noob question

[cxr]

im sure this question gets asked a lot around here, but I did a search for academy and did not get the answer I am looking for.


my 23y.o. nephew just took the first step in becoming a police officer, he took and passed the essay exam.

he is scheduled in 2 or 3 weeks for the background\polygraph test on temple street in a couple weeks. hes clean cut I think he has one moving violation for rolling a stop sign a few years ago.


we were looking through the booklet and unsure if he should already be trying to get a ride along or what CAS is. We are wondering if there are things he should be doing now that he is probably unaware of. reading through threads on here I have no idea what POST is and how great physical shape he should be in. He has always been a little husky, but he should be in pretty good physical shape since hes played football\wrestling\baseball since he was 5.


Thanks for your help

[JM2012]

Ride alongs are a great step. They give the applicant a little bit of insight into the agency and a relaxed forum to ask questions. When I worked for a small agency, the hiring sergeant always asked the officer for their opinion and observations of applicant ride alongs.

POST is the state Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training. In most states they set overall standards for the field, particularly in hiring and training.

He should be running and doing lots of calisthenics. Lots of running. As he gets closer/actually gets hired, it helps to learn a few general things like the phonetic alphabet and to listen to scanner tuned to the agency you've been hired by to start getting an idea for how their radio traffic is.

[mixicus]

I don't kow what LAPD's protocols for in-process ride-a-longs is but call and ask. He should take advantage of any dept offered academy prep (i.e. CAPS).

What to prep now: get all the personal stuff in order. Once the academy starts, he won't have much spare time. This includes anything that he's been putting off like dentist/doctor appointments, repair/routine maintainance on the car, repairs around the house plus financial stuff. Have the "talks" with family and friends (along the lines of "I need your support and understanding. Here's what the next 6 months of academy and year of probation is going to entail. And I won't see you very much.) If a break up with his better half is coming, do it (no need for extra drama).

From my experience at a 'high stress' academy in SoCal, the running and PT testing/ qualification at the academy is not a huge hurdle. An active person with a few months of training can make all the minimum numbers without issue. The more difficult issue (and it's a mental one) is the shear amount of sets you do throughout the day outside of PT. 400-600 reps of push-ups, burpees, mountain climbers every day on little sleep were normal before getting to PT.

As for running at the academy and a good starting program, check out the "couch to 5K" program on the Cool Running website. Also save some pain, head for a runners shoe store (not Dick's or Big 5) and have them find the right shoe for him. It will cost a bit more but it's worth it.

At the academy, we only hit the weight room a few times and there were no quals on any lifts so save the weights for after graduation. Focus the prep workouts on basic body weight exercises (push-ups, sit-ups, squat thrusts/burpees, mountian climbers, pull-ups and running) with the idea of multiple sets of 25 reps (except for pull-ups). Oh...and they are back-to-back sets meaning 25 push-ups, 25 squat thrusts, 25 mountain climbers, 25 sit-ups...repeat with ~10 second breaks between sets.

Another suggestion, is to head for a boxing or muay thai gym. The conditioning aspect is outstanding and you can develop some cross over skills along the way (i.e. hitting things). Don't be too concerned if the most accesible place to you isn't a MMA hotbed so long as it isn't KardioKickboxing or whatever 24 Hour Fitness is calling the aerobics class. You can also use P90X, Insanity, T25 or another intense DVD; you can follow the "NAvy SEAL Prep" program found on the web or head for a crossfit box.

As a reality check, the following are fitness level recommendations from several PD's for beginning the police academy. The information is taken from the last week of their recommended pre-academy workout programs (links are old).

LAPD
(http://www.lacity.org/...b/lapd_tips.htm )

Run 4 miles @ 9-10 minutes per mile, 3-4 days/week
Push-ups 25-30 reps x 3 sets
Sit-ups 35-40 reps x 3 sets
Pull-ups 3-15 reps x 3 sets
Leg-lifts 25-35 reps x 3 sets

Las Vegas Metro PD
(http://www.protectthecity.com/...90DayPTPlan.pdf )

Run 3.5 miles @ 9:40 per mile, 4 days/week
Incline Push ups/ Push ups 25 reps x 3 sets
Flutter Kicks 3 sets at 45 seconds/set
Sit Ups 15 reps x 3 sets
Crunches 25 reps x 3 sets
Jumping Jacks 25 reps x 3 sets
Mountain Climbers 25 reps x 3 sets
Body Builders 25 reps x 3 sets

Costa Mesa PD(http://www.ci.costaesa.ca.us/...xpectations.htm )

Run 3 miles @ 9 minutes per mile, 3 days/week
Push-ups 50 reps
Sit-ups 50 reps
Pull-ups 4 reps

FBI PFT
(http://www.fbijobs.gov/1113.as... )

Push-ups 30/58
Sit-ups 38/71
1.5 Mile Run 12:24/8:89
300m Sprint 52.4/40.9
Values listed as min/max. Run and sprint values are minutes:seconds

SEAL PREP
(from Category 1 Wk 9 at http://navyseal.s5.com/workout... )

Run @ 8:30 pace for: Mon 4 miles, Tues 4 miles, Thursday 5 miles, Friday 3 miles
Push-ups 30 reps x 6 sets
Sit-ups 30 reps x 6 sets
Pull-ups 10 reps x 3 sets

[OneNcustdy]

when he fills out that background packet, make sure he makes copies of it, that way if he applies with another agency, everything is uniformed.

[cxr]

thanks guys. how long does the whole process normally take before accepted?

[OneNcustdy]

depends, anywhere between 4-7 months its all depends on the agency

[explorerdude]

Have him PT now. Make sure he attends the oral interview seminar they host. Just be honest. Took me 9 months, written to academy start date.

[Che762x39]

As a reality check, the following are fitness level recommendations from several PD's for beginning the police academy.

mixicus, put out some great info. I graduated from two CA academies. You really want to be class "jock". You want to impress people because you build your reputation in the academy and that reputation lasts your whole career. Stay strong