How can I burn fat in my thighs, stomach and chest? And also increase stamina/running

[Psyclonami]

I have been trying to eat as health as possible even though I can't afford to eat a strict diet of fish/chicken every day. I have cut out a lot of sugar, especially in hot drinks and cereal. I eat a lot of vegetables and fruit and try to keep my carbs down.

I have been exercising because I want to join the army and I'm overweight and not that fit. I have been doing press-ups (20), sit-ups (40), squats (30) and back arches (20) every morning and I feel I'm getting physically stronger and I'm slowly increasing the amount. I'd like to also do Pull-ups but I don't have a bar and haven't got anywhere to do them. Is there any techniques or ways I can do these some how using household items/equipment?

Stamina wise I get tired very fast and always have. I want to boost this stamina as I cannot run very far at all. I can sprint (top speed) for about 200m before I am absolutely puffed. If I rest for a bit I can re-do this but I can't keep up for very long. If I jog at a really slow pace I can jog for about 1km before getting very tired.

I want tips to get my endurance/stamina much higher so I can run much futher. I'm a really shy person and prefer to exercise alone and away from anyone else.

I have only been casually walking with my dogs at the moment but not actually training. But I want to start as soon as possible.

The army requirements are:
Run 2.4 km in 10 minutes (This is my biggest challenge as I am so unfit and can't run very far).
The '100 Club' is run 2.4 km in under 8 minutes which I will try to beat if I can because it would give me major confidence being fit as I have never ever in my life.

66 Curl-Ups (I don't know what these are but I figure are like sit-ups)
The 100 Club is 130 which I hope I could do haha. I can only do about 40 sit-ups which is a real challenge for me at the moment.

30 Press-ups.
The 100 Club is 55. I find this task quite challenging. I can do 20 press-ups at the moment but the last two press-ups are a major struggle.

I have a weight bench and dumbbells at home where I could also be lifting weights for extra strength training that could possibly help with the sit-ups and press-ups but I don't know what exercises I should be doing.

I think it's my stamina/fitness/running which is my most major problem and I just need some help and techniques to get fitter. Like cardio or what other exercises I need to be doing and how.

I'm only 18 and I have until 6 August 2012 until the next intake to get fit. Or if I am able to get fit faster than I thought I could apply for 9 July 2012 intake but I don't think I'd be ready for that one and I'd rather be at least a little over the minimum to make training a little better for me.

I am applying as a Soldier as I'd prefer to be one. I could apply as an Officer but I don't know if that role would suit me as I am a loner and prefer to do what I'm told rather than give orders. I don't really know myself that well but I don't think I am a leader type as I don't like to tell people what to do because I think it's their choice, but when it comes to me I prefer to be told as I'm so indecisive it makes it easier. But I never know maybe if I gain confidence from getting fit and passing maybe I could change.

Thank you so much for all the help.

 

[PLB_old]

Hey and welcome!

Do you have access to your testing requirements (including explanations of specific tests, eg. curl ups)? Is there a document somewhere or can it be found online? I know for the RCMP (police) here in Canada, all of the testing information and even information on how to train for the test can be found online.

Basically, you're going to need to start where you're currently at fitness & strength-wise. Make a plan for how often to workout, and just stick with it. There is no perfect plan out there, most people's downfall, or reason why their program doesn't "work" is that they simply don't follow the program.

With regard to running, you said that if you're running at top speed, you can run 200m... If you run at a comfortable jog, how far can you go? The first step that I would recommend is to focus on just being able to complete the distance comfortably at a steady pace (or even working on a slightly longer distance, like 5K), then start working on speed. To work on speed, try doing something like interval training, where you sprint for short distances, then jog... run/jog until you complete your distance. Gradually work on running at a faster pace for longer and jogging less.

As for strength training, try setting up a routine, making sure that you're not exercising the same muscle groups 2 days in a row. Again, start where you're at and build up from there. Give yourself small goals like being able to do 2 more pushups each week.

An example weekly schedule would be something like this:

Sunday: steady pace run
Monday: strength
Tuesday: interval run
Wednesday: rest
Thursday: strength
Friday: steady pace run
Saturday: strength

This could be your starting point, but it might change as your training progresses.

Hope that helps a bit as a start... let me know if you find any info on your testing and/or training requirments.