Marine Corps PFT and CFT Events and 2026 Scoring

The Marine Corps PFT consists of pull-ups or push-ups, a plank, and a three-mile run, with a 5,000-meter row option for Marines aged 46 and older.¹ The Combat Fitness Test (CFT) has three different events: Movement to Contact, Ammunition Lift, and Maneuver Under Fire.¹ You take the PFT between January and June and the CFT in the period beginning in July.¹ From January 1, 2026, combat-arms Marines are scored on the male age-normed table and need at least 210 PFT points.²

Marine Corps PFT Events and Options

The Marine Corps PFT consists of three events.¹ You complete one upper-body event, one trunk endurance event, and one endurance event.

The events are:

• Dead-hang pull-ups or push-ups: You choose between the two options.
• Plank: The plank replaced the abdominal crunch, which was discontinued on December 31, 2022.
• Three-mile run: Marines aged 46 and older may complete a 5,000-meter row instead.

Your pull-up or push-up choice affects how you should prepare. If you plan to use pull-ups, your training needs regular exposure to that exact movement. If you plan to use push-ups, you need to practice the tested movement and compare your expected score under the official standard.

The same principle applies to the run and row. Marines who qualify for the row option should decide which event they will use early enough to prepare for it. Switching late leaves you with less event-specific practice.

Use the official PFT and CFT scoring tables to compare the available events for your age and scoring category.³ The official tables should control any score calculation because they contain the current standards for pull-ups, push-ups, the plank, the run, and the row.

The Annual PFT and CFT Calendar

The PFT and CFT are separate annual tests with different testing periods.¹ The PFT takes place during the semiannual period from January 1 through June 30. The CFT testing period begins in July.

Test	Testing Window	Events
PFT	January 1 to June 30	Pull-ups or push-ups, plank, three-mile run or eligible row option
CFT	Period beginning in July	Movement to Contact, Ammunition Lift, Maneuver Under Fire

This schedule gives you two preparation blocks during the year. Your early-year training can place more attention on the events used in the PFT. After the PFT window, your plan can shift toward the three named CFT events.

Peaking for one test window can help you organize event-specific practice. Your record across both windows gives you a better view of whether training and recovery are holding through the year.

The CFT events are Movement to Contact (MTC), Ammunition Lift (AL), and Maneuver Under Fire (MANUF), none of which appear on the PFT.¹ One set of PFT practice results cannot tell you whether you are ready for the CFT.

A comparison of fitness tests across every branch can help you see how the Marine Corps schedule differs from the other branches. The Navy Physical Readiness Test also provides a useful branch comparison, though its events and scoring rules are separate.

2026 Scoring Rules by Military Occupational Specialty

Your primary military occupational specialty (PMOS) decides which PFT scoring table applies to you.² Beginning January 1, 2026, combat-arms Marines are scored on the male age-normed table and must earn at least 210 PFT points.²

Non-combat-arms Marines remain on sex- and age-normed standards.² This distinction changes how you should read a Marine Corps PFT chart. Your age remains part of the scoring standard. Your sex remains part of the standard unless you hold a combat-arms primary military occupational specialty covered by the 2026 rule.

Do not estimate your result from an old screenshot or an unofficial calculator. Enter your event results into the current official tables and confirm that you are using the correct scoring category. If the Marine Corps updates the tables, the official PFT/CFT standards page should control your calculation.³

Preparation Across Two Fitness Tests

A full-year preparation plan accounts for both tests instead of treating the PFT as the only deadline. You can divide the year around the official testing windows and keep enough familiarity with the other test to avoid rebuilding from zero.

A single plan applied unchanged to both tests ignores their different event lists and testing periods. Build each block around the upcoming events, then use recorded results to adjust the work.

Before the PFT, record a practice result for each event you intend to complete. Use the official scoring chart to identify which event currently costs you the most points. That event deserves a clear place in your weekly plan.

Your preparation can include:

• Practice with your selected upper-body event
• Timed plank work using the tested position
• Three-mile run practice or row practice if you qualify and plan to use that option
• Periodic full PFT practice so you can evaluate the events together
• Familiarization with the three named CFT events before the CFT period

One weak event can be hidden by a general feeling that training is going well. Three recorded event results give you a clearer picture. Compare each result against the current standard, then direct more practice toward the largest scoring gap.

Avoid making a major event choice from one poor practice day. Record results across more than one session and look for a pattern. Your preparation decision should follow repeatable results rather than one isolated number.

Recovery and Sleep During PFT Preparation

Sleep belongs in your preparation record because a training log is incomplete without it. You can track when you trained, what you completed, how you slept, and whether your practice results changed.

A small laboratory study by Leproult and Van Cauter restricted young healthy men to five hours of sleep per night for one week. Daytime testosterone levels decreased by 10% to 15% during the sleep-restriction period.⁴ The study did not test PFT performance, and its small sample of young men should not be extended to older men or used to predict your score.

Sleep restriction can change a measurable hormone even over a short period in a controlled setting. If your sleep becomes inconsistent during preparation, record it beside your event results rather than assuming every change came from the training plan.

If your performance, energy, or recovery changes and stays changed, a physician can review sleep, symptoms, training load, and laboratory data together. One poor run is a data point. A repeated decline across several events deserves a closer look.

Body Composition Under the 2026 Standard

MARADMIN 073/26, issued in February 2026, replaced the Marine Corps height and weight standard with a waist-to-height ratio of 0.52 or lower, regardless of sex.

Your PFT score and waist-to-height ratio answer different questions. A passing fitness score does not replace the body composition standard. You need to review each requirement under its own current rule.

The 0.52 standard tells you whether a measurement meets the current Marine Corps requirement. It does not explain why your body composition is changing or how the measurement fits with your broader health data.

Body composition also deserves a longer view than a single measurement. If you are working toward the standard, track measurements consistently and look at the trend. Large short-term changes do not give you the same information as a stable pattern.

The Opt Health body composition program looks at factors that can influence weight and body composition, including hormones, metabolic markers, sleep, eating habits, exercise, and stress. A physician can then interpret those factors together instead of treating one ratio as the complete picture.

A Practical Marine PFT Review

A useful PFT review connects your event results to the scoring table that applies to you. Start with your military occupational specialty, age, and applicable scoring category. Then record the events you plan to use.

Your review should answer five points:

1. Which upper-body event will you use?
2. Will you complete the run or an eligible row option?
3. Which official scoring category applies to you?
4. Which event creates your largest point gap?
5. How will your plan shift when the CFT period begins?

This process keeps your preparation tied to current Marine Corps PFT standards. It also prevents you from spending equal time on events that do not present equal scoring gaps.

If you need an exact official score, use the Marine Corps PFT/CFT tables rather than a general fitness estimate. If you need to understand why your performance has changed despite consistent preparation, bring your training record, sleep pattern, symptoms, and available health data to a physician.

The Opt Take on Marine Corps Fitness Test Preparation

At Opt Health, a physician reads your labs alongside your recovery across both test windows, builds your plan, and reassesses it with repeat labs every three to four months. The initial panel includes more than 55 biomarkers spanning hormones, inflammation, cardiovascular risk, and other health measures.

Your physician reviews those results with you during a 1:1 consultation. The review can account for your sleep, stress, exercise, inflammation, nutrition, and hormones. These six pillars give your physician more context when your energy, recovery, body composition, or performance changes across multiple sessions.

A PFT score, a CFT result, or a waist-to-height measurement provides one data point. Your training record, symptoms, recovery, and laboratory results can reveal a broader pattern. Repeat testing shows how those numbers change over time, which allows your physician to adjust the plan around your response.

If you only need the current scoring standard, the official Marine Corps tables give it to you. Physician-led care becomes relevant when repeated results point to a health or recovery concern that deserves closer evaluation.

Get started: Begin with Opt Health, where a physician reads your labs, builds your plan, and adjusts it over the loop.

Frequently Asked Questions

This content is for informational purposes and does not replace evaluation, diagnosis, or treatment by a qualified medical professional.