Commando Training

The opening phase of Royal Marines training is about two things: adapting quickly to life at CTCRM and building the individual skills every recruit needs before training becomes more tactical. It begins with the two-week Recruit Orientation Phase, where you are introduced to the standards, routines and pace of recruit life, including drill and personal administration, weapon handling, basic fieldcraft, lectures on nutrition, health and hygiene, and a field exercise.

From there, the course moves into Individual Skills, where the focus is on physical training and swimming, drill, weapon handling, map reading and navigation, fieldcraft, live firing and marksmanship.

This is where the training first starts to bite. The physical work is demanding from the outset, but what often makes this phase so exhausting is the combination of effort, repetition and constant pressure. You are learning new skills, adjusting to military routine, and expected to maintain standards while tired and under instruction.It is not just about getting through hard sessions - it is about showing that you can recover, stay disciplined and keep improving day after day.

During the first two weeks of mainstream training after ROP, recruits are expected to pass a weapons handling test and hit Royal Marines Fitness Test standards of Level 11 on the MSFT, 5 overhand pull-ups, 40 press-ups and 50 sit-ups.

Once the basics are in place, training moves on from what you can do on your own to how well you can work with others. This phase includes Reconnaissance and Surveillance, small team tactics, tactical navigation and signals training, medic training, section tactics, and continued PT and swimming sessions.

The emphasis now starts to feel more clearly military and more connected to the role itself. You'll learn how to move, communicate, respond, and make decisions as part of a team – rather than an individual being coached through the basics.

By this point, the challenge changes. The physical demand remains, but there is now more tactical thinking, more responsibility, and more pressure to stay sharp when tired. You are no longer just building fitness and confidence. You are learning how to apply those things in a more realistic and operational way.

This makes training more immersive and even more demanding: you are asked to think, communicate, and perform under fatigue instead of simply 'pushing through.

The third phase raises the intensity again. Training now includes General Purpose Machine Gun (GPMG), pistol handling and live firing, troop tactics, tactical night navigation, Royal Marines close combat training, close quarter battle, and Strike Operations, alongside skills consolidation and a test exercise.

The pace and complexity of the course increase as you move beyond the fundamentals and start working through more advanced tactical activity in conditions that demand more control, aggression, and resilience.

This is often where the course begins to feel sharper and more serious. The physical strain is compounded by longer days, more complex activity and the challenge of operating at your best when your energy is already stretched. Night navigation, close combat work, and urban training all add to the mental load.

The margin for error feels smaller and the standard expected of you is higher. It's not just about keeping up; you'll need to be able to apply what you've learned under more realistic pressure.

The final phase is where the course reaches its peak. This section includes live firing tactical training at section and troop level, day and night manoeuvre training, amphibious foundation training, the final exercise, Commando tests and King’s Squad pass out. It is the culmination of the entire programme, where the physical work, tactical skill, fieldcraft and resilience built over the previous weeks are all brought together and tested.

This is the point where the course becomes less about development and more about proof. The training is still physically demanding, but the real weight of this phase comes from what it represents: the standard has been set, the foundations have been laid, and you are now expected to show that you can meet the moment.

Recruits reaching this stage are carrying weeks of accumulated fatigue, but are also expected to operate with focus, discipline and control through the final exercises and tests. If you make it through Commando training, the rewards are unforgettable. You'll celebrate with friends and family at the Passing Out parade and do what few have done: earned the coveted green beret.