Why Training for The ACFT is a Waste of Time

If I were given the following options:

A) Watch paint dry

B) Follow an ACFT program

This article explains why I'm choosing option A all day.

The Army Combat Fitness Test (ACFT) is a relatively new test designed to periodically assess soldiers’ fitness levels through a series of strength, strength-endurance, power and aerobic capacity assessments. Since its inception, it has been a hot topic amongst soldiers; is it a complete fitness test? Is it better than the old PT test? Can anyone max it? How do I max it?

While an unfortunate number of soldiers couldn’t care less about their physical fitness, many soldiers are interested in putting up their best possible score. To max the test with a score of 600, you must earn a perfect score of 100 on six individual events. The events included in the test are:

*Max score examples below are from the 27-31 year old male age group—slight variances in certain events for older/younger soldier.

1. Hex bar deadlift (100 pts = 340lbs x 3 reps)

-Testing for full body strength, biased towards the lower body

2. Standing Power throw (100 pts = 13.1 meters)

-Testing for power and coordination

3. Hand-Release Pushup (100pts = 62 reps in 2 minutes)

-Testing for push muscle (pecs, triceps, front delts) strength-endurance

4. Sprint-Drag-Carry (100 pts = 1:30 or faster)

-Testing for agility/athleticism and aerobic/anaerobic conditioning

5. Plank (100 pts = 3:30)

-Testing for core muscle endurance

6. 2 mile run (100 pts = 13:31)

-Testing for run-specific aerobic endurance

I’m commonly asked whether or not I plan to make a program to prepare specifically for the ACFT, and my answer is—and will continue to be—a resounding “no”. Why? I don’t believe military fitness tests should be trained for. In this article, I’ll explain why this is my stance, as well as why you should train to perform better at your job first and foremost, and as a byproduct, ace the ACFT. In part 2, I’ll discuss the basics of the three energy systems, how to bias each one in training, and as a result, develop the fitness required to be a physically capable tactical athlete and able to max the ACFT at the drop of a dime.

Why not train for it? 

Although the ACFT tests a multitude of different fitness disciplines, and is more indicative of fitness than the APFT—2 minutes of pushups, 2 minutes of sit ups, 2 mile run—it’s still an incomplete test of fitness. In other words, just because you’re proficient at the specific ACFT events does NOT mean you’re optimally fit to do your job at a high level as a tactical athlete. 

However, the inverse is not true; if you’re optimally fit to do your job as a tactical athlete, you’re likely to smash the ACFT like it’s nothing. As a soldier, your primary focus with physical training should be developing the fitness required to do your job at the highest level, rather than to perform as well as possible on a fitness test. 

ACFT Vs. College Exams

I like to use the analogy of college exams to drive this point home. Although passing college exams is important because it prevents you from failing out, the main reason to attend college is to learn and develop skills and knowledge for a future job in which you want to perform well. (This may not be everyone’s main reason for college, but if your goals are anything but, you’re wasting your time and money—or most likely, your parents’ money). In other words, you could ace all the college exams you ever take, but that won’t always directly translate to being a high performer in your post-college job.

Whereas, if you focus on learning and mastering the curriculum in your classes by cultivating strong study habits, you’re more likely to retain and put to use what you've learned, and acing the tests will simply be a byproduct of your study habits.

The less optimal—albeit likely more common—approach to college is to cram for tests. Many students have atrocious study habits, but because they want to remain enrolled, they spend the day (often into the wee hours of the morning) before the exam preparing mostly for the specific questions they anticipate to see. This example of last minute cramming may very well result in stellar grades, but it’s far less likely to result in lasting knowledge and skills to be called upon in the future.

Our brains have limited capacity to retain a high volume of information learned in a condensed, often stimulant-fueled duration. The result? An impressive GPA, but little to none of the information sticks and they’ll inevitably be drinking from a firehose when unable to recall it in the future. All that money spent on college, very little to show for it.

The same can be said for the ACFT. In this case, the ACFT is the college exam, and your study habits are your training habits. If you only train specifically for the ACFT, sure, you may fare well on the test, but what happens when you need to display non-ACFT-specific fitness in a real world, on-the-job, potentially life or death scenario? The potential 2nd and 3rd order consequences of being “fitness test focused” rather than “job-performance fitness focused” typically fall by the wayside, and it’s a big problem Army-wide.

However, if your year-round training habits are such that you’re always well rounded and physically capable, when it’s time to take a test (ACFT), you’ll have already developed the fitness prerequisites and the test will be a walk in the park. Additionally—and most importantly—you’ll possess the fitness capabilities to perform your job at a high level.

Caveats

While a sound, consistent, job-performance focused training regimen will account for ~95% of your potential success on the ACFT, there are absolutely use cases for ACFT specific prep as the test day approaches. Back to the college analogy, perhaps you study for 30 minutes every day, but when the test is approaching you do some extra studying the day or 2 prior, focusing specifically on test questions rather than the more broad lesson scope. 

The same approach can be used for the ACFT. You’ll want to determine your weakest event(s) and focus on refining them respectively as you approach the test. This works better for certain events than others, and only applies if you’re most of the way there. 

For example, if you’re only capable of deadlifting 250 lbs for 3, spending 2 weeks pre-test focusing on the deadlift won’t magically put you at 340 for 3. This is why it’s important to train hard and consistently year round.

However, for something like the standing power throw, many people are capable of passing, but because they don’t have the muscle memory required to time the release of the ball correctly, they end up letting it go too early or too late, resulting in a shorter throw. This can easily be alleviated by practicing it a few times in the 5-10 days leading in. Conversely if you haven't developed the prerequisite strength or power to even be capable of maxing it because your training habits are lacking, refining the technique won’t magically fix the issue.  

Pushups are another example; most people don’t do ACFT style hand release pushups in their regular training, but if you regularly train pushing exercises and push up variations, you’re likely to always be within striking distance of the max reps. In this case, practicing the technique for a week or 2 leading in may be just what you need to get from, say, 55 reps to 63 reps. However, if you’re weak because you don’t train consistently and your max is 35 reps, don’t expect to add 27 reps with 2 weeks of practice.

While the same guidelines to some extent may apply to the plank, sprint-drag-carry and the 2 miler, these tests are significantly easier to max without practice because they involve little to no skill, so long as you’re generally fit.

But these nuances aside, specific ACFT prep programs are not a good use of your time and recovery reserves. Not only is it an incomplete way to train, but I can think of few things more mind-numbing than training for the ACFT on a regular basis. Excitement to train is a highly important factor for program adherence, and when your training is less exciting than watching paint dry, you’re less likely to stick to it long term. The vast majority of your training should be geared towards becoming a more physically capable tactical athlete, rather than a better ACFT test-taker.

What’s this look like?

The easiest way to conceptualize a sound training plan is to break down fitness disciplines into energy systems. The body is fueled by 3 different energy systems: the ATP-PC, Glycolytic, and Oxidative energy systems. All forms of training involve all 3 to some degree, but depending on your exercise modality and intensity thereof, you can bias one over the others. As such, it’s important for soldiers to train some of all 3. In part 2, I’ll break down each energy system and provide examples of how to train in a way that maximizes your overall tactical fitness capabilities, and as a byproduct, enables you hit PRs on the ACFT.

Thank you for reading! Feel free to share this article with a friend who spends most of their time in ACFT prep purgatory.