Pass the Army Fitness Test and keep getting better, cycle after cycle, without the overtraining that puts soldiers on profile.
This 10 week plan is built by a retired Army Infantry Major, Ranger School graduate and former instructor, Best Ranger competitor, and UESCA Certified Running Coach who has taken every Army PT test since 2013. It trains the AFT like a skill: three test days, two hard days a week, and every load and every pace written as a percentage of your own numbers so the plan can be repeated with a new baseline every cycle.
What you get: a full diagnostic AFT in Week 1 that sets your deadlift percentages, push up set sizes, plank holds, and two mile repeat paces. A mock AFT in Week 6 that resets them. A record test in Week 10. Two mile specific speed work (400s, 800s, mile repeats) plus tempo and threshold running on heart rate. Three strength sessions a week paired with the hard days: deadlift and core, sprint drag carry power, hand release push up and plank. Recovery weeks 4 and 8. Dual prescription on every run: heart rate percentage AND RPE. Fully structured workouts that sync to Garmin, Wahoo, Coros, and Apple Watch. A Read This First guide on Day 1 with the test day protocol and the progression rules.
Who this is for: soldiers preparing for the AFT (300 general or 350 combat standard) who can currently run two miles continuously and have lifted before. Also works for CFT combat arms soldiers who need the two mile engine and the strength base, and for anyone prepping for RASP, Ranger School, or a selection PT test.
Equipment needed: hex bar and plates, two 40 lb kettlebells, a 90 lb sled or a weighted plate on turf, a 25 meter lane, a track or measured road for repeats, a flat 2 mile course. Heart rate monitor recommended, not required.
Communication: self guided plan. Questions are welcome through TrainingPeaks messaging, and one on one coaching with Pacheco Endurance is available if you want the plan built around your unit calendar and your numbers.
The structure works. The work is up to you.
UESCA Certified Running Coach and retired Army Infantry Major. Ranger School graduate, former Ranger instructor, Best Ranger competitor. Medically retired in 2024 and told in the hospital I might not run again. Rebuilt through running: two marathons, a half marathon, 15 laps at a Backyard Ultra, and the Pikes Peak Ultra 50 miler. Author of the Run Strong plans on TrainingPeaks: half marathon, AFT two mile, CFT, and mountain 50K and 50 miler. Your body adapts to what you ask of it. Ask more.