We all can look back and thank the 1950s for several things. Well, it is the period the world was recovering from World War II and the Cold War continued to develop. However, this period also saw the beginning of the decolonisation in Africa and Asia, the development of the polio vaccine and the official race towards the moon. This period is also the birth of the Royal Canadian Air Force Exercise Plans. This blog has more on this.
The Royal Canadian Air Force Exercise Plans are an 11-minute-series of exercise regimens, developed in the 1950s by Dr Bill Orban. The objective of the plan was and is to keep pilots in the Canadian Airforce officers in shape. In the late 50s, Dr Orban developed the 5BX plan (Five Basic Exercises) for men, although the book was published in 1961. Subsequently, a corresponding program for women was developed under the name XBX (Ten Basic Exercise). These two plans lived separately but in 2016, they were republished together as one book. The book is available here on Amazon. The tried and tested methods, although first developed for the RCAF pilots stationed in remote and confined bases in the far north, have become so important to any basic person, and can be done at any time, by anyone, anywhere, without the need for complicated gym equipment or even going outdoors. What’s more, the popularity of these programs has made them synonymous in many countries around the world, and are now a part of most people’s fitness culture.
The 5BX plan is known to be very basic and is known to be unique. It is simple and easy to follow, can be developed at a participant’s rate, is balance meaning it will condition your muscle, heart and lungs, complete, self-measuring and convenient. It is known to increase one’s strength of their important muscle groups, the ability to move the body for proper functioning for lengthy periods and increase the speed response of important muscles. It also keeps the muscle and joints flexible and increases one’s capacity for physical exertion. The XBX plan was later developed from the 5BX program and was primarily developed as a complementary program for women. The XBX program takes 12 minutes a day, as opposed to the 11-minute 5BX program, and requires no equipment as well as very little space. The 5BX program is the most popular and can be applied by all, whether in the airforce or not. the XBX, since it was tailor-made for women only, can be slightly less than general, so for this article, we will look into the former program. Here is a breakdown of the RCAF’s 5BX program, for use, both for Military Basic Training workouts as well as home exercises.
- Stretching: you need to stand with both your feet apart and arms stretched above your head. Bend forward to touch the floor, then stretch up and bend backward. Bend your knees if you have to and repeat the process for two minutes.
- Sit-up: here, you need to lie on your back with your feet about six inches apart and arms at the sides. Sit up just far enough to see your heels, while keeping your legs straight. Your head and shoulders ought to clear the floor. Do this for one minute
- Back extension: you will need to lie on your front with palms under your thighs. Raise your head and a leg and repeat this while alternating the legs. Keep your leg straight, with the thighs lifted above your palms. Do this for a minute
- Push-up: next, you will have to lie on your front, with your palms under your shoulders. Straighten the arms to lift your upper body from the knee, then keep your body straight. Bend your arms until the chest touches the floor. Repeat the process, for a minute
- Running: this is done on the spot but could also be substituted with a walk for this final exercise. Be sure to count a step once your left foot touches the floor. Lift your left feet about four inches off the floor and after 75 steps, do 10 “scissor jumps”. Here, you will stand and extend your right leg and left arm forward, with the left leg and right arm back. Jump, changing the position of the arms and leg in mid-air. Do this for six minutes. Also know About the Basic Training of the military
As you can tell from the Airforce exercises, they are arranged in order of difficulty, the first four are callisthenics and the last is an aerobic exercise. The same goes for the women’s-based XBX plan, with the exercises arranged in order of difficulty. The first four are meant for flexibility, exercises 5 to 9 are for improving muscle strength and the last exercise is meant to develop aerobic capacity. In order, the ten exercises are toe touching, knee raising, lateral bending, arms circling, sit-ups, chest and leg raising, side leg raising, push-ups, leg lifting, and running and jumping in place.
In conclusion, although we all know how hard it is to get into the airforce, it is pretty cool that the Canadian Airforce developed an airforce exercise that can be used by anyone, regardless of age, gender, or nation of origin. Grab a copy of the combined Royal Canadian Air Force Exercise Plans for Physical Fitness: Two Books in One / Two Famous Basic Plans (The XBX Plan for Women, the 5BX Plan for Men) from Amazon. You can also get the single books, downloadable for free through these links: 5BX Plan; XBX Plan. Please share my article and website: https://www.mianairforce.com/
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