Tasmania Police fitness test
all seven tests, plus BMI

Tasmania's test is built on a 'traffic light' system with two categories: performance measures (what you can do) and health measures (body size and markers). For each test, the fitness page gives a level at which you can be considered for entry and a higher level at which you're considered a strong applicant.

Most tests are gender neutral. The broad jump's strong mark, grip and waist are gender specific, based on gender at birth unless you explain to recruiting staff why that shouldn't apply.

The tests run in a fixed order: broad jump, beep test, Illinois agility, plank, grip, waist, then hand-release press. That order matters for training. You'll do the agility run with the beep test still in your legs, and the press-ups come last of all.

This table is generated from our Tasmania data file, which matches the official fitness test page. The middle column is the entry standard; the notes give the strong-applicant mark.

You start with both feet behind the line, squat with your arms loaded behind you, and jump forward as far as you can, throwing your arms. Both feet must leave and land together. You can take one step to keep your balance, but the measurement is from the heel of your back-most foot once you stop moving. Your best of two attempts counts.

Then comes the twist. Your distance in metres is multiplied by your bodyweight in kilograms. You need a score of 80. Because heavier people score more for the same distance, lighter applicants have to jump further. A 70 kg applicant needs 1.14 m.

How to train for it

You run between lines 20 m apart in time with the recording. To complete a shuttle, at least one foot must break the line before or as the beep sounds. If you arrive early, you wait for the beep before turning. If the beep beats you, you must finish that shuttle and then make the next line before the next beep. Two consecutive misses end the test.

Your score is the last shuttle you completed. Level 6.01 is the first shuttle of level 6: about 840 m of running in roughly 5:17. The strong-applicant mark, 9.01, is about 1,460 m in roughly 8:30.

Train with two runs a week: one interval session (for example 6 to 8 x 400 m with 90 seconds' rest at a pace a little faster than your target level) and one steady 30 to 40 minute run. Do a full practice beep test every second week to check progress and rehearse the turns.

Tasmania's agility standard is gender neutral: under 22 seconds to be considered, under 20 seconds to be strong. You start lying on your front, head to the start line, hands stacked and chin resting on them. You go in your own time after staff say 'when you're ready': the stopwatch starts on your first movement. Run 10 m, turn and run back, weave through the cones up and back, then run 10 m up and back past the finishing cone.

Remember the order: you run this straight after the beep test. Recover with slow walking and deep breathing in the gap, and keep warm.

Plank: 60 seconds (strong at 120)

From a push-up position with hands under shoulders, you drop to your forearms with your head, shoulders, back, hips and knees in line. The test ends if you can't hold it, if your position fails again after one warning, or at the two-minute cap. Train planks four times a week: 3 holds at 70% of your best, adding 5 seconds a week.

Hand-release press: 10 reps (strong above 30, cap 40)

This is harder than a normal push-up because you can't bounce. You start lying flat, arms out. At each beep, every 3 seconds, you bring your arms into push-up position and press your whole body off the floor at once, then lower and return to the start with arms outstretched before the next beep. The test stops when you can't do another, your technique fails, you don't reset in time, or you hit 40.

Tasmania Police links the 3-second cadence recording it uses (by Adam Howard) on its fitness page, so practise with that.

1. 1

   Weeks 1-3: technique

   Hand-release reps from your knees if needed, 4 x 6 to a 3-second count, 3 times a week.

2. 2

   Weeks 4-6: volume

   Full hand-release reps, 5 sets, stopping 2 short of failure. Add bench press or dumbbell press once a week.

3. 3

   Weeks 7-9: to cadence

   Use a 3-second metronome or recording. Do one max set to cadence each week and log it.

4. 4

   Week 10: taper

   One easy cadence set early in the week, then rest. You'll be doing these last on the day, so practise them tired too.

Grip (each hand)

Tasmania's grip method is unusual. You hold the dynamometer overhead with your arm straight, then squeeze as hard as you can while lowering it steadily to your side over three seconds, keeping a small gap between hand and hip. Both hands are tested. Men need 40 to 49.9 kg to be considered (50 kg or more is strong); women need 20 to 29.9 kg (30 kg or more is strong).

Waist

You stand with feet together and arms out while staff measure around your midsection, so remove or roll up thick clothing. Men measuring 94 to 102 cm and women 80 to 88 cm can be considered; under 94 cm (men) or 80 cm (women) is strong.

Grip responds well to training in 6 to 8 weeks: dead hangs, farmer's carries and a hand gripper three times a week. Waist and BMI change more slowly, so start early, aim for steady loss if you need it, and don't crash diet before testing.

Tasmania Police's own pages disagree. The fitness test page says a BMI of 18.5 to 34.9 meets entry requirements and a BMI of 35 or more does not. The FAQ page says 18.5 to 29.9 meets requirements and above 29.9 you generally won't. Both say applicants under 18.5, or with a high BMI from muscle mass, are assessed individually by fitness consultants and possibly a GP.

The gap is not small. At 1.75 m tall, the difference between the two limits is about 15 kg. If your BMI is between 30 and 34.9, don't assume you're fine because one page says so.

With seven tests, it's easy to train only what you enjoy. This plan covers everything in four sessions a week. If you can't yet run for 20 minutes, add four weeks of run-walk before week one.

1. 1

   Weeks 1-2: baseline

   4 sessions

   Test all seven events and log the results. Two runs (intervals, steady). Two strength sessions: squats, Romanian deadlifts, rows, presses, grip work. Plank and hand-release technique daily.

2. 2

   Weeks 3-5: build

   4 sessions

   Intervals rise to 8 x 400 m. Broad jump practice twice a week. Weekly timed Illinois run. Hand-release sets to near failure. Planks build towards 90 seconds.

3. 3

   Week 6: deload and retest

   3 lighter sessions

   Halve volume. Do a mock test in Tasmania's order: jump, beep, agility, plank, grip, press-ups.

4. 4

   Weeks 7-9: test-specific

   4 sessions

   Fortnightly full mock test. Hand-release press to a 3-second cadence. One agility run after a hard interval to simulate fatigue. Target your two weakest results.

5. 5

   Week 10: taper

   2 sessions + test

   Two short sessions early in the week, then rest 48 hours before testing.

Tasmania Police links basic fitness programs from its fitness page (under 'Fitness Programs to Improve my Fitness'), and they're worth reading. If you'd prefer a plan built from your own scores and deadline, our paid AI Fitness Test Pass Plan costs $24.99 one-off for 180 days' access and prioritises your weakest events. It's optional, not required.

Fitness testing is step three of Tasmania's process. According to the recruitment process page: Fitness test in Hobart, Launceston or Burnie (interstate applicants may submit video), and online suitability/psychometric testing completed within 7 days.

Tasmania doesn't publish a retest waiting period, and only applicants who pass the fitness test move on to the psychometric assessments. If you miss a standard, ask Recruiting Services when you can test again and which result let you down, then build your training around it.

Most applicants fail Tasmania's test on one event, not all of them. Find yours early.

Tell staff if you're injured or unwell before you start. You'll be signing a form saying you're fit to take part.

Fitness isn't the only physical requirement. You'll also need a swimming certificate from Royal Life Saving Australia or AUSTSWIM and a first aid certificate, both at your own cost, during the process. The Trainee Constable rate during the 28-week course at the Rokeby Academy is $61,801 a year.

See our Tasmania Police salary page for what comes after graduation, and the Tasmania Police profile for postings and the Academy. For the interview and online testing, use our AI mock interview and entrance exam practice; the $79.99 Recruit Prep Bundle combines them with the fitness plan.

Weighing up other states? Compare the WA Police PPE, SAPOL's circuit, the NT Police assessment and the AFP EPCA.