Your training regime – preparing for the fitness test

This six week training program will help you prepare yourself for the demands of the Pre-entry Physical Test (PPT). Make sure that you have had a medical clearance from your physician before you begin this training program. Seek guidance from a qualified gym instructor about the correct technique for performing the weight training routines contained within the program. If starting this program within six weeks of your test weekend then simply count back from the test weekend and start on the appropriate week.

Please note that this program is for individuals of a low to average fitness level and those at a higher level will need to increase intensities and distances to produce improvements in fitness levels. The strength training prescription will be of benefit to both the novice and advanced trainer as it focuses on specific areas that need to be strengthened for the PPT and strength and endurance tests.

The PPT is a very demanding physical task that requires a good level of aerobic and anaerobic fitness; strength and strength endurance as well as some very specific task related fitness. Gym work and general fitness training can develop the basic strength and fitness required but it is clear there is a need for task specific strength and endurance work. The task specific supplementary exercises will help you to prepare for some of the unique physical demands of the PPT. Some of these exercises will be hard to reproduce exactly, use your imagination and attempt to mimic the task in some fashion.

To allow performance of these tasks you will need:

• an old tyre – easy to get from any tyre repair shop
• a 10-15m rope
• understanding friends and partners

Task specific drill descriptions follow, along with routines that have been incorporated into the 6-week training program following stair work, interval runs or flat runs. The focus for the task specific training has been on three disciplines contained within the PPT – the hose drag, the haul aloft and the dummy drag.

Click here to download the plan for your fitness training regime:
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