Ranger School's Radical Fitness Test Overhaul

Everything you thought you knew about preparing for Ranger School just changed. The Army has unveiled a radical transformation of the Ranger Physical Fitness Test that will challenge candidates in entirely new ways starting April 2025.

The traditional assessment of push-ups, sit-ups, and a five-mile run? Gone. The new test is a grueling 14-minute continuous event featuring an 800-meter run, dead stop push-ups, sprints, sandbag lifts, farmer's carries, and combat movement drills—followed by a four-mile run under 32 minutes and six chin-ups. This isn't just a minor adjustment; it's a complete reimagining of what it takes to earn the tab.

According to Infantry School leadership, this overhaul serves a critical purpose: reducing injuries and increasing performance by filtering out unprepared candidates earlier. The previous test simply wasn't identifying who could withstand the sustained physical demands of Ranger training. Now, soldiers will face a more realistic preview of what awaits them, requiring functional strength and endurance rather than isolated fitness metrics.

For those with Ranger aspirations, it's time to revolutionize your training approach. Focus on high-intensity interval training, functional movements, sandbag work, and muscular endurance rather than traditional workout splits. The first class facing this new standard begins April 21st, 2025—will you be ready when your time comes? Whether you're actively preparing for Ranger School or simply want to understand these significant changes, this episode provides the insights you need to stay ahead of the curve. Download now, leave a review, and share your thoughts: Will this new test actually lower injuries, and is it the right move for the Ranger program?

Chapters

• 0:00 New Ranger Fitness Test Introduction
• 2:15 Comparing Old vs New Assessment
• 5:25 Is the New Test Harder?
• 7:22 Why the Army Changed the Test
• 10:00 Training Tips for Success
• 12:40 Impact on Ranger School Attrition

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

So you think you're ready for ranger school? Think again. The Army just dropped a brand new fitness test and it's nothing like what you've trained for. There's no more sit-ups, sandbags, sprints and combative crawls. There isn't just a tweak, it's a total transformation. The question is, are you ready for it? Roger Sarn, welcome back to the Roger Sarn Podcast, where we talk all things Army and I'm your host, sarn Cruz. Today, we're breaking down the brand new Ranger Fitness Test that's dropping this month, april 2025.

Speaker 1: 0:47

I'm going to show you exactly what the changes are and why the Army actually made this move and what it means, as in, for you to shoot your shot and earn the tab. So, whether it's going to be you being on orders, whether it's going to be you being on orders prepping for the school, or just wanting to know how to crush this new challenge, that's about you're in the right place. Plus, I could probably give you some training tips, even though I ain't never been to ranger school. But I can also tell you the Army's reasoning behind the change and why. Because that's the most important part, right? We like telling people why. Why is it that this could actually help lower injuries Because that's the point and boost performances at Ranger School. So stick with me until the end. I'll even cover how this changes might even drop. Like the change might even drop, like the rates and, uh and I'm talking about success rates and, um, what you need in order to do right now to stay ahead of this curve. All right. So, before I start, do me a favor, go ahead and download and uh, leave a review when you're, when you're done, so, when we, um, when I story, uh, I just came up with some questions that I think that you guys would uh probably have in your head At least they came to my head, right.

Speaker 1: 2:12

So I have a few points that I want to talk about. The first one is what's changing in the fitness assessment? Right, cause that's the first thing, right. So, first off, um, the test assessment. Right, because that's the first thing, right. So, first off, the test itself. Right, the old ranger, physical fitness assessment it's gone. Right, just told you, right, those sit-ups, they're gone. Instead, the new test it looks something straight out of the expert badges. If you ask me, it's the same thing. Almost I would say that it is the same thing, pretty much an EPFT. So if you've been through E3B expert, like the EFMB, eib, esbb. You've more than likely taken this test in. So the old ranger course assessment they um, it consisted of, uh, like the 49 push-ups, 59 sit-ups and the file my five mile run in 40 minutes and I think it was six chin-ups.

Speaker 1: 3:24

And now the new events. They're going to be something along the lines of you're going to have the 800 meter run, then you're going to go into a dead stop push-up, right, and that's kind of like the hand release push-ups, just no arm extension. Then you go into a 100-meter sprint. Then you go into a 16 sandbag lift. They're 40 pounds a piece and you have to lift them onto like a 68-inch platform. Then you're going to do 50 meters of farmer's carry and you're going to have two 40 pound water jugs right, you know the water cans. Then you're going to move into 50 meter movement drills and that's the 25 meter high crawl. Then you got the 25 meter three to five second rush and if that's not enough, another 800 meter run and everything I just mentioned is all in 14 minutes. But wait, there's more. It doesn't stop, ladies and gentlemen. Then you're going to change into your PT uniform for a four mile run and that has to be under 32 minutes plus six chin-ups. So that's like a full body endurance heavy grinder. It's just like a grinder session, uh, and that's really just designated to to stress you out like in real combat scenarios, would right. So that's the comparison between the old Ranger assessment and this new one coming up.

Speaker 1: 5:14

So the next thing that came to my head is like hmm, now that we're talking, we're we're looking at both of them, is the test harder or is it easier? So I'm just going to be real with you. It's tougher. Why, you say, I know you probably asking why, even though I just literally lift, listed everything be before. But you were like, why is it tough? Why is it? Why is it tougher? And that's because this test isn't just about isolated fitness anymore, right, it's literally about a continuous functional strength and endurance type deal. Right? Because before you just, hey, I stand in line and I'm going to do this event, boom. Hey, I stand in line, I'm going to do this event, boom. And then you go into the next event and then the next event and everything has like a little weight, but not this one. This one is one straight motion. It's nine events, right?

Speaker 1: 6:17

So I guess they thought that anyone can train for sit-ups. Anyone can train for the push-ups, you know, uh, but sprinting, when it comes to sprinting, carrying weight, crawling, lifting those sandbags and doing it under uh, like a time pressure that just hit different. If you ask me, it really does the Army itself. They just want to raise the bar. The Rangers want to raise the bar and this test will separate the well-rounded from the one-dimensional. And they're talking about me. I'm one-dimensional, all right, but yeah, I think overall, yeah, it is more difficult than the other one, and um, and it's more, uh, like I said, it's more it's, it's about continuous, uh, functional strength and endurance. So that's the second thing that I thought, that I thought that you guys might think of. That be good to talk about.

Speaker 1: 7:17

The third thing that um came to my head is like, why the change? Like what's the goal? What's the point? Right, like we get it. You're the roughest and toughest, we get it. It's difficult, we get it. It's like every badge throughout the years has gotten more and more and more difficult to get, and there's a reason for that because competition, right. But um, yeah, I think the goal is, is it? It's simple, it's to, it's just to create um, the test, uh, uh, uh, to be like. It's better. It's a better predictor of who can actually make it through ranger school. Right, instead, instead of just sitting there, just push up, sit ups, run, right? We're going to give you a small synopsis of what it's going to be like for the next upteen months, right?

Speaker 1: 8:08

So if, according to like the infantry school commander right, he said this change is about reducing injuries and increasing performance by filtering out unprepared candidates earlier in the pipeline and it makes sense, right, and think about it. I can pass pushups, I can pass sit-ups, I can run the mileage that they want me to do in a certain amount of time and do a few chin-ups afterwards. But if I'm not ready for ranger school, if I'm not ready to be in a continuous functional strength and endurance, body and mind frame, then I am going to get hurt Because I haven't put my body through that, I'm not training for that. I'm training for isolated events versus continuous events. So, yeah, what general, what? What? What general? Um Ken Kennery said, is it? I mean, obviously he knows what he's talking about, but I agree with it. So, it, it does align with the ACFT focus, right, because that's on real world readiness and, uh, the old tests. He just said it just ain't cutting it anymore. That was his line. You know the bottom line.

Speaker 1: 9:22

So why did they change it? To avoid injuries when troops go to the course. And what was the goal? It's to less injuries and, again, to weed out the weak. So it it just, I think ultimately and I'll talk about this in a second it'll create less, less issues, and I'll talk about what I'm talking about. I'll talk about what I'm talking about in a second. I'll tell you what I mean in a second.

Speaker 1: 9:53

So, um, the? The fourth thing that came to my head was is there guidance on how to train for it? So, how do you train for this thing? Right, how do you? How do you do it? I think the good news is we already know what works. There's, there's a ton of influencers out there with tabs that show how they made it, what worked for them in the past and how they actually stay fit, right, um. So I think that, coupled with those that are tabbed at your brigades, they're also going to help out. Um, we had a captain that went to um, to, to, to, uh, rasp, and um, our, uh, our tab guy was training them up, you know. So it's just like e3b right it was. You got the train up period because it gets you on the glide path to be successful, and that also helps.

Speaker 1: 10:58

What you could also do I add my little two cents into it is just focus on the following pillars Hit training right, high intensity interval training, and that's for like the run and sprint run, sprint run portions. Focus on sandbag and sled works, right For the lifting and the dragging. Focus on far on farmer's carries and, uh, combative crawls for the muscular endurance Cause, that's once your muscles are just depleted with oxygen. You're done, son. And then pushups and sit-ups for upper body control.

Speaker 1: 11:31

Um, like I said, I mean there are a plethora of ways to prepare for this. If you've prepared for E3B, that EPFA, you're going to at least be able to help yourself with this. So I think just build your workouts around functional movements. I think just build your workouts around functional movements. If you're still only doing the push-pull splits, long distance runs, you're more than likely not preparing for the demands of this test. Right, and this is what I'm referring to. I'm not saying you're not ready for ACFT, I'm not saying you're not ready, that you're not fit or whatever it is, but for this particular test. If you're doing just isolated stuff, then maybe it's not going to work out, because there's a lot of cardio in there and it's short term, fast twitch muscles.

Speaker 1: 12:34

So the fifth thing that came up in my head is will this affect Ranger School attrition rates? And this is what I'm talking about. That I said. I would elaborate In short yes, in the short term, I would say yes, probably yes.

Speaker 1: 12:51

The test itself is going to be designed, or what is designed to filter out, like the unprepared candidates right Before they even get into rap week. So I think the failure rate at the fitness gate may go up initially, initially, but in the long term, the goal that General Ken Henry is referring to or wants to do, his vision, is to lessen the injuries right, to have better prepared Rangers and fewer dropouts after day one. So that kind of means if you're smart, then start training now so you'll have the upper hand right, because at the end of the day, preparation is going to be key and they already gave it to you. The first class is going to kick off 21 April, the first class to experience this Ranger assessment uh, ranger assessment, unless they change it, but up as of right now, it's 21 April and that will be the first time that this test gets put into action. So what's the bottom line? Um, the new Ranger physical fitness assessment is here and it's here to stay, and, unless they change it right, it's going to be designed to challenge the full spectrum warrior, right? If you want this prestigious tab, start training now, because the test, as of 21 April, will already exist. April will already exist.

Speaker 1: 14:38

Now I want to hear from you Do you think the new ranger test will lower injuries, and is it a good or bad thing that they changed it? And if you found this information or this discussion insightful, you could check out my other video that I talk about. Are you? I ask you a really good question is are your PT sessions effective or not? So, as always, remember you don't have to embrace the suck If you got the right tools in your ruck. I'm Sarn Cruz and I'm out Peace.