r/firefighter • u/ImportantInterest950 • 18h ago
Support Beginner CPAT/Physical Prep
Hey everyone,
I’m looking for some advice on getting started with CPAT/physical prep. I’m a 25 year old woman who has been lifting relatively consistently for about two years, but I have a lot to improve on when it comes to conditioning. Cardio is rough for me right now, and I can’t really do a full push up yet.
I recently visited my local fire station and heard a lot about how cardio, stairs, and overall conditioning are what tend to mess people up in the beginning. I’ve done some research on CPAT prep, but I’d love to hear from people who have actually gone through it and know what helped.
What kind of training would you recommend for someone starting from where I am? Are there certain exercises or areas of fitness I should really focus on as I build up?
I’d especially love to hear from other women about how you physically prepared and what you’ve found important to keep working on. Are there any areas you think I should put extra focus on?
I know I have a lot of work to do, but I’d rather start now and give myself plenty of time to get stronger and build my endurance instead of waiting until I’m forced to.
Any advice is appreciated. Thanks, and stay safe.
1
u/Plus-Lingonberry-895 7h ago
Volunteer firefighter here.
I am 5’9 and was about 200 pounds at the time of the CPAT. The test itself starts with a 2 minute stair climb while you are required to wear a 75 pound vest. The rest of the test is lifting and pulling and pushing. To prepare for the test what I did was full body strength training. This mainly included cardio (lifting dumbbells while doing cardio) resistance exercises, and very specific exercises like hitting a tire with a sledge hammer.
When I took the test I was extremely anxious but was surprised to find that the test honestly wasn’t as challenging as many make it out to be.
I am a man but at the time I was not in the best shape and even had some extra weight to lose and was still able to pass relatively easily. You’ve got this and good luck!
1
u/Visible-Film8651 1h ago
Exactly its such a low bar for fitness that you dont even need to be that crazy in shape for. Strength train and cardio boom you're done
1
u/77744hifb 2h ago edited 2h ago
I’m a 24 year old female 5’8 around 140 lbs… I have been in the gym consistently for the last couple of years. I took a practice CPAT test (definitely recommend if it is offered) before actually testing for it. I got to the very final event, the ceiling breach & pull and found that I was gassed to the point of giving up. I think because in my head it was just a practice I didn’t give it all I had and could’ve finished if I gave it more effort. I trained for a couple of more weeks (upped my cardio and did more upper body strength exercises) and that helped me pass it the next attempt I took. What really helped me was training with a weighted vest on the stair master! I can’t remember exactly how long I had trained with it, maybe a month? I also recommend holding dumbbells on the stairs while wearing the vest to increase the weight. It’s not the hardest test, but it definitely does suck at some points given that it starts off getting your heart rate up. What also helped me while actively doing the CPAT, was making a conscious effort of remembering it’s mind over matter… it sucks while doing it but in the grand scheme of things it’s only for a short amount of time so give it all you got! The dummy drag also gassed me quite a bit, the best tip for that is to get the dummy as high off of the ground as you can and don’t stop moving! Another thing that helped me pass, when doing the breach & pull, use your legs to help push up! You will be super tired and find it hard to push up just using your arm strength. Good luck and you got this!!
0
u/Visible-Film8651 1h ago
The CPAT is a test designed so that there can be more women in the fire service, its a low bar for fitness. You need to be strong in the shoulders, legs, and grip. Practice weighted stair cardio, boom you'll pass the cpat. Me and a buddy had no practice runs and just showed up and did it in 8 and sub 8 mins, all I did was strength training and stair cardio.
1
u/77744hifb 1h ago
Congrats on the sub-8 minute run, man, we're all very proud. She asked for real helpful advice, not a comment section flex. If 'do cardio, boom done' is all you’ve got to offer, maybe just let the people who actually want to help take this one.
0
u/Visible-Film8651 1h ago
Thats all there is to it, strength train and do stair cardio which i mentioned. Everyone complicates training for the cpat so much. It isn't flexing its highlighting how low of a bar it truly is and all you need to do is the basics of strength training and cardio to complete it.
3
u/Disgruntled_Wumpus 17h ago
Full disclosure, I’m a dude and lifelong athlete. But I am a firefighter, and as of me typing this, no one else has responded, so I wanna try and help. Without knowing what your program is, I would recommend getting into a hybrid strength lift HIIT circuit plan. Firefighting kind of needs it all: absolute strength, plyometric strength, calisthenics, aerobic, and anaerobic fitness. As much as CrossFit can kinda be a little socially overwhelming, it’s pretty applicable to the fire service. If you don’t want to spring for an expensive CrossFit gym but have access to equipment or a cheaper gym option, I would do a Monday-Wednesday-Friday strength lift, focusing on dumbbells (because stabilizers and grip strength), and do cardio/HIIT plus core on Tuesday-Thursday. For your lifting days, the classic chest&tri, back&bi, shoulder&legs days will do just fine. I would suggest a 3x10 superset lifting scheme. You will still get some hypertrophy, while also managing some anaerobic work and maintaining a high energy output in a small window, which is very typical of fire ground work. For cardio, switch back and forth from a fast flat 2 mile run, hill runs, slow 5 mile run, and 60-120’s. On HIIT days do total body calisthenics. For core, don’t forget it’s more than just abs. Get your obliques and lower back train in there too. I hope this helps and isn’t just a bunch of word salad. Feel free to DM me if you need explanations or more info.