From Bodybuilding to Tactical Fitness: A Journey Toward Versatility
How Calisthenics, Weightlifting, and Endurance Training Builds Complete Athletes
Many fitness enthusiasts begin their journey with the desire to enhance their physique, boost athletic performance, or a mix of both. My own introduction to exercise was shaped by these motivations. At 13, I started lifting weights, guided by the popular Joe Weider bodybuilding and weightlifting books, and consistently practiced calisthenics. Calisthenics became a staple in my routine from my early school days, back when daily Physical Education was the norm and the President's Fitness Test was a competitive highlight among classmates. This solid foundation in bodyweight exercises, free weights (including both powerlifting and bodybuilding techniques), and seasonal sports like football, powerlifting, track, wrestling, and baseball, defined my fitness path through middle and high school.
Stew #50
Joining the military opened my eyes to the expansive world of fitness training. I quickly realized that fitness wasn't just about building strength or muscle. With the right combination of nutrition, resistance training, calisthenics, and cardio, you can maintain muscle mass while developing cardiovascular endurance and stamina, becoming what we now call the Tactical Athlete. This dynamic approach ensures you're not just fit but also strong, lean, and ready for various physical challenges.
Take, for example, today's most active Special Operations personnel. Their training is not just about building muscle; it's about being prepared for demanding tasks. However, if you're preparing for a Special Operations selection program, your focus should be on the specific fitness test and events required for acceptance and graduation, not the advanced workouts of active-duty operators. Most special operations pipelines last at least a year and involve high-repetition calisthenics, obstacle courses, extensive running and rucking, as well as long-distance swimming.
Why Bodybuilding Alone Is Not Enough
There's a saying that bodybuilders are the first to quit in demanding military training. While it's true that every athlete, whether endurance-based, a teenager, a heavyweight lifter, or a smaller competitor, has a weakness, bodybuilding-focused routines often fall short in tactical training environments. Programs like BUD/S, SFAS, PJ, or RECON require more than just isolation exercises and muscle group splits. They demand full-body coordination, power, and stamina.
Real-world challenges, such as those faced in the military, law enforcement, or firefighting, require your entire body to generate force, power, and speed over varying distances. Life's demands rarely isolate a single muscle group; instead, they call upon integrated, whole-body strength.
Transforming Training Styles for Tactical Success
Over the past 18 months, I have worked with individuals from a bodybuilding background to prepare them for SEAL, PJ, and Army Special Forces selection, as well as popular obstacle races, including GoRuck and Spartan Races. The training methods aren't new; they're rooted in the same styles used by elite Special Operators for decades. To excel, you need a blend of endurance in running, rucking, and swimming, as well as muscle stamina, strength, speed, agility, and core stability. Incorporating multi-joint power movements (such as power and Olympic lifts) alongside endurance training creates a body that's both strong and adaptable.
This versatility distinguishes Special Operations training from most athletic or purely aesthetic regimens. Even endurance athletes, while excelling at running or swimming, often struggle with muscle stamina or core strength when required to carry heavy loads over long distances. Once you are in these special ops units, the focus shifts to optimal performance and longevity, which requires all of the elements outlined in the diagram.
Testimonials from Transformed Athletes
· Chris: "I feel like I'm 38 going on 18. The best part—no muscle loss! Just eight weeks into your program, and I could be competition-ready for a bodybuilding show. My workouts are longer, but I've never been in this kind of shape. Yes, I might have had lower body fat before, but I've never achieved this level of overall fitness while maintaining all my muscle. I'm completely prepared for my next challenge."
Steve: "Adding rucks helped me keep my muscles even with less weight training, and the high-volume calisthenics were a real challenge. Eating enough was key, too. As you said, recovery is crucial—no more daily pushups for me at this volume. Now, I can do sets of 20 pullups and 80-100 pushups back-to-back with little rest (or as you call it, 'rest with running')."
Chandler: "I went from high school track/XC runner to ROTC scholarship, and now I'm on the Ranger Competition Team—still fast, excelling at PT, and improving at rucking every time. And yes, now I actually fill out my tank top!"
Adapting Training for Different Backgrounds
Calisthenics and cardio programs are particularly effective for powerlifters and bodybuilders seeking to lose weight and enhance their endurance for activities such as running, rucking, and swimming. If you have a strong foundation in powerlifting, incorporating flexibility training and static stretches is essential—especially when transitioning from football or powerlifting to more stamina-focused activities. While cardiovascular conditioning can be lost quickly after a short break, strength is more resilient; after a few weeks away from lifting, you can often regain previous max lifts within a month or so.
My own transformation from powerlifter/football player to competitive SEAL candidate took 18 months. The journey required a complete overhaul—not just in training methods, but in mindset and adaptability.
Who is Stew Smith? Coach, Trainer, Author, Podcaster - Coach Stew Smith has been a trusted resource for those preparing for military, police, and fire service careers for over 25 years. Whether it’s about program design, injury prevention, or mental preparation, his answers help countless individuals achieve their fitness and career goals. I try to teach you have to be a better recruit and candidate for these tactical professions, including special ops programs. 
I'm the former Navy SEAL that special ops candidates go to for books, ebooks and online coaching to prepare themselves to get to and through intense tactical assessment and selection programs and qualify for service in their chosen tactical profession. See More at StewSmithFitness.com
Training is What We Do at StewSmithFitness.com:
Need Programming for Fitness Tests and Beyond? We are all about getting you TO and THROUGH your future training program. See how that works.
Quick Summary: Here is a list of what we do at StewSmithFitness.com
(NEW - Consulting Call) - Need personal help adjusting workouts? Worried if you are on the right track? Let Stew help.
- FREE Fitness (all topics) / Mindset Articles and Workouts - Latest info on training for any goal! (over 1000)
- eBooks, Books and eBooks in PRINT (over 40 options)
- Spec Ops Swim Critiques on social media - YouTube, TikTok, Instagram
- Live QA / CSS Critiques Mon / Tues 9am (YouTube, TikTok, Instagram)
- Podcasts (over 200)
- Stew Smith Fitness APPs - Triad version, Pushup Push APP, Pullup Push APP, FBI workout APP
- FREE Navy SEAL Exercises Apps - iPhone, Android
- Membership Site - Get access to 100s of weeks of training programs and unpublished workouts we are currently doing each week. Constantly updated weekly with new articles, videos, and workouts of the week.
- Tactical Fitness Course - 80 minutes to learn how to get through the spec ops selection programs.
- Online Coaching - Get personalized programming designed for your goals, abilities, time per day, days per week, equipment/facilities...etc.
Dive deeper into Tactical Athlete training and mental toughness by exploring Stew Smith Fitness Programming for the Tactical Athlete online store. Discover the strategies and techniques elite forces employ to overcome physical and mental barriers.
Visit https://www.stewsmithfitness.com now and equip yourself with the tools for success for many special ops-level selection programs in the military and police world.
Books and eBooks Available (All Levels of Fitness)
The Specific Military / Special Ops Physical Fitness Workouts
Navy SEAL Workout Phase 1
Navy SEAL Workout Phase 2 - 3
Navy SEAL Workout Phase 4 Grinder PT
Navy SWCC Workout
Army PFT Workout (Prep For Rucking, OPAT, ACFT)
Army Special Forces / Ranger Workout
Army Air Assault School Workout
Army Airborne Workout
Advanced Running Program - Special Ops Supplement Plan
USMC RECON / MarSOC Workout
USMC OCS / TBS Workout
USMC IST and PFT
The Combat Conditioning Workout
Air Force PJ / CCT Workout Battlefield Airman Prep Course
The UBRR Upper Body Round Robin Workout / Spec Ops version
The Coast Guard Rescue Swimmer / Navy SAR Workout
The Service Academy Workout (West Point, Navy, Air Force Academy)
The Navy, Air Force, Marine Corp Boot Camp Workout
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The Law Enforcement Physical Fitness Workouts
The FBI Academy Workout | FBI Workout Vol 2
The DEA Workout
The FLETC Workout - Ace the PEB
The PFT Bible: Pushups, Sit-ups, 1.5 Mile Run
The Fire Fighter Workout - Ace the CPAT
Calisthenics and Cardio
Online Coaching Options
Online PT CLUB - Premium Coaching -
Do you need a program that works for you? We can customize it to your personal goals and help you fit it into your day with the equipment you have available. Let us be your training partner and coach.
Many people ask me the difference between the Premium Program and the Online PT CLUB Coaching. The people on either program receive personalized training from me - Stew Smith - to best fit your abilities, goals, time per day, days per week, facilities, and equipment. We communicate regularly about your progress and your feedback helps me create the next week plan for you. There is no template workout and see you later. These programs are created 1 week at a time with YOU and ME in communication to figure out how best to create the next week.
Tactical Fitness Course - Getting TO the training does not guarantee you get THROUGH the training. Learn about the two phases of tactical fitness you need to develop thoroughly before getting to BUDS. Check out the Online Course - Getting TO and THROUGH Special Ops Selection.
Member's Only Content / Services Program!
If you want access to years worth of workouts, favorite workouts of the week, free fitness APP, closed Facebook Group, video / picture library of exercises, and more access to LIVE Q/A sessions check out the Stew Smith Fitness Members Section.
The dashboard below has the links to all the information, archives, videos, and links to workouts, podcasts, live Q and A lessons.
