U.S. Marines are renowned for strength and toughness. But they do not all arrive that way at Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, or Marine boot camp. New recruit fitness begins with a regimented introduction to discipline and proper procedure because fitness is mental as well as physical. Training starts with the Initial Strength Test, IST; proceeds through the Combat Fitness Test, CFT; and ends with the Marine's rite of passage, the 54-hour Crucible.
Initial Strength Test
On Parris Island training is set up to help you pass proficiency testing milestones as your training and testing become progressively harder. The IST assesses your abilities on arrival at Parris Island. If you do not meet the minimum standards, you will be reassigned to the Physical Conditioning Platoon for remedial fitness training, usually about two months. Your drill instructor, DI, will be sure you work very hard. Male recruits will be trained to complete two pull-ups, 44 crunches in two minutes and a 1.5 mile run in 13.5 minutes. Female recruits will complete a 12-second flexed-arm hang, 44 crunches in two minutes and a 1.5 mile run in 15 minutes. The number of daily training hours can vary according to your DI's satisfaction with your progress.
Physical Fitness Test
After 60 days of your 70-day training, you will be tested on a three-event physical fitness test, or PFT. Recruit training emphasizes arm, leg and core muscle strength; agility; martial arts skills; and cardiopulmonary endurance. Male recruits will complete three pull-ups, 50 crunches in two minutes and a 3.0 mile run in 28 minutes. Female recruits will complete a 15-second flexed-arm hang, 50 crunches in two minutes and a 3.0 mile run in 31 minutes. Other fitness training includes swimming and survival and combat skills distributed throughout recruit training. Marines must also pass the PFT every six months after training.
Combat Fitness Test
As a recruit you will train for your three-event CFT at the end of week 10. The minimum fitness standards for a fit 17-year-old Marine include the Movement to Contact event, which is a timed 880-yard run in your Marine Corps Combat Utility Uniform and boots. The Ammunition Lift tests you as you repeatedly heft a 30-lb. ammunition can overhead as fast as you can. The Maneuver Under Fire event requires sprinting, crawling and applying casualty evacuation techniques while carrying two 30-lb. ammunition cans and throwing a grenade. The only difference between males and females is a slightly shorter time requirement for males.
The Crucible
The Crucible, conducted on training days 63 through 65, is a final, 54-hour trial by fire that proves your training has transformed you from a recruit into a Marine. You will endure food and sleep deprivation, travel by foot over 48 miles, and work your way through 29 problem-solving exercises at 36 different stations. Strength and mental toughness training will prepare you to do all this while carrying 45 lbs. of standard gear, your uniform and your M16-A2 service rifle.
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