Preparing for the NSW Police Force Capacity Test?

Are you considering joining the NSW Police Force?

The NSW Police Force require all potential academy recruits to pass the physical capacity tests. This is an assessment of an individual’s physical fitness which covers the physicality, safety and mental strength requirement of a police officer.

The physical capacity test requires a participant to pass the following tests:

✅Hand Grip – 30kg on each hand

✅Prone Bridge – 90 seconds

✅Vertical Jump – 30cm or Greater

✅Push Ups – 25 repetitions

✅Illinois Agility Test – 20 seconds or less

✅Multi-Stage Fitness Test – Level 7.1

Training for the Test

There are many ways you can prepare for the battery of tests above, when forming a program it’s important to consider the FITT principles of training.

F – Frequency

I – Intensity

T – Time

T – Type

Let’s break down each to help you formulate a suitable program you can easily apply to your training regime.

Frequency

When designing a program specific for passing a physical test it’s important to consider how often you’re able to train for each component. Developing a suitable frequency will reduce your risk of injury whilst maximising the appropriate gains in the time you have available.

We recommend looking at your current training schedule and assessing how you can incorporate each exercise/test into your training.

Here are some examples:  If you are currently training 3x a week in the gym performing a mixture of cardio and weight training, altering your program to incorporate an exercise per test may be enough.

If you are currently only attending soccer training once a week and playing a game once per week, you may need to incorporate 1-2 gym sessions per week to cover the strength components of the tests.

Another important consideration with frequency is how often you are completing the actual tests. If you are testing each week, this may be too often and can lead to overtraining, whereas, If you are testing too little you may not know what your current capacity is.

Ultimately, your testing and training frequency is individual dependent, it’s best to develop a suitable frequency that suits you and your lifestyle.

Intensity

The intensity of a training program has many variables of which need to be assessed regularly. Intensity refers to the difficulty of an exercise or program, this can widely vary from person to person. There are many ways to measure intensity from heart rate, to rate of perceived exertion. These measures can be assessed when performing the test or exercise program and can vary from day to day with many variables at play.

Let’s break down what intensities can look like when testing vs when developing a training program.

Maximal effort tests are considered tests of the highest intensities. An example of a maximal physical test is the multi-stage fitness test, this test requires you to reach the highest level possible before you quit.

Whereas, the prone bridge may be considered a sub-maximal test as it may be below your maximum exertion level.

When formulating an exercise program to improve your intensity, ensure you are considering training at lower than maximal effort. This can be achieved by training at lower heart rate zones, using a mid-range rate of perceived exertion and/or working at a percentage of maximal effort. This will help build your capacity when attempting a maximal test.

Time

When formulating your exercise plan, consider the duration of each session. Will your session go for 1-2 hours? or do you only have a 30-minute timeframe available?

This can also determine the intensity of each session. If your goal for the session is to build your strength, the program may be of a longer duration. Alternatively, if the goal is to focus solely on the beep test your tolerance may only allow 10-15 minutes of active exercise.

This is an important consideration as the higher the intensity, the less time may be tolerated. Therefore, the session length may be shorter or longer (including the number of rest breaks required).

In addition to this, how long will your plan go for? If your physical test is in 4 weeks is this a realistic timeframe for you to achieve the goals of the test?

Type

When designing an exercise plan, specificity to your goals is key. If your goal is to increase your fitness and strength specific to the testing requirements, then your program needs to reflect this. As an example, upon testing you reached 10 push-ups on your knees. To improve your push-ups to reach the 25 reps, you need to include push-ups in your program. This can be in the form of eccentrics or incline depending on your current push-up strength.

If you apply this rule to each of the testing requirements you will be able to reach your goals.

Ultimately, training for the NSW police force capacity test is simple. Apply the FITT principle if you are designing your plan. Alternatively, if designing a plan may feel too overwhelming, outsource the work.

Fit Clinic has had great success in helping individuals achieve the testing requirements both in person and online. If you’re looking for an individualised plan specific to your needs reach out to our team at 1300 397 497 to discuss the most suitable option for you. Check out our Fit for Service page here.

All advice is general in nature, seek medical advice when undertaking a new exercise program.