You can spout on about it being an admin burden all you like but that is just a cover up! those that whinge about doing fitness testing are the lardy's that hate sport and are more likely to fail it anyway! get a life and get fit or ship out, there is no place for fatty's in any armed service.
The bollox about shift workers not being able to get to the gym and having to come in on standdown days is rubbish, the gym will still be running tests the week later when said shift worker will be on days! the gym runs tests every week of the year, just the same as changing a med appointment is easy, changing a fitness test date is easy. Everyone manages to make it to the med centre a couple of times a year without any fuss, how on earth does that not grind the system to halt?
Some clever folk could arrange that their sections or crews do it all together to lessen the impact of doing it in dribs and drabs, and imagine if once you are all there together after the test you managed to play a bit of five a side or volleyball! wow that is clever thinking, never catch on with the fatty's though.