LE Physical Fitness Test Help/Advice

[Maxrip13]

Well, somewhat fitting (near) end to this thread.

Almost a year after failing my first PFT, I passed my qualifying PFT this week to get into an academy. It was ugly, but I passed.

I have to pass it again in the academy, so it's not over yet, but I do feel like I can close a chapter here.

Thank you to everyone for your advice and help in this thread, on these boards, and of course the original content via TB I and II.

Awesome to hear mate. Great to have good results. Now you can focus on some other attributes for a bit. What academy was it for ? Sorry I can’t remember

[spemma]

Thanks Max

I never said since I’m not sure exactly if I am technically allowed to. Since it’s just workout stuff it probably doesn’t matter, but figured rather be safe than sorry.

It’s one of the 3-letter alphabet soup agencies in the US.

[Maxrip13]

Thanks Max

I never said since I’m not sure exactly if I am technically allowed to. Since it’s just workout stuff it probably doesn’t matter, but figured rather be safe than sorry.

It’s one of the 3-letter alphabet soup agencies in the US.

Roger, understood. Congrats mate and enjoy the pressure of passing being lifted for a bit

[spemma]

Alright so I think I can probably bring this year long thread to a close. I took the official PFT at the academy and passed with my highest score to date. This was my 4th PFT in this process, starting a long time ago with a failure.

My PFT that qualified me for the academy was a little too close for comfort, whereby I struggled on push-ups and the 1.5 mile run. One factor that contributed to the aforementioned was that it took me longer than expected to recover from the 300m sprint.

Knowing that I would have to take the PFT again, I wanted to immediately rectify the two main issues - subpar push-ups and a deteriorating aerobic base. For the push-ups, I ran Stew Smith's 2 week push-up plan, and then made sure to do about 100-150 push-ups, 4-5 times per week to maintain those gains. That worked really well. I also was doing sit-ups 4-5 times per week as well to improve my sit-ups.

I could tell my aerobic base was not where it should be, and I was about 1 year out from the start of my last basebuild. I only had 4 weeks, but I figured the right answer was 4 weeks of basebuild, and that proved to be true. For the 4 weeks, I did 4 E sessions per week and 1 HIC session (Hill Sprints).

For the basebuild, I did:

• Week 1: 3 E sessions @ 30 mins, 1 E session @ 60 mins
• Week 2: 3 E sessions @ 45 mins, 1 E session @ 75 mins
• Week 3: 3 E sessions @ 60 mins, 1 E session @ 90 mins
• Week 4: 4 E sessions @ 60 mins > was trying to taper a bit

The week preceding the PFT, I did a couple 30 minute runs, a 1.5 race pace run to get the feel, and then just a 1 mile slow jog out 2 days before the test. I practiced some push-ups and sit-ups to keep them sharp.

Test day went really well. Starting out the gate with near max points on the sit-ups, which meant I could get the minimum on the remaining events and still pass, so that took the stress off. The 300m was tied with my fastest and I recovered well. My push-ups were 1 short of my best effort, and my 1.5 mile, while not my fastest time, was actually completed with ease.

It was a great feeling to pass and I owe part of that to this program, specifically basebuilding. The PFT is a bit of a weird animal, and while I think that one can pass the PFT on a prescribed TB set up, I think to excel, you have to train a bit differently. This could be in part exclusive to me, since I already came into the program with a lot of strength train, but FAR less conditioning. Basebuilding gave me confidence in my running that I never had.

There's some PT studs at the academy and it's very humbling. I think I have a lot of strength and BJJ skills that others don't, but it still has given me a new perspective on what kind of standards I should try to hold myself to.

In any event, I hope this is helpful to some in the future.

[nickgoldma]

Alright so I think I can probably bring this year long thread to a close. I took the official PFT at the academy and passed with my highest score to date. This was my 4th PFT in this process, starting a long time ago with a failure.

My PFT that qualified me for the academy was a little too close for comfort, whereby I struggled on push-ups and the 1.5 mile run. One factor that contributed to the aforementioned was that it took me longer than expected to recover from the 300m sprint.

Knowing that I would have to take the PFT again, I wanted to immediately rectify the two main issues - subpar push-ups and a deteriorating aerobic base. For the push-ups, I ran Stew Smith's 2 week push-up plan, and then made sure to do about 100-150 push-ups, 4-5 times per week to maintain those gains. That worked really well. I also was doing sit-ups 4-5 times per week as well to improve my sit-ups.

I could tell my aerobic base was not where it should be, and I was about 1 year out from the start of my last basebuild. I only had 4 weeks, but I figured the right answer was 4 weeks of basebuild, and that proved to be true. For the 4 weeks, I did 4 E sessions per week and 1 HIC session (Hill Sprints).

For the basebuild, I did:

• Week 1: 3 E sessions @ 30 mins, 1 E session @ 60 mins
• Week 2: 3 E sessions @ 45 mins, 1 E session @ 75 mins
• Week 3: 3 E sessions @ 60 mins, 1 E session @ 90 mins
• Week 4: 4 E sessions @ 60 mins > was trying to taper a bit

The week preceding the PFT, I did a couple 30 minute runs, a 1.5 race pace run to get the feel, and then just a 1 mile slow jog out 2 days before the test. I practiced some push-ups and sit-ups to keep them sharp.

Test day went really well. Starting out the gate with near max points on the sit-ups, which meant I could get the minimum on the remaining events and still pass, so that took the stress off. The 300m was tied with my fastest and I recovered well. My push-ups were 1 short of my best effort, and my 1.5 mile, while not my fastest time, was actually completed with ease.

It was a great feeling to pass and I owe part of that to this program, specifically basebuilding. The PFT is a bit of a weird animal, and while I think that one can pass the PFT on a prescribed TB set up, I think to excel, you have to train a bit differently. This could be in part exclusive to me, since I already came into the program with a lot of strength train, but FAR less conditioning. Basebuilding gave me confidence in my running that I never had.

There's some PT studs at the academy and it's very humbling. I think I have a lot of strength and BJJ skills that others don't, but it still has given me a new perspective on what kind of standards I should try to hold myself to.

In any event, I hope this is helpful to some in the future.

Congrats, man! So glad to hear you came out on top! This thread is a gold mine of information for PFT prep tips. I wish you the best with everything.

[tacticalbarbelly]

Spemma,

Can you comment on what you did after your bb? I'm in the same boat in more ways than one and would love to see what you did after your 4 week BB (which I've been doing for a week now).

[spemma]

Spemma,

Can you comment on what you did after your bb? I'm in the same boat in more ways than one and would love to see what you did after your 4 week BB (which I've been doing for a week now).

Take a look at my log for my training. I stopped posting but I pretty much followed that routine. I did some other specific work as the PFT approached, which I can talk about here or via PM. Basically things to get my push-up and sit-up numbers maxed.

[tacticalbarbelly]

Spemma,

Can you comment on what you did after your bb? I'm in the same boat in more ways than one and would love to see what you did after your 4 week BB (which I've been doing for a week now).

Take a look at my log for my training. I stopped posting but I pretty much followed that routine. I did some other specific work as the PFT approached, which I can talk about here or via PM. Basically things to get my push-up and sit-up numbers maxed.

Not sure if my account just isn't verified yet or I can't figure out how to PM but please contact me when you can and I'll respond with my situation.