IPPT Sit-Ups: Reps Needed for Every Score, by Age Group

The sit-up station is worth up to 25 points and lasts one continuous minute. This page gives you the exact reps you need for every score at your age, and the one thing about the scoring most people never notice — that the points get dramatically more expensive the higher you go.

How the sit-up station works

IPPT has three stations: push-ups, sit-ups and the 2.4km run. The two static stations are attempted first, the run last.

Push-ups and sit-ups are each conducted in one minute and are each worth a maximum of 25 points. The run is worth up to 50. MINDEF designed the test this way deliberately, so that servicemen can train for it “without the need for specialised technique or equipment”.

There is no minimum rep count that passes on its own. You pass IPPT on a total of 51 points across all three stations, with at least 1 point at every station. A zero on sit-ups is an automatic fail no matter how strong the other two stations are.

Sit-up reps needed for each score

These tables show the reps required for each score band in your age group. They are taken from the scoring tables the SAF implemented on 1 April 2015.

Servicewomen are scored on a separate table:

The thing nobody tells you: points get expensive fast

Look at the servicemen’s table for age group 25 to 27 and read it as a progression rather than a lookup:

Reps	Score	Extra reps needed	Points gained
13	1	—	—
24	10	+11	+9
31	15	+7	+5
38	20	+7	+5
58	25	+20	+5

Going from 31 to 38 reps earns you five points for seven extra reps. Going from 38 to 58 earns you the same five points — for twenty extra reps.

The practical consequence: if you are already above roughly 38 sit-ups, the station has almost nothing left to give you. Your effort belongs on the 2.4km run, where 50 points are in play and the returns are far better. If you are below 30, the opposite is true — sit-ups are the cheapest points on the whole test.

Run your own numbers through the IPPT calculator to see where your personal cut-off sits.

What the station is scored on

Repetitions only count when the required form is met, and the conducting officer’s assessment on the day is what stands. MINDEF publishes the official sit-up protocol as a demonstration video on the NS Portal — watch it before your first attempt rather than relying on how you were taught in BMT years ago.

We deliberately do not publish a rep-by-rep description of the form standard here, because the only version that counts is the official one, and a paraphrase on a website is not it.

Training for more reps

Sit-ups respond to frequency more than intensity. A few things that reliably work:

• Train the full minute, not sets of ten. The test is a one-minute effort, so at least twice a week do a timed minute at maximum effort. You are training pacing and tolerance as much as strength.
• Pace the first twenty seconds. Most people sprint the opening and stall at forty seconds. Counting a steady rhythm beats going out hard.
• Hip flexors fail before the abs do for many people. If your lower back or hips give out first, that is the limiter to train, not your core.
• Train sit-ups on days you have already done push-ups, because that is the order on test day.

Our push-up and sit-up training plan has a full six-week progression.

Where sit-ups fit in your total

Sit-ups alone never pass IPPT. Even a perfect 25 leaves you needing 26 more points from push-ups and the run.

The useful question is what timing covers the gap once your static stations are counted. Our 2.4km timing guide has a worked table for exactly that, and the complete IPPT score tables cover all three stations and all fourteen age groups. Servicewomen should use the female IPPT calculator, since all three tables differ.

Frequently asked questions

How many sit-ups for IPPT max points?

It depends on your age group. For servicemen it ranges from 60 reps in the youngest group down to 42 at 58 to 60. For servicewomen it ranges from 52 down to 28.

How many sit-ups do I need to pass IPPT?

There is no rep count that passes on its own. You pass on a total of 51 points across all three stations, with at least 1 point at every station. For a serviceman aged 25 to 27, 13 sit-ups is the 1-point minimum.

How long is the IPPT sit-up station?

One continuous minute, the same as the push-up station.

How many points are sit-ups worth?

Up to 25 points. Push-ups are also worth 25, and the 2.4km run is worth 50, for a total of 100.

Is the sit-up scoring different for women?

Yes. Servicewomen are scored on a separate sit-up table with different rep requirements at every age group.

Do push-ups or sit-ups come first?

The static stations are attempted before the 2.4km run. Train your sit-ups on days when you have already done push-ups, so test day is not the first time you do them tired.

What happens if I score zero on sit-ups?

You fail IPPT, whatever your total. At least 1 point is required at every station.

Is it worth pushing past 40 sit-ups?

For most age groups, no. The last five points cost roughly three times as many reps as the previous five. Past about 38 reps, the same effort spent on your 2.4km timing returns far more points.

Sources

Rep requirements are taken from the sit-up scoring tables the SAF implemented on 1 April 2015, as published by MINDEF, and checked against the official IPPT calculator on the NS Portal. The one-minute duration and 25-point maximum are from MINDEF’s announcement of the IPPT format. This is an independent site with no connection to MINDEF, the SAF or CMPB — see our disclaimer.