Military Swim Test - When, Where, and How- Merged

[Dean22]

One of the exercises I do to help treading power and length is I tread with a 10 lb disc in the water for as long as I can and keep my shoulders out of the water.

Floating has always been easy for me but I am not sure how that will be if it's done in combats as I have never tried to float with clothing on but I think it'll be alright since I can float sitting up in the pool and float without arms and legs.

 

[JS_ibanez]

forgive me if this is a silly question. I've noticed a number of people saying you have to do a somersault during the swim test. Why?

 

[dangerboy]

forgive me if this is a silly question. I've noticed a number of people saying you have to do a somersault during the swim test. Why?

Simple answer because you are told to. It is part of the test, sometimes in the military you just do what you are told to do and don't spends hours questioning and wondering "why".

 

[PMedMoe]

forgive me if this is a silly question. I've noticed a number of people saying you have to do a somersault during the swim test. Why?

I think the somersault is to see how you react when disoriented.  After all, if you fell of a ship, it might be head first, so they want to see how quickly you can orient yourself.

 

[JS_ibanez]

that makes sense i guess. thanks for the answers guys. much appreciated.

 

[WSaunders]

so ive gathered there is a basic swimming test in BMQ. im confident i can do that. but is there a harder swimming test for BIQ? im only 15 and still have time to learn more if i need to. could anyone enlighten me? im already worried about the physical aspect of BIQ.

 

[landspeed]

are all the swim tests done fully clothed?

 

[PMedMoe]

Some are done just with bathing suits, others with combat shirt and pants.

 

[landspeed]

ty, as a hairy guy i can say im not a fan of that aha

 

[George Wallace]

Guys

Once again, if you missed or just outright ignored the numerous links provided on the site, you should watch this video for an indication of what you may face if you don't honour the criteria for joining this site. 

You should have read the Army.ca Conduct Guidelines when you registered for the site......and not ignored them.

 

[Luke O]

Guys

Once again, if you missed or just outright ignored the numerous links provided on the site, you should watch this video for an indication of what you may face if you don't honour the criteria for joining this site. 

That video should be mandatory to sign up to a forum.

 

[ShawnHartwell]

While waiting for the bus back from my Recruitment Centre a man noticed me carrying the "Forces.ca" folder. He asked me if I was joining the Army and I told him Navy. He had actually been in the CF and gone to the MEGA. He told me a bit about how it goes,etc and told me one thing I could do is go buy CADPAT Pants(I have a surplus store here that supports the CF) and to go tread water wearing them at one of the local gyms.

Is this good advice? He said that it will be part of the MEGA. Although he seems to have been out of the CF now so things could have changed at the MEGA.

EDIT: DAMN IT! Stupid internet lagged and made me post this in recruiting section. Sorry.

 

[Michael OLeary]

There is a basic swim test:

Basic Military Swimming Standard Test (BMSS)
http://www.cfpsa.com/en/psp/Fitness/doclib/BMSS%20Procedure.doc (PDF)

Which includes:

Item #3  - RUDIMENTARY SWIMMING SKILLS

Dressed in coveralls execute a forward roll entry into the deep end of the pool.  Hands on both sides of the head, elbows to knees, and roll forward into the water.

Surface, and remain afloat for at least 2 (two) minutes using any combination of floatation skills such as treading water, motionless float, swimming in place etc… as long as the members head stays above water.

Then, swim a distance of at least 20 (twenty) metres using any style of propulsion

Also note this:

Remember non-swimmers do not have to attempt Item #3 of the test unless they believe they can achieve it.

Buying a pair of combat pants to practice treading water is not the best use of your time or money.

NOTE:

The above was found within 2 minutes by a simple Google search for - canadian forces swim test

Before you post your next simple question - please exhaust your Google and site searches first.

 

[McG]

Further to the above, authentic CADPAT clothing must be destroyed when the CF is done with it and the manufactures are not authorized to sell to anyone other than the CF.  If you buy CADPAT clothing, you are spending money on fakes or items which illicitly entered the market. 

 

[armychick2009]

You could practise in any kind of clothing you like -- when I did my test it was with giant, oversized coveralls... it's not so much the type of material you wear as opposed to just getting used to the fact you ARE wearing clothing in water. I spoke with the local YMCA and they said I could go in with the clothing, as long as the lifeguards on duty were okay with it. I've done it a few times before in my lifeguarding courses.... and once through a CF-based training exercise.

My suggestion is just get used to treading water itself for an extended period of time (I dunno, say 5 or 10 minutes?) with just your regular bathing suit. I found that those who couldn't swim well in regular conditions, had difficulty with it... they weren't having so much difficulty WITH the clothes on, as they were having just doing treading water in the first place AND for longer than a minute or two.  Also, get used to lugging your body out of the water onto a pool deck without pushing yourself off of the ground or the side, as that's a no-no.

Finally, if you DO have problems during your test, don't look down or forwards but glance up to the roof if you can -- it'll keep you more steady. Anyways, not really sure if that answered your question or not but -- don't sweat it too much (unless you can't swim at all, then maybe look at getting some lessons!).

 

[CorporalMajor]

If you can swim competently in swimtrunks, you can tread water in CADPAT.

The boots, I found, are the only *somewhat* difficult part.  Good luck getting into your local pool wearing those. 

Just work on becoming a really good swimmer as it is, and then you should be fine. 

 

[Chilme]

As an FYI, CF policy indicates that the Basic Military Swim Standard (BMSS) test is simply an indicator of swimming ability.  It required that ALL CF members conduct the test prior to any training or exercises near or around water.  Passing the test allows you to work on or around water with no issues.  Failing the test means you can work on or around water, you just need to be clearly labelled as a weak swimmer.  Often it just means you have 2 glow sticks stuck to you instead of one.

 

[Vimy_gunner]

Haha, that video is hilarious!

Btw, one of the best ways to increase cardiovascular fitness is by swimming. It has been proven that consistent swimmers throughout their life live longer than even runners. Partly due to the fact that running causes more injuries and even if you're injured you can still swim. The reason why I mention this is that if you want to kill two birds with one stone (prep for swim test and improved fitness) you may want to include lap swimming in your weekly training regiment. Swimming also works two very key muscle components used for push-ups. Shoulders and a smaller muscle on the outside of your pecs (it's the one that makes you look really sexy to the ladies, lol.) This is also the reason why women absolutely love swimmers bodies. You can google what it is if you like because I can't remember, but pushups and swimming are virtually the only two ways to isolate work on that muscle group. Swimming also aids in your breathing recovery because it simply makes your heart work harder!  Join a swim team like I did even and swim 5-8 hrs a week. You'll find that by doing this you make push-ups easier and treading water for two minutes will feel like a breeze. I'm assuming the problem with most if they have issues with the swim test is not due to fitness but more due to the fact that they hardly spend any time in the water.
You swim enough and you'll be treading water for two minutes in between your drills.

 

[Chilme]

are all the swim tests done fully clothed?

There are 3 official swim tests done by the CF. 

1) The Basic Military Swim Standard, which is required to work on or around water.
http://canadianmilitaryandefence.blogspot.com/2010/09/basic-military-swim-standard-bmss-test.html

2) The Combat Swim Test, which is part of the CSOR Applicant test.
http://canadianmilitaryandefence.blogspot.com/2010/09/canadian-special-operations-regiment_07.html

3) The 3rd is a 675m timed swim as part of the SARTECH applicant test.

1 and 2 are conducted in combats.  The 3rd is not.

 

[Desirea701]

Everyone is saying you do the swim test in your combats but i was told specifically by a woman in the navy that they give you bathing suites for the swim test? IF this is true are the females allowed to wear shorts over top the bathing suit? 

I'm confused :-\