Physical Fitness and Endurance
Physical Fitness and Endurance tests your capacity for sustained physical effort and your understanding of safe training. The screening looks at cardiovascular endurance, strength, core stability, flexibility, and body composition, alongside a consistent training record.
Core principles
- Overload and progression: increase distance, repetitions, or load gradually, not abruptly.
- Specificity: running improves running; push-ups improve upper-body strength; core work improves posture and stability.
- Recovery: adaptation happens during rest; sleep and easy days are part of training.
- Hydration and nutrition: avoid crash diets; carry water for longer runs; do not train hard in peak heat without acclimatisation.
- Injury prevention: warm up, use correct form, and stop if pain is sharp or joint-related.
Worked example
A candidate weighs 72 kg and is 1.75 m tall. Calculate BMI and interpret it. BMI = weight (kg) / height² (m²) = 72 / (1.75 × 1.75) = 72 / 3.0625 = 23.5. This falls in the normal range (18.5–24.9). The reasoning matters: square the height in metres, not centimetres, and do not round the height before squaring.
Traps
- Training only for strength and neglecting endurance.
- Crash dieting before measurement, causing weakness.
- Wearing new shoes on the test day.
- Ignoring persistent shin or knee pain.
Key points
- Build an aerobic base with regular easy running.
- Progress weekly mileage by small increments.
- Include push-ups, sit-ups, and core exercises.
- Use BMI correctly: kg/m².
- Practise the actual test sequence before the screening.