ACFT Preparation: Drills, Workouts & Exercises for Army Success

For ACFT preparation, focus on the exercises that are useful to build muscle power, endurance, aerobic power, and strength. Follow a proper exercise and ACFT diet plan to prepare yourself for the Army Fitness Test. Below, I have provided a detailed guide and a proper exercise plan for AFT preparation.

ACFT Preparation Exercises

The Army Fitness Test is tough to pass. However, you can easily pass it with proper drills, workouts, and preparation. Below, I have provided the workout for each AFT events in order that would help you to better prepare for ACFT:

An infographic shows the question, "Which exercise for deadlift improvement?" with a person holding a barbell for Barbell Squat and a person lifting weights for Romanian Deadlift.

Maximum Deadlift Preparation

Here are the two different exercises that will help you improve your maximum deadlift over time while you wait to take your next Army Fitness Test.

Barbell squat

We’ll start with the barbell squat. This exercise helps make your legs stronger, especially your thighs, glutes, and hamstrings. To do it, lift the bar off the rack. Keep your feet about shoulder-width apart or a little wider. Make sure to tighten your core and keep your chest up straight.

Lower your butt and legs until your thighs are about parallel with the ground at 90 90-degree angle, before returning to the upright position. Once complete, rack the weight back onto the machine. Hold your breath in your abdomen while descending, then exhale as you complete the upward movement.

Romanian Deadlift

Secondly, we will go with the Romanian deadlift. This exercise will empower your hamstrings and glutes. The RDL starts in a standing position while holding two dumbbells or kettlebells. Slightly bend your knees and then descend as far as you can without compromising your form. Stretch your hamstrings to their maximum limit. Return to the starting position to complete one repetition. You can do between 6-12 reps.

Plank ACFT Preparation Workouts

The simpler the Plank event looks, the more difficult it is. But you can easily prepare to pass these events with these three simple workouts:

Regular Plank

This exercise looks very simple, but it will make the Plank very easy for you. You hold your body with your arms straight out in front of you, back nice and straight. Nothing to do but hold this position as long as possible.

High plank steps

High Plank steps put stress on the shoulders and help you develop shoulder strength. You go into a high plank position and step one foot in and out, then the other foot. Repeat these steps while trying to keep your shoulders stable.

Hip Dips

Hips dips strengthen the lower plank position and work the rotating and twisting portion of your core. Get into a regular low plank, then twist one hip down to the ground and back up, alternating sides smoothly. This rotation stresses alternating shoulders, helping to build stamina and strength. Do this exercise for 30 to 60 seconds for good results.

Sprint Drag Cary Drills

Sprint Drag Carry (SDC) is a hard and challenging event in the Army Fitness Test. However, following this Sprint Drag Carry preparation exercise will make it smooth and easy for you.

Sprint Workouts

A good beginner workout is 100-meter max-effort sprints with about one minute of rest between repeats. Do 8 to 10 reps for a solid sprint session once a week.

Ruck Marching

Don’t underestimate ruck marching, especially run rucking. It significantly improves endurance, cardiovascular fitness, and strength endurance. These improvements will pay you off during the Sprint Drag Carry test.

Hand Release Push Ups Drills

Here are two powerful drills to improve your HRP:

10 to 12 repetitions of hand-release push-ups

To begin, we will perform 10 to 12 repetitions of hand-release push-ups. At the end of the repetitions, you will get your timer, then rest for one minute. After resting, you’ll go back into 10 to 12 repetitions of hand-release push-ups. You will repeat this cycle five times.

Normal Push-up

The next exercise is normal push-ups with some type of resistance on your back. You’ll do 10 to 20 reps of these for three to four sets.

Two Mile Run

A two-mile run is a very hard exercise, but I have made it easy for you through this exercise:

Sprints

Start working on 10 sprints of 100 meters at 100% effort, with a 1.5-minute rest between intervals. Do that ten times with about a minute and a half to two minutes rest between sprints.

You’ll see massive results just doing that once a week, so incorporate that into your regimen. Once you’re used to it, start switching it up: try 4 sprints of 50m, then 4 sprints of 100m, then 4 sprints of 200m. That can be your whole sprint workout for the day. Start adding more distance as you become more advanced, maxing out at about 400m (one lap). Sprints will help you become a better runner.

Common Mistakes To Avoid While ACFT Preparation

Here are the five most common mistakes that cause you to fail the ACFT. You must avoid these to pass your Army Fitness Test.

Not following a proper training program: Jumping into random workouts just before a few days of the test is a very bad practice. You need a plan that builds all areas tested by the ACFT. Consistency over time beats random bursts of exercise.

Ignoring specific event practice: The ACFT has five different events. Each events test the particular ability and strength of a soldier. Therefore, it is necessary to practice all the events. Practice the test to get better at it.

Doing too much irrelevant training: Don’t waste time on excessive bodybuilding or activities that don’t translate to the ACFT. For example, just bench pressing heavy weights won’t help for running or carrying heavy loads. Focus on functional strength and endurance.

Skipping recovery and risking injury: Overtraining or ignoring rest leads to injury. If you push too hard, too fast, you might get sidelined and miss vital training. Recover well and listen to your body to stay healthy all through your prep.

Poor technique and form: Trying to do more reps or heavier weight with bad form can cause injury and lower your AFT score. Learn the proper technique for each ACFT event. Quality reps beat quantity any day.

Infographic showing five AFT preparation mistakes with a knotted rope. Each knot shows issues like no training, poor form, and no recovery

FAQs

You need to practice all the events for good ACFT preparation. Focus on such exercises that are beneficial for AFT.

Barbell squats and Romanian deadlifts are great. They strengthen your legs, glutes, and hamstrings to improve deadlift performance.

Do 10-12 reps of hand-release push-ups with short rests, then normal push-ups with resistance, and finish with a max-out set.

Practice regular planks, high plank steps, and hip dips. These improve your shoulder strength and core stability.

Incorporate sprint intervals of different distances, starting with 10 sprints of 100 meters and gradually mix in 50m, 100m, and 200m sprints.

Avoid random workouts and preparation plans, ignoring specific event practice, overtraining without rest, poor form, and focusing too much on bodybuilding instead of functional fitness.

Conclusion

To pass the Army Fitness Test, train all key ACFT exercises regularly. Do barbell squats and Romanian deadlifts to build strength for the maximum deadlift. Practice regular planks, high plank steps, and hip dips to improve core stability. Use sprint drag carry drills to boost endurance. Work on hand-release push-ups with resistance for upper body power. Include sprint intervals to improve your two-mile run. Consistent practice is the key to success.