The Beep Test is considered to be one of the toughest (if not the toughest) fitness test around. The test is commonly used for athletes to asses their condition and it is also one of the main fitness tests to join the armed forces and firefighters. In this article I would like to give some hints and tips on how to beat the much feared beep test.

Preparation – Warm Up properly
Many state that since the beep test starts with a very slow pace you do not need to make any warm up, I beg to differ. I believe a 5 minute warm up which include very light jogging and stretching will improve the beep test performance.

First few levels
The first few levels are going to be easy, you will be cruising at a mildly speed of 8.5km/h but be careful, one of the most common mistakes I see done during the initial part of the beep test is that the participants will be so eager to go that they will not pace themselves with the test. Most people will be sprinting the first few levels and will spend a couple of seconds waiting on the line for next beep. This will build up lactic acid (athlete's term for the intensive pain at the end of exhausting exercises) in your body; this is not a good thing.

Turning
The turns play a huge part in the beep test. Remember that you will be turning every 20 meters so you should think on how you will be turning. The simplest best turn is the 'netball' turn, where you actually turn on the spot. Making short quick steps towards the line is important to keep the rhythm. Obviously the worst turn you can ever make is the circle turn where you take around 4 seconds to go around an imaginative round on the line.

Cooling down
The very vigorous level of activity built up as the test progresses to peak levels should be followed by cooling down once the test is completed. Gentle stretching of muscle groups (especially those most heavily exerted) together with relaxation will help to accommodate the physiological return of bodies to a normal state and avoid the risk of post activity collapse.