I really try hard not to be negative here, but I simply must echo Infanteer‘s original response: for anyone even considering joining the combat arms, the express test is a joke.
19 push ups? congrats. I have a Bud (with a big mouth) who averaged 1500 push ups a day on his CLC. The rest of us weren‘t too far behind (we didn‘t quite have his mouth
You can run a whole 2.4 Kms? Wonderful. That may be morning PT for the clerks, but plan on a lot farther in a Regiment- and you‘l learn the phrase "rear rank to the front- move!".
And while I think of it, you won‘t do this after a full nights sleep, in the sun, with gator-aide, spandex, and 200$ running shoes....with the option of stopping if you‘re feeling a little peaked.
Guys, this is a hard life. The Forces will train you. You can help yourself by getting in shape before you arrive- or spend the entire training cycle on remedial PT.
And on that note, please do not confuse basic training standards with regimental standards. A whole new ball game.
The reason why it‘s a hard life? You will find yourself from time to time facing other folk who truly don‘t like you- and I guarantee that THEY are hard. I‘ve done a lot of training in my years, but I‘ve never trained to loose.
Cheers-Garry