APFT Rifle Drills
Source: Department of the Army Field Manual, FM 21-20 Physical Fitness Training
Rifle drills are suitable activities for fitness training while bivouacking or during extended time in the field. In most situations, the time consumed in drawing weapons makes this activity cumbersome for garrison use. However, it is a good conditioning activity, and the use of individual weapons in training fosters a warrior’s spirit.
There are four rifle-drill exercises that develop the upper body. They are numbered in a set pattern. The main muscle groups strengthened by rifle drills are those of the arms, shoulders, and back.
Rifle drill is a fast-moving method of exercising that soldiers can do in as little as 15 minutes. With imagination, the number of steps and/or rifle exercises can be expanded beyond those described here.
EXERCISE PROGRESSION
The rifle-drill exercise normally begins with six repetitions and increases by one repetition for each three periods of exercise. This rate continues until soldiers can do 12 repetitions. However, the number of repetitions can be adjusted as the soldiers improve.
In exercises that start from the rifle downward position, on the command “Move,” soldiers execute port arms and assume the starting position. At the end of the exercise, the command to return soldiers to attention is “Position of attention, move.”
In exercises that end in other than the rifle-downward position, soldiers assume that position before executing port arms and order arms.
These movements are done without command and need not be precise. Effective rifle exercises are strenuous enough to tire the arms. When the arms are tired, moving them with precision is difficult.
View a listing of Rifle Drills.
–APFT
–APFT Calestinics
–APFT Calestinics Exercises
–APFT Conditioning Drills
–APFT Conditioning Grass Exercises
–APFT Guerrilla Exercises
–APFT Guerrilla Exercise List
–APFT Obstacle Courses
–APFT Conditioning Obstacle Courses
–APFT Confidence Obstacle Courses
–APFT Rifle Drills
–APFT Rifle Drill Exercises
–APFT Log Drills
–APFT Log Drill Exercises
–APFT Aquatic Exercise
–APFT Aquatic Exercises