The usaf pt test chart is a great resource to show you what are the Air Force physical fitness standards? Are you seeking to run faster over 1.5 miles during your PT test? If so, I am glad you have arrived here. I served over 20 years on active duty in the US Army. We focus on 2 miles whereas the Air Force, Navy and Coast Guard have their personnel run 1.5 miles (2.4km) for their physical fitness tests. Remember, the faster you get at these shorter distances the more competitive you will be at the longer races.
You can view the united states air force physical fitness chart here. You will see the exact times you need to hit per your age for males and females. In addition, the usaf pt test chart will also show you the amount of push ups and sit ups you need to achieve as well. Pace sustainment is the biggest hindrance for most runners whether military or civilian. I recent created a new resource called the Army ACFT Embrace the Suck 2 mile running course. I didn't see an online resource available to help military members run faster on their physical fitness tests.
So, decided to create one. I have run 9:27 for 2 miles, 14:18 for 5K and 2:19:35. You are more than welcome to visit the about page if you would like to learn more about my racing background. I cover all of the strategies and tactics I was taught by 3 of the world's top distance running coaches. In addition, from numerous world-class runners I lived and trained with.
What Are the Air Force PT Requirements 2022?
Air Force personnel focus on running 1.5 miles or 6 laps of the track. Military members as well as civilians often times run too fast too soon and pay for it when they are running at faster paces. Remember, the longer your build up, the better your results will be. The reason being is you will not rush your fitness. It takes between 21 days to 4 weeks for the body to adapt to any stress load you are placing on it.
So, it is very tough to get in superior race shape for the air force pt test in a matter of 4 to 8 weeks. Sure, you will gain some general fitness in that time frame. That being said, I would recommend a build up of 16 to 20 weeks. Would you like to drop a minute or 2 off of your current air force 1.5 mile run time? If so, you will have to be strategic in how you set up your training. The new running course I created concludes with a 16-week training plan built for your specific run time goal.
In addition, the course is comprised of 9 modules and 58 video lessons. I also will be personally interviewing service members at the end of the course and sharing it within the course. In addition, on the RunDreamAchieve YouTube channel. Of course, not all service members will want to share their story but those who do I will be sharing within this course. The reason is so that you can also get to hear more from them, what worked and how they achieve their new personal best.
LEARN MORE ABOUT THE ARMY ACFT 2 MILE COURSEHow Fast Do You Have to Run a Mile in the Air Force?
Male Air Force service members need to run at least 13 minutes and 45 seconds for the 1.5 mile run. Females need to run a time of at least 16 minutes. My first recommendation to get better is focus on spending at least 4 weeks easy. In addition, start adding in strides twice per week during your base-building phase of your training. I would then focus on a 16-week build up training specifically for your goal 1.5 mile (Air Force, Navy & Coast Guard), 2 mile (Army) or 3 mile (Marines) time.
The 16-week training plan at the conclusion of the running course will take the guesswork out of your training. You will have a better idea of what workouts to do, why you are doing them and the proper duration of the workout. Base building is very important.
The main reason is you are strengthening your body to prepare properly for faster, anaerobic training. In addition, to minimize the likelihood of getting an injury. Pool running is a great alternative if you have an injury but still want to run. You can get in the deep end of the pool and focus on easy or hard running. Of course, my top recommendation is to give yourself complete rest. That being said, if you focus first on aerobic training you will lessen the chances of getting injured.
Do You Run Everyday in Air Force Basic Training?
I can speak regarding Army basic training and the answer is, yes. Air Force basic training is also highly demanding and you will be required to run just about every day. The problem is after we as service members depart basic training many get soft. Sure, service members will do mandatory morning physical training. That being said, the amount of running you will likely do on a daily basis will be less compared to basic training. The above listed usaf pt test chart gives you your starting point.
We have 3 choices in military service. We can be average, good or great at what we do. There are many airman, as well as military members in other US branches and allied forces, who are seeking to run faster. So, higher mileage by itself is not a guarantee you will run a faster 1.5 mile time. The good news is you don't have to at this particular race distance. Of course, if you are preparing to train for a 10 mile, half marathon or marathon then more mileage is going to be needed.
You can still run high mileage and miss your racing goals. My focus with the Army 2 mile running course is to help runners get better results by using leverage. I share the exact strategies I used to eventually qualify for the Army World Class Athlete Program. It was not an easy achievement. In fact, it took my first 5 years of military service in order to make it to that unit. The Air Force also has a World Class Athlete Program. So, the faster you can run the 1.5 mile time on your air force pt test the better off you will be. It is most certainly not an easy task to qualify for these elite units.
LEARN MORE ABOUT THE ARMY ACFT 2 MILE COURSEUSAF 1.5 Mile Run Times
The 4 phase of training that I discuss in RunDreamAchieve running courses and our training plans are…
- Base-building phase
- Race specifics training phase
- Speed development phase
- Taper phase
Do you usually run long and slow during your long runs every weekend? If so, start mixing up the paces of your runs. You don't want to be running aerobically too often. Yes, you will build your endurance. That being said, you won't improve your body's lactate tolerance. Again, we want to improve your pace sustainment capability. Easy running won't produce this physiological adaptation. Faster running will. In addition, we also recruit more fast twitch muscle fibers by running at fast, anaerobic efforts.
The key strategy is know how much easy and hard running you need to be doing on a weekly basis. You can do too much of one (fast running) and become stale and injury-prone. Also, you could run too easy (aerobic running) and not get race prepared. Remember, there is a massive difference between running 1.5 miles and racing 1.5 miles.
Run Longer Tempo Runs
As mentioned above, the usaf pt test chart will give you your starting point. You will know the time you need to run, push ups and sit ups you need to complete. My aim with the Army 2 mile running course is to help you achieve those particular run times. In addition, to help you drop significant time off of your 1.5 mile run time. What has been the longest tempo run you have done preparing for your air force pt test? 2 miles? 3? My recommendation is to focus on working to lengthen the duration out to 4 to 5 miles (8km).
Imagine how much easier your 1.5 mile time would be by doing this? Again, running at faster efforts will help make that 1.5 mile race pace to feel easier and more manageable. So, longer time spent running at your anaerobic threshold will help make you stronger when it comes to running all out. We run between 85 to 89 percent of our maximum heart rate at AT effort.
You also need to do 1, weekly vo2 max workout. Examples of vo2 max workouts are speed intervals, hill repetitions and fartlek workouts. We are running at 95 to 100 percent of max heart rate at this effort. Again, tempo runs, vo2 max workouts and long runs will all work to counteract lactic acid accumulation.
Closing Thoughts
Lastly, focus on mental training too. There are far too many military members and civilians alike who bypass this critical step. We always focus on physical training but not so much when it comes to mental rehearsal. So, take 10 to 15 minutes daily and visualize yourself getting across the finish line in your goal 1.5 mile, 2 mile or 3 mile time. It has to happen in the mind before it will become a reality in real life. The world's top middle to long distance runners combine both mental as well as physical training.
Also, aim at running a negative. So, focus on running the last 3 laps faster than you ran the first 3. In addition, don't plan your attack until you get 3 laps to go. You won't want to go out too fast, go into oxygen debt and be forced to drastically slow down. Again, the goal with this course is to train smarter, get better results and run a new personal best. Make sure to keep in touch with me by subscribing to the RunDreamAchieve YouTube channel. The link is listed above in this post. I look forward to hearing about your new personal best and how this course has helped you drop significant time off your pt test run times.
LEARN MORE ABOUT THE ARMY ACFT 2 MILE COURSE
