# does size matter



## ryan fitzy (26 May 2005)

I am going to BMQ this summer and i just wanted to know if it matter's how big you are, do the giants have it easier then the small  guys or the other way around- and do the thin guys have it easier then the big muscular guys.


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## 45506445210414924 (26 May 2005)

as said in other posts before buddy, it dosnt matter how "BIG" you are, its your mental strength that has the main advantage on doing better, im just a little guy being only 5'6, and im making it my goal to smack around the big guys *figure of speech for not quitting* when my bmq starts up!

oh know, just finished proofreading this post, cant wait for replys  :


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## NavComm (26 May 2005)

I always thought it was quality over quantity?


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## beach_bum (26 May 2005)

I always heard that it wasn't size that mattered, it was how you use it.    LOL


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## Trinity (26 May 2005)

I don't like the poll

Who says you have to be strong to be in the forces.

Sometimes its brains over brawn!

I'm a toothpick and yet i've done this for 13 years now.

Heart and mind goes a long way over muscle.


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## Tbird (26 May 2005)

Geez and it's not even Friday yet!      lol   Got some live ones here! lol


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## Ex-Dragoon (26 May 2005)

As trinity so correctly points out its more heart and mind then anything else but being in good shape for your body type helps as well.


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## Gouki (26 May 2005)

I .. could have sworn I posted a response in this topic.. Either it didn't take or was deleted for some reason but .. not knowing either way:

Size doesn't matter..sometimes. In fact it's almost all relative and individual. 

My friend is a bodybuilder and has a great cardio and had no problems with PT.
His friend on course was a tall lanky fellow who smoked regularly, and could outrun them all.

On my course there was a big guy, powerlifter type, he could lift anything but almost died running. We had one guy who smoked and could run no problem but another guy who smoked had serious trouble. There was one girl who was short and weak and couldn't run, she had it pretty bad. Another girl who appeared to be normal did more pushups than any other guy and could run just as well.

So .. it basically comes down to the person. Their strength, cardio base, and of course heart ... the most important of all really because heart can fill in the gaps with what you're lacking.


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## NavComm (26 May 2005)

Seriously I think it doesn't matter how big you are. I'm only 5'4" and I think I will be able to hold my own. Of course I might feel differently if I was going into infantry. But the military is made up of a wide variety of people who are made up of an equally wide variety of shapes and sizes. If a person wants to be in the military there will be a job for that person, provided they meet all the other requirements, no matter how big or small they are.


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## scaddie (26 May 2005)

I'm a female, 5'3, 130lbs. I did my BMQ with no problem, and hopefully will have the same luck with SQ and my infantry course. The only thing that was difficult was running, since most of the guys were a lot taller and had really long legs. But! if you're short/smaller, work on your speed in PT. That was the most important thing to me when running and doing other physical activities.


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## aesop081 (26 May 2005)

size has nothing to do with it IMHO.   I am a relatively small guy, not perticularly muscular and i'm only 5 ft 9 in.   Been doing it for 12 years, never had a PT problem, i can run for an awful long time, always did my job, never had any problems lifting bridge parts in my old MOC and managed to complete the 1CMBG Mountain Man competition twice.   Its mostly in your head, the motivation not to quit and get the job done.


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## NavComm (26 May 2005)

Scaddie said:
			
		

> I'm a female, 5'3, 130lbs. I did my BMQ with no problem, and hopefully will have the same luck with SQ and my infantry course. The only thing that was difficult was running, since most of the guys were a lot taller and had really long legs. But! if you're short/smaller, work on your speed in PT. That was the most important thing to me when running and doing other physical activities.



You just made my day! I do worry about making it through bmq some days but your post gives me courage! Thank you.


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## paracowboy (26 May 2005)

ain't the size of the dog in the fight...
You got the parts, you'll do the job. That simple. All you wannabes worrying about your fitness and other stuff tryin' to get in, STOP. Show up, listen up, and suck it up. That's it. That's all you gotta do. I got buddies half my size who rock this shit, and I know scumbags bigger'n me that wuss out on the hard stuff. It's what's in you, not what you're carryin' around.
Thus endeth the sermon.


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## chrisf (26 May 2005)

As long as you're able to lift a ruck-sack, and keep up with the group while running, you'll do fine, beyond that, it's all mental strength...

I can't run worth beans, but I've never dropped out on a run, because I just stick my brain in neutral, and just keep telling myself all I have to do is keep up with the guy in front of me (Being the head of the column sucks  )


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## 45506445210414924 (26 May 2005)

how much does a ruck sack typicall weight?


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## chrisf (26 May 2005)

Typical? Depends on what your trade is, what you're doing, and when you're doing it...

Can't remember the weight for the BFT, which is your best judge of what "standard" is. 55lbs?


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## Tbird (27 May 2005)

All you have to do is stay positive and do your best. Take the opportunity to push your limits, find out what you're really made of. I mean geez my grandmother is 84 years old and 5 ft tall...let me tell you I wouldn't mess with her! I'm not even joking the woman is fast with that cane Yikes! lol  I've gotten more then my share of bruises on my shins from her for being a smart a**. Just remember if you believe you can do it you will, if you don't then you won't.


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## Kat Stevens (27 May 2005)

Do, or do not....there is no "try"....


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## paracowboy (27 May 2005)

Mike F said:
			
		

> how much does a ruck sack typicall weight?


don't matter. No matter how light you pack, it still sucks. No matter how you cushion the straps and waistbelt, it still sucks. Been doin' it for a decade now...it still sucks. You don't have to like it, you just have to do it. If it were easy, anybody could do this. It ain't, and they can't. Like the commercial said: Just do it.


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## TCBF (27 May 2005)

I am currently instructing a BMQ at one of the TCs in the west. And I've instructed many prior to this one.    As far as size goes currently we have one female on the course who is 5 foot nothing, a tall fellow around 6' 6" a power lifter who's around 5' 6". Overall each of them has advantages and disadvantages over the other.

If you work and train as a team, and utilize each other's strenghths, size does'nt matter at all.

Good luck on your courses, I'm sure you will succeed.


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## 45506445210414924 (27 May 2005)

"don't matter. No matter how light you pack, it still sucks. No matter how you cushion the straps and waistbelt, it still sucks. Been doin' it for a decade now...it still sucks. You don't have to like it, you just have to do it. If it were easy, anybody could do this. It ain't, and they can't. Like the commercial said: Just do it."

thats the motivation i like hearing!...just do it and you make an awsome point if it were easy, anybody could do this!!!! 

and TCBF same to you

"If you work and train as a team, and utilize each other's strenghths, size does'nt matter at all."


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## TCBF (27 May 2005)

To answer your other question a rucksack typically weighs in at 23 KGs. plus you have to carry a fully loaded C-7 @ 3.84 KGs for a grand total of 26.84 KGs of kit for the BFT.


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## qor556 (27 May 2005)

TCBF said:
			
		

> To answer your other question a rucksack typically weighs in at 23 KGs. plus you have to carry a fully loaded C-7 @ 3.84 KGs for a grand total of 26.84 KGs of kit for the BFT.



Plus the weight of the TV too...


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## Fishbone Jones (27 May 2005)

Sorry, I can't resist. "Does size matter?" All the girls I've met say no,.......... but I think most of them lie.   ;D

Seriously though. I'm 5'8", kinda overweight, 51 years old, can't run for shit. However, I can ruck all day, without breaking a sweat, and no blisters. Depends on your physiology. Some are built for fight, some are built for flight. You don't have a choice in the genes you were dealt. Do the best with what you got and quit worrying about it or meeting someone else's standard. The standards set by the CF are attainable by everyone, no matter their build. All you gotta do is work at it. If you can't meet them, it's your problem. Not theirs.


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## BDTyre (27 May 2005)

I'm probably one of the smaller guys in my unit, although it looks like a fair number of the new guys aren't much bigger.  Even being new and small, no one seemed to notice.


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## Tbird (27 May 2005)

Well if I was around people that were short or skinny etc I really wouldn't notice either. But if one of them starts flapping their arms and clucking like a chicken....well I might notice them then   lol


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## PARAMEDIC (27 May 2005)

IF THE MIND FAILS, THE BODY WILL FOLLOW.

Im 5' nothing, a 100 and nothing, sharp as a thistle, clean as a whistle best in all of west minster..lol


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## Island Ryhno (27 May 2005)

5'10" 280lbs, for basic and QL3 I carried a guy and his rucksack (about 3 months, F**ker) when we did ruck marches. When we did morning pt he outran everybody. Physiology and mental stamina have a lot to do with, run 5k pfft, more like crawl and vomit the whole way for me. But I will not stop ever, in my head I say "I am the biggest and strongest, somebody else can be the fastest. I am the one who will be called upon to carry my buddy out of danger" I also have two favorite quotes on quitting. "When faced with a mountain, I will not quit! I will keep on striving until I climb over, find a pass through, tunnel underneath - or simply stay and turn the mountain into a gold mine, with God's help!" Friedrich von Schiller and "Effort only fully releases its reward after a person refuses to quit." Napolean Hill.


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## DogOfWar (29 May 2005)

Your poll leaves out the very fast strong guys over 180. In my experience(IN MY EXPERIENCE) the more robust did better. However I can recall one or more tiny dudes who kept up out of sheer stubborness. Id much rather drink with them.


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## quebecownage (29 May 2005)

sorry cant answer the last one,not in yer,

But look, i'm 5"6' 130lbs and i can lift 150 % of my weight. and did the "qualif" 2.4k run in 11m.16

so i was asking myself ,only on the PHYSICAL side am i fit for BMQ?


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## BDG.CalgHighrs (3 Jun 2005)

Being obnoxiously competative and stubborn is helpful too, I find. It's easy to find that little extra bit of energy if it means beating buddy on the PT test, or not letting one of those "stronger" !@#!s leave you behind.

On course it's porbably a good idea to be quietly competaive, though.


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## 025 (5 Jun 2005)

I'm not a big guy at all, i weigh about 150 and i could do more chin ups, push ups and sit ups then anyone in my platoon when i started BMQ last year, but the only time I saw my master corperal actualy impressed with me was when i ran to the point where i fell to my knees, puked my guts out then got up and finished the run at the front of the pack.. it doesnt matter if your mr america, they want to see you pushed to the point where you break down.. and if you can pick yourself back up and finish, then you will do well


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## DEVES (6 Jun 2005)

I am 5'9 and 150 pounds I run 4.3 km in 15-20 min everyday before I go to bed. Did I add I also run with a ruck with 50 pounds. It sucks when you start but For me its only been getting better. I don't have the pain of skin missing off my lower back from the pack going up and down over it. I think if you want to do it you can. Ive also noticed a good pair of runners will help to make your run more enjoyable.

And Ive noticed it doesn't hurt to run with some tunes once in awhile!!


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