Preparing for a police or military fitness test at the gym

Training for the wrong test wastes weeks. This page does not list official UAE police or military standards, because the recruiting body sets them and may share them with applicants directly. Go to the source: the recruiting body you are applying to.

• Which events are in the test, and in what order?
• How is each event scored, and what is the pass mark for your age group and sex?
• How much rest is allowed between events?
• What surface is it on, and what do you wear: trainers, boots or uniform?
• Is there a medical examination before the fitness test?
• When is it held, and can you retake it if you fall short?

Write the answers down. They become the plan's final stage, and until you have them the training stays general.

A 2025 scoping review by Zhang and colleagues analysed 16 police fitness tests from the UK, the US, South Korea, the Netherlands, Australia, Canada and China. None came from the UAE. Nine were batteries of basic fitness items, and seven were obstacle courses built around duty tasks such as a foot chase, crossing obstacles, physical control and carrying someone to safety. The most common components were cardiorespiratory endurance, muscular strength and endurance, and agility, and the authors found no model that was right for every setting.

It is tempting to prepare by running more, but the military research points to strength as well. A 2022 review by Vaara and colleagues found that carrying loads draws on both aerobic and muscular fitness, with maximal strength mattering more as the load gets heavier, while lifting tasks are strongly associated with maximal strength and power.

• Load carriage improved most when strength, aerobic and load-carriage training were combined.
• Maximal lifting capacity improved with strength training alone or with strength and aerobic training together.
• Repetitive lifting and carrying improved with strength training, aerobic training or both.
• The authors suggest that combined training at lower volume but higher intensity may be a practical route for recruits.

Test yourself every few weeks in stage two on the events you expect, and log the results. Progress shows in the log, and a coach can use it to decide what to push next.

• Count only full reps: chest to the agreed depth on push-ups, full extension at the bottom of a pull-up. Ask a training partner to judge.
• If you cannot yet do a push-up from the floor, follow the first push-up progression. For the bar, see training for your first pull-up.
• If you do not know whether the test uses sit-ups or planks, train both.
• If the test runs outdoors, ask where and when, and follow official heat guidance whenever you practise outside.
• If you have a medical condition, or pain during training, see a doctor or physiotherapist before you carry on.

RPM is one independent club, on Level 4 of AD HUB Sports Complex in Al Manhal. It has no link with the police, the armed forces or Rabdan Academy, and it does not set, run or mark any fitness test. What a coach can do is plan towards a standard you bring, with a date to aim for.

• The functional area has a turf lane with a sled, kettlebells, dumbbells, battle ropes, medicine balls and step boxes. The training floor has treadmills, a plate-loaded pulldown, cable towers and a squat rack.
• A pull-up bar is not confirmed, so ask before you plan your bar practice around it.
• Women preparing for a test can use the Ladies section, which is women-only, has its own strength and cardio equipment and is where the roster's female coaches work.
• A coach can write the plan through Engine, the tier with coached programming, or Atelier, which centres on one-to-one sessions. Confirm what each includes, then book the free guided tour at the hour you would train.