Paracowboy, you are 100% correct. Focused training for the kind of work you want to do or a particular physical result is the way to go, not to try to match your body to some template.
My specific training regimen:
Week 1
Monday/Wednesday/Friday:
Morning: 1 set pushups and situps and squats or burbies
Lunch: 2.4 KM Run (Friday is my official self test result for the week)
Evening: 1 set pushups and situps
Bedtime: 1 set pushups for confidence
Tuesday/Thursday:
Morning: 1 set pushups and situps and squats or burbies
Lunch: 2.4 KM Walk
Evening: 1 set pushups OR pushups on knees OR situps at every commercial break while watching TV/ OR every 20-30 mins if I'm on the computer
Bedtime: 1 set pushups for confidence
Saturday Self Test Day
Day: 7 KM walk no backpack
Evening: 3 set pushups and 3 set situps (these are my official results for the week)
Sunday
REST
Week 2
Monday/Wednesday/Friday:
Morning: 1 set pushups and situps and squats or burbies
Lunch (Monday/Wednesday): 2.4 KM walk
Lunch (Friday Only): 2.4 KM Run (this is my official self test result for the week)
After Work: 7 KM Walk with backpack
Evening: 1 set pushups and situps
Bedtime: 1 set pushups for confidence
Tuesday/Thursday:
Morning: 1 set pushups and situps and squats or burbies
Lunch: 2.4 KM Walk
Evening: 1 set pushups OR pushups on knees OR situps at every commercial break while watching TV/ OR every 20-30 mins if I'm on the computer
Bedtime: 1 set pushups for confidence
Saturday Self Test Day
Day: 7 KM walk no backpack
Evening: 3 set pushups and 3 set situps (these are my official results for the week)
BACK TO WEEK 1
I always try to work out before breakfast, lunch and supper. Also, my time for the 2.4 KM is a little longer then it likely would be on a track since I run on trails behind my work which is rough terrain and has lots of hills. I don't like running on rough terrain because it is rough on the body, but I do like that different muscles get worked on as I go up and down hills.
Diet (I mean what I eat not the evil connotation of the word "diet")
Lots of protein
Moderate amounts of carbs
Lots of water
Lots of green veggies
"Typical Day"
Morning - eggs and low fat cheese
Snack - celery and green pepper
Lunch - beef and broccoli, chicken and veggies, some days a sub sandwich, sometimes tuna salad with Caesar salad
Snack - Apple
Supper - chicken or turkey, some potato or rice (moderate portion... you don't NEED 50 french fries... 10 to 15 will do!!), veggies
Evening snack - Nothing typically, sometimes nuts... cashews, almonds and peanuts, sometime celery and peanut butter
I don't use a "denial" method of "dieting". I use the "I am damn adult and I should act like it" method.
When I want a snack, I tell myself "I can have those bag of chips (or whatever). I'm an adult I can make that choice. But I want to lose weight, because I want to be an officer in the Canadian Forces again. What do I want more?" Get in the habit of making the right choice and it gets easier. I miss the chips, but it doesn't hurt because I've traded it for something of far greater value.
That's pretty much it. I've 20 years of experience in the martial arts, so sometimes I'll replace some exercises with doing kata, or a couple hundred kicks and punches, but by and large I try to stick with the pushups, situps and running because those are the three main exercises needed for the CF Expres.
I guess the last thing is I praise myself constantly when I deserve it. I tell myself that I'm proud of every pound lost, for every push up done until I collapse, for every sit up done until my abs ache. When I feel like quitting I tell myself "You're stronger then you think." When I really really feel like quitting I tell myself "Okay, choice time. You quit, and you'll always quit, you'll always find excuses. You failed yourself the first time in the army. Quit now, and you might as well quit completely." I will not fail myself again. I'm done with that.