s the US Air Force. And looking at its training plans could certainly benefit our workout<\/a> logbooks.<\/p>\n

This 21-day training programme, taken from the US Air Force<\/a>, includes a mix of bodyweight exercises, sprints, explosive movements, breath-holding drills and underwater swimming. However, we don’t recommend trying the latter two at home, given the serious risks involved.<\/p>\n

Instead, we’ve cherry-picked three workouts from the programme that you can adapt to your own training without deliberately putting yourself at risk of losing consciousness.<\/p>\n

3 US Air Force Workouts to Try<\/p>\n

The programme was originally designed to help prospective US Air Force Special Warfare candidates prepare for the Physical Ability and Stamina Test (PAST). Across three weeks, the workouts progressively increase in difficulty, combining running, swimming and high-volume bodyweight exercises to develop the fitness required for military selection.<\/p>\n

We’ve selected three workouts from the programme that will put your strength, endurance and cardiovascular fitness to the test. Fair warning: even the first workout is no walk in the park.<\/p>\n

Workout 1 \u2013 Running and Bodyweight Strength<\/p>\n

If this workout looks familiar, that’s because it follows a similar format to the infamous Murph workout<\/a>, albeit with fewer reps, thankfully.<\/p>\n

Sandwiched between two mile-long runs, you’ll tackle a hefty helping of pull-ups, push-ups and squats to test your muscular endurance. Break the reps into manageable sets if you need to.<\/p>\n

Workout 2 \u2013 Full-Body Conditioning<\/p>\n

If you thought the first workout was tough, this one turns up the intensity.<\/p>\n

Combining running with explosive movements, including burpees and jump squats, it’s designed to challenge your engine, muscular endurance and power. With 240 bodyweight reps sandwiched between two mile-long runs, don’t expect an easy ride. Scale the reps and swap out explosive exercises if needed.<\/p>\n

1-mile run40 flutter kicks (four-count)40 burpees<\/a>40 jump squats40 elevated push-ups40 jumping pull-ups1-mile runWorkout 3 \u2013 Running Intervals<\/p>\n

This session combines shorter, faster intervals with longer efforts to challenge your speed and endurance. With 5.8km of hard running before you’ve even counted the recoveries, it’s a serious test of your cardio and running performance.<\/p>\n

Adjust the number of intervals to suit your running experience, and pace the longer efforts.<\/p>\n

Complete each interval with 200m of jogging or walking between sprints.<\/p>\n

7 \u00d7 200m sprints5 \u00d7 400m sprints3 \u00d7 800m sprints\"press<\/p>\n

JohnnyGreig<\/p>\n

The US Air Force 21-Day Training Programme<\/p>\n

If you’re curious about how the US Air Force structures its training, the full 21-day programme is outlined below. The workouts become progressively more demanding across the three weeks, with increases in running distance, repetitions and training duration.<\/p>\n

It’s important to note that this programme is designed for highly trained individuals and may not be suitable for beginners. The original programme also includes breath-holding and underwater exercises, which carry a risk of unconsciousness and drowning. Do not attempt breath-holding drills or underwater exercises on your own.<\/p>\n

If you’re adapting the workouts for general fitness, adjust the intensity and volume to your current ability and prioritise safe alternatives.<\/p>\n

Week 1Day 1 \u2013 Running and Bodyweight Strength1-mile run25 pull-ups50 push-ups75 air squats1-mile runDay 2 \u2013 Swimming and Conditioning<\/p>\n

Breath-holding drills: 10 \u00d7 30 seconds seated, with 2 minutes’ rest between repetitions<\/p>\n

500m swim21-15-9 reps of: burpees, sit-ups and lungesDay 3 \u2013 Running Intervals<\/p>\n

Complete each interval with 200m of jogging or walking between sprints.<\/p>\n

6 \u00d7 200m sprints4 \u00d7 400m sprints2 \u00d7 800m sprintsDay 4 \u2013 Swimming and AMRAP<\/p>\n

Breath-holding drills: 10 \u00d7 30 seconds seated, with 2 minutes’ rest between repetitions<\/p>\n

500m swim30-minute AMRAP: 5 pull-ups, 15 push-ups, 15 sit-upsDay 5 \u2013 Full-Body Conditioning1-mile run40 flutter kicks (four-count)40 burpees40 jump squats40 elevated push-ups40 jumping pull-ups1-mile runDays 6 and 7 \u2013 Rest or Complete Your Own WorkoutWeek 2Day 8 \u2013 Running and Bodyweight Strength1-mile run50 pull-ups100 push-ups150 air squats1-mile runDay 9 \u2013 Swimming and Conditioning<\/p>\n

Breath-holding drills: 10 \u00d7 35 seconds seated, with 90 seconds’ rest between repetitions<\/p>\n

500m swim27-21-15 reps of: burpees, sit-ups and lungesDay 10 \u2013 Running Intervals<\/p>\n

Complete each interval with 200m of jogging or walking between sprints.<\/p>\n

7 \u00d7 200m sprints5 \u00d7 400m sprints3 \u00d7 800m sprintsDay 11 \u2013 Swimming and AMRAP<\/p>\n

Breath-holding drills: 10 \u00d7 35 seconds seated, with 90 seconds’ rest between repetitions<\/p>\n

500m swim35-minute AMRAP: 7 pull-ups, 20 push-ups and 20 sit-upsDay 12 \u2013 Full-Body Conditioning1.5-mile run (2.4km)50 flutter kicks (four-count)50 burpees50 jump squats50 elevated push-ups50 jumping pull-ups1.5-mile run (2.4km)Days 13 and 14 \u2013 Rest or Complete Your Own WorkoutWeek 3Day 15 \u2013 Running and Bodyweight Strength1-mile run100 pull-ups200 push-ups300 air squats1-mile runDay 16 \u2013 Swimming and Conditioning<\/p>\n

Breath-holding drills: 10 \u00d7 40 seconds seated, with 60 seconds’ rest between repetitions<\/p>\n

500m swim27-21-15-9 reps of: burpees, sit-ups and lungesDay 17 \u2013 Running Intervals<\/p>\n

Complete each interval with 200m of jogging or walking between sprints.<\/p>\n

8 \u00d7 200m sprints6 \u00d7 400m sprints4 \u00d7 800m sprints1 \u00d7 1 mile (1.6km)Day 18 \u2013 Swimming and AMRAP<\/p>\n

Breath-holding drills: 10 \u00d7 40 seconds seated, with 60 seconds’ rest between repetitions<\/p>\n

500m swim40-minute AMRAP: 8 pull-ups, 25 push-ups, 25 sit-upsDay 19 \u2013 Full-Body Conditioning2-mile run (3.2km)60 flutter kicks (four-count)60 burpees60 jump squats60 elevated push-ups60 jumping pull-ups2-mile run (3.2km)Days 20 and 21 \u2013 Rest or Complete Your Own Workout\"kori<\/p>\n

If there\u2019s one thing Kori Sampson knows, it\u2019s how to optimise your body composition for performance. To tap into his knowledge as an elite athlete and coach, we asked him to create a 4-week plan to help you move faster, recover quicker and keep pushing when the fatigue sets in \u2013 all while improving your muscle-to-fat ratio.<\/p>\n

Ready to build muscle, burn fat and come out the other side looking, feeling and performing better? Click here<\/a> to get 14 days of free access to the plan via the Men\u2019s Health app.
<\/p>\n

\"Headshot<\/p>\n

Kate is a fitness writer for Men\u2019s Health UK where she contributes regular workouts, training tips and nutrition guides. She has a post graduate diploma in Sports Performance Nutrition and before joining Men\u2019s Health she was a nutritionist, fitness writer and personal trainer with over 5k hours coaching on the gym floor. Kate has a keen interest in volunteering for animal shelters and when she isn\u2019t lifting weights in her garden, she can be found walking her rescue dog.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"If there’s anyone to take inspiration from for our training programmes, particularly if we want to increase our…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":963120,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[49,48,223823,4671,328825,784,407,84,237154,783,328824,273948],"class_list":["post-963119","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-fitness","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-collection-workout-hub","tag-content-type-default","tag-contentid-ddefefac-2e88-4f1d-bae0-261dbd012b02","tag-displaytype-standard-article","tag-fitness","tag-health","tag-issyndicated-false","tag-locale-gb","tag-shorttitle-try-these-us-air-force-workouts","tag-sponsored-false"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/963119","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=963119"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/963119\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/963120"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=963119"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=963119"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=963119"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}