Here is a new scientifically designed approach to Physical Fitness which can develop an adequate level of reserve energy needed for vigorous positive well being and zestful living.
– The Royal Canadian Air Force 5BX Plan
I first came across the 5BX plan back in the early 1990s. Since then I have probably started the programme a dozen times or so, on occasion reaching my target level.
The cover of the Penguin paperback copy I have dating from 1990 describes the 5BX plan as “the 11 minute exercise plan for men…for getting fit, feeling fit and staying fit”.
In the late 1950’s one third of Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) pilots were considered insufficiently fit to fly. Bill Orban, a Canadian athlete, scientist and academic working for the Canadian Department of National Defence, was tasked with developing a fitness program to address this issue.
The result was the 5BX (5 Basic Exercises) plan first published in 1961. Described as an early version of the now popular HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) program1, the 5BX program is ideal for those of us searching for the holy grail of fitness programs. Firstly, because many RCAF pilots were located in remote bases in northern Canada with no access to gymnasium facilities, the 5BX plan does not require access to specialised equipment. Secondly, the plan requires only 11 minutes per day to be spent on the exercises.
The 5BX plan consists of six charts arranged in increasing order of difficulty. Each chart is composed of five exercises that are performed within 11 minutes. The five basic exercises remain the same throughout the charts, but more difficult variations are introduced and number of repetitions increased.
The first four exercises are callisthenics and the last an aerobic exercise, as follows:
- Stretching
- Sit-up
- Back extension
- Push-up
- Running in place
The final exercise can be substituted for a walk or run. I opt for this choice.
The aim is to work through the levels until you reach the appropriate one for your age. In my case as a 50-60 year old man I should reach and maintain Chart 2, Level C+, although inevitably I’m tempted by the level suitable for Flying Crew aged 45-9 (Chart 3, level B). This is partly in homage to my dad, and partly because I am, after all, a marathon runner and (part-time) triathlete.
The first stages are almost ridiculously easy but by the time you reach your target level are just taxing enough to abandon through lack of time. Last year I reached my target level on holiday, but then failed to carry on while travelling home and all was lost. This year one of my resolutions is to begin once again, and to stick with the programme this time.
The exercises have somewhat fallen out of fashion in later years, partly because they are considered to be unsafe due to the fact that they are unsupervised, and partly because the sit-up exercises in the higher levels are potentially damaging to the spine. The former is just silly, the latter can be resolved by replacing the sit-ups with crunches. [The late] John Walker, founder of Autodesk, Inc and co-author of AutoCAD, has developed a version that is suitable for everyone as part of his (excellent) Hacker’s Diet, which I hope to write more about on another occasion.
I am currently on Chart 1, level D+. You can follow my progress, or lack of it, on my personal twitter account at https://twitter.com/hibbott/
Download a copy of the 5BX plan here.
1 Amy Lewis, Good Housekeeping, How to get a body like Helen Mirren, 25 September 2014
January 2, 2019
I used 5bx from my early 20s in the mid 80s.It wasn’t until i hit 40 that I got serious about it though.I was still playing rugby and working hard.I didn’t have time or money for gym so I went back to 5bx.It took me nearly a year doing this every morning but I finally got to the top of chart 6.This was the fittest I had ever been and I was mentally stronger than ever. Everybody is different, it works if you work at it.
April 16, 2019
Thanks for the brief history of your 5bx practice. I first discovered 5bx in 1962 (still have the program book from then) as I was then in USAF and practiced it for some time. Forgot about it until 5 years or so ago when I was looking for something to strengthen and restore my aging body, as am now 75. Have had to restart several times due to travel, etc, but am continuing now at level 2C. Keep up the good work, especially since have never heard of anyone actually achieving top of chart 6! Am glad to hear o’d means to avoid spine injury with crunches instead of situps. Will be trying that.
June 29, 2019
Thanks for this interesting read. I’ve come across the 5xB on reading that Prince Phillip is an exponent. If it’s worked for him …! Like you, I’m a runner but in need of a daily stretch and core workout. I’ve plateaued on the 7mwo so will give this a go. The progression element appeals. Apart from switching the sit-ups for crunches and planks, it seems to have withstood the test of time.
June 10, 2020
Thanx for publishing the PdF of the original 5BX booklet. It brings back memories. My father flew all kinds of military aircraft in the UK in 1941 and North Africa in 1942. He stayed on in the RAAF after the war. He did his Canadian 5BX all his life and never lost his fitness. Only recently I’ve come to realise what an achievement that was. Paradoxically also on TV doctors like Michael Mosley are again reporting the benefits of concise regular bursts of sustained exercise. Even more paradoxically today during the COVID self-isolation how I’ve turned again to the RCAF’s classic 5BX.
June 10, 2020
Thank you for your comment. My father flew a variety of aircraft during WWII, too – mainly Lancasters but also Spitfires and Hurricanes. After a prolonged hiatus from running due to a back injury (and life getting in the way) I’m slowly preparing to climb the mountain that is getting fit once more.
December 14, 2020
This is great adivce!
February 23, 2021
Was issued with 5BX whilst aboard HMS Agincourt 1964 and kept me fit whilst aboard. Then when Sydney went into LOCKDOWN for COVID March 2020 and got to page 4 Age 30 to 34 Feels great to be young again!!!. ( Age 77)Lost 10kgs and friends are envious. Perfect for Dancing. Woman love the 6pack.
Just Do It!!!!
August 13, 2021
Is there a 5BX specially for the elderly?
November 16, 2021
The 5BX plan was “designed for male members of the Royal Canadian Air Force, Royal Canadian Air Cadets, and dependent children”. As such it was not designed for the elderly. It cautions at the outset that if you have any doubt as to your physical ability to undertake the programme you should see your medical adviser. Users 60 years and over are advised to progress through Chart 1 at a rate of at least 10 days at each level. It further warns “if you feel stiff or sore, or if you are unduly breathless at any time, ease up and slow down your rate of progression. This is particularly applicable to the older age groups”. There is no recommended maintenance level for over 60 year olds, but those aged 50-60 are recommended to maintain Chart 2, level C+. The following link to the NHS website provides ‘Physical activity guidelines for older adults aged 65 or over’ https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/exercise/physical-activity-guidelines-older-adults/ which may be safer for older users seeking to improve their fitness.
May 21, 2022
I am 70, and I’ve done slightly modified and truncated versions of the 5BX on a near-daily basis since I was fifteen. What these exercise do, in less than 15 minutes, is work most of the muscles you need just to be reasonably fit and able-bodied. You won’t get one of those gym bodies that you see on the cover of magazine’s like Men’s Health, but you will maintain the capacity to go about your daily life with little or no joint or back pain.
Sit-ups have fallen into disfavor in recent years, but the sit-up is my favorite calisthenic. This because they suit my body. I am long and thin, and I have a small head, so I can just snap them babies up and out. I do a hundred at a time, with no problems. I do think that people who are prone to lower back problems should jettison them in favor of crunches and planks.
I have replaced the running on the spot exercise (which is very good for maintaining the strength of your feet and ankles) with deep knee bends. When I do these, I lean forward and take up some of my weight on my hands. The idea there is to keep myself from toppling over to the side, and also to take some of the load from the tendons in my knees. Also, if you do them at a fast tempo (and I do 25), you elevate your heart rate.
June 1, 2022
If you read the preamble to the 5bx, all the claims made for the exercise program are true. You really can, by doing a medley of 5 exercises every day, produce significant and valuable gains in bodily function, even if you live an otherwise sedentary life.
A key feature of the 5bx is that it describes physical fitness as a capacity that I can actually attain. Physical fitness is just freedom from illness and chronic joint and back pain. It isn’t the capacity to run a marathon or benchpress 300 pounds.
Also, the directions explicitly proscribe working to the point of fatigue or strain. You are advised to do the exercises at your current level until you feel that they’ve become fairly easy, and then progress to the next level. All very reasonable and in fact gentle.
I’m 70. There was never a day in my life when I could have been even marginally competent at any sport, and when I was in high school I dreaded gym class. Nevertheless, the 5bx has protected by basic muscular- skeletal system very well. And that’s all I ever really wanted.
June 3, 2022
People who speak of becoming physically fit need to answer the question, fit for what? At age 70, I can do ten strict form push-ups (that’s where you touch your chest to the floor for the push-up to count) without pain. Consequently, demonstrably, I have healthy hands, arms, elbows and shoulders. That’s what I want from exercise.
I take a smug, spiteful glee in the health problems of Arnold Schwarzenegger, who is now a limping cripple with a diseased heart. Now admittedly Arnold was a magnificent human engine when he was in his twenties, but he destroyed his health with too much weightlifting. I can walk five miles without pain or fatigue, and Arnold can’t.
The 5bx is a wonderful program for building and maintaining muscular, skeletal and joint health. It works, and it is easy to do. Eleven minutes of moderate discomfort yields wonderful benefits, and should be taught to the young as a sane, safe method of keeping your body fit for ordinary life.
June 5, 2022
A wonderful feature of the 5bx program is that is gradual. Followers of it are enjoined to proceed slowly, and to progress only to higher levels as they get stronger. I remember high school gym class, where our teacher (an extremely strong and serious young man) would force us to do push-ups until we couldn’t do any more. And then, whatever your total was, however hard you had strained to reach it, you were told that it wasn’t enough. You weak little person. So of course many of us acquired a pure hatred of calisthenics.
I have never been in a commercial gym in my life. If I ever saw a barbell, I would flee in terror. Those things cause pain. But the 5bx is a simple little medley that you can do at your own pace, without some horrible, arrogant bully telling you that can never achieve salvation in the sight of God, because you are inherently immoral.
If you look at the ultimate charts of the 5bx, it would take an extremely strong and athletic man to reach those levels. That is, the 5bx does have real benefits even for the very strong. If you are, as I am, of less than average strength, you can still derive huge benefits from doing the exercises. Very democratic.
December 29, 2025
Hi,
The 5BX is great and I served in the Police for 30 happy exemplary years and although now retired at a young 60, still use it to maintain its philosophy of getting fit, feeling fit and above all staying fit for life.
I did sport in my younger days, playing football, rugby union, weights and martial arts, as well as walking.
I’m a keen hillwalker and where I live I am lucky to have mountains around.
It was sad that Michael Mosley (Fast Exercise by Dr Michael Mosley-superb) died well before his time and he was a medical Doctor too, so it just goes to show, you need to keep fit, but not be obsessed by it, as some people are and although competition is healthy, it is also important again in my humble opinion to challenge yourself more, but keep within your boundaries/limitations, which is what 5BX and XBX for Women does admiralby.
The book is very cheap to buy and is a classic, much like Dr Morehouse book of Total Fitness of which I also have a copy and wholly recommend.
My Dad-bless him, at one time was a PTI-Army and later Paras and said to me, that ”as long as you keep moving, as the human body is supposed to, then you will be fine” and furthermore saying that any exercise is better than none at all” Dad recommended 5BX to me, for general fitness and for the Police too.
5BX has never let me down, enough said!