Is it just me, or are the PRT standards a little imbalanced?

[CaptainRon]

http://www.navy-prt.com/malestandard.html


I've been working out hard since I graduated school and I'm already getting close to maxing out the curlups (even with much of my gut still hanging around from college), but I am nowhere even close to maxing out the running or the pushups.

I feel like I've heard other people voice similar opinions. Is this happening to other people? The curlups standards just seem too easy compared to the other ones.

 

[bunk22]

It's because you are weak In reality, baring injuries, the PRT seems pretty fair.

 

[usmarinemike]

It's that way on this side, too. Just take the curlups as easy money and concentrate on the hard stuff. You know, like sit and reach.

 

[BackOrdered]

You have to change up your methods to address your weaknesses in order to improve the run. I saw that I could run all day long, just not very fast; so, I've been experimenting with a weighted vest to increase my speed. With it on, my run was a minute slower; without it, I ran a minute faster. Also, I took sprinting more seriously and started all my laps with a strong sprint and another midway through my laps (with the vest on). Long story short, when it came time for my annual PFT and I darted off at the start like a bat out of hell and was about 2 KMs ahead of the rest of the command for most of the run.

For push ups I just weight lift, but lately, I don't have that kind of time.

 

[insanebikerboy]

For some people the pushups are the cake exercise while the situps/run are harder. Just depends, I think it's pretty fair, just work on your weak area to raise the score.

 

[BackOrdered]

Truth is, sit ups are my worst event. I use to bust them out like nothing in high school, now it is a struggle to get 60 for some reason. Meanwhile, as I've said, I'm a stud on the run and I can bust out 60 good push ups in just under a minute. It is all relative.

 

[HueyCobra8151]

"I suck at [insert activity here] and so therefore it must be unfair."

 

[osu33]

You will plateau throughout your training, the key is to just keep working at it. alternate b/w sprinting (fartlek) and long distance running to better your time and b/w weight lifting and cals to increase your pushups. i found that curlups were more about technique anyways.

 

[jride200]

Imbalanced, Male requirements compared to Female requirements? Why yes, the PRT is imbalanced, but thats a whole 'nother can of worms.

 

[jride200]

That's a can of worms that you're not qualified to open up on anything more than a theoretical basis. Serve with some females. Until then, :tapedshut

Trust me, I relize my own lack of experience. But a theoretical basis? I'm being objective and applying simple logic. This, quite quite in contrast to the altogether subjective system.

 

[mike172]

I'm a little confused on how you are graded on the PRT. the Marines i know have a 300 point scale where each individual event gets u a certain amount of points. The Navy seems to take your lowest event and make that your score. I don't really know what i'm talking about can someone explain a bit?

 

[gregsivers]

In the Navy PRT/PFA/whatever they're calling it now you do all three events, and get an overall score averaged on all 3 events. On my recent one I got an Excellent High (91) for curlups, Outstanding Low (81) on pushups, and Good Low (12:42) on the run, with an overall Excellent Low. I suck at the run but did well on the other two and it balanced out. I've found the curlups and pushups are the easiest to build up faster, just do them daily. That, and getting older helps a lot too.

 

[Slammer2]

You have to change up your methods to address your weaknesses in order to improve the run...

Definately. I tried everything under the sun to increase my run. I would put out 100% and not slow down too much and my cardio didnt even hurt that bad and I still couldnt get my run down as much as I felt that it should be with that level of training. I finally started focusing on lifting. Once I got my lower body stronger I started noticing improvements. Theres many different things that you can do to work on improving.

 

[scoober78]

That's a can of worms that you're not qualified to open up on anything more than a theoretical basis. Serve with some females. Until then, :tapedshut

I have, although not as many as some here since I came from submarines...and I think its a topic worthy of discussion...a 19 year old man and woman have to do the same number of situps to good-low the PRT...62. Men have to more than twice the pushups (51 vice 24) and have to run 2:30 seconds faster in the mile and a half.

I know that I have no basis in science to assess whether those standards are objectively equal in their difficulty, however...I know that the vast majority of females I have served with, good performers or WUBs, have agreed that they do not think they are challenged by their standards. Those who are screwed together straight succeed just like their male counterparts, because the mins aren't enough for them. Those females who chose to skate however, have an easier time doing it than their male skating counterparts...

Objective, not really, but I think it is accurate enough.

 

[insanebikerboy]

I have to admit that I can understand the differences in the pt scores for men versus women. I'll also admit that I used to think that it was a bunch of crap that the minimums were different.

That all changed when I started seriously running triathlon, especially Ironman distance tri's. I started looking at lactate thresholds, O2 capacity, and other aerobic and anaerobic capacities so I could get faster. What I found was that women simply don't have the same lactate threshold and O2 levels as men (that's from me reading other's research). The absolute best woman triathletes simply can't hang with the best men, because they reach a LT faster since it's lower, which means the muscle won't work for as long. For reference, Lance Armstrong has a ridiculously high LT, which is why he can go so fast for so long and have amazing power outputs.

So, I think that's why the run times are slower. Granted, there are women who can max the men's events, but as a whole, there's a reason for the difference.

Maybe someone like feddoc would have better insight, as I may be way off here, but that seems to explain it for me.