[Music] My name is Greg Lohenhagen. I am the sergeant for the Mesa Police Academy. And today I want to say a couple things about the requirements for the academy and preparation for recruits for the academy. In the academy, recruits will be required to undergo extensive training in physical conditioning, firearms, defensive tactics, tactical driving, and academics. Each of these disciplines has minimum requirements that must be met in order to graduate the academy. Some recruits come to the academy unprepared. They think they will use the academy to get themselves into shape. Those recruits will usually wash out in the first 3 weeks. The academy is 21 weeks long. We do not ease into our physical curriculum. We start at a high difficulty level on day one and we keep it intense to the very last day. If you want to prepare yourself for physical training in the academy, get out of the gym and get off a treadmill. Train yourself to work out in the heat or in the cold. Train body weight exercises back to back with little to no rest. Focus on interval training to increase your cardio. Above all, train outside your comfort zone because you will not be in your comfort zone here. In the last 20 years, 16% of our recruits have been female. Their training does not differ from the male recruits training. All recruits are required to meet the same minimum proficiency standards regardless of gender. Aside from physical conditioning, the only preparation needed for the academy is your mindset. You must be committed to training. You must sacrifice your time and energy and sweat for it. You must be prepared for overwhelming stress and a disruption to your personal life. Recruits must learn to work effectively both as a team and as an individual to be great police officers. We'll train you in the disciplines of the law, but you need to take the first step today and get your physical fitness in order and get your mind straight before you start the academy. Once you get to the academy, we'll help you come the rest of the way. You must have a warriors mindset. Never quit. Never give up. Nothing lies ahead but victory. [Music] Oh.