Did the military help you get into shape, or did the military stop your fitness goals?

Ashley Nicole — Fri, 31 Jan 2020 07:09:32 -0500

Just a question I was curious about! I’ve heard both sides. Especially during basic and AIT about either gaining or losing weight depending on what kind of physical shape you were in prior to joining. Do you think you gained weight or got into really good shape because of the military? What are your opinions on the current fitness standards?

Response by 1SG Steven Imerman made Jan 31 at 2020 7:12 AM

1SG Steven Imerman — Fri, 31 Jan 2020 07:12:23 -0500

Depends. I had been working as a logger for better than a year before I enlisted, and cruised through basic. The running was a little challenging, but not too bad. If you are out of shape, it can be hell. As for the weight, I don't think I gained or lost a pound.

Response by SGT David A. 'Cowboy' Groth made Jan 31 at 2020 7:17 AM

SGT David A. 'Cowboy' Groth — Fri, 31 Jan 2020 07:17:52 -0500

They helped me get into shape.

Response by CPT Lawrence Cable made Jan 31 at 2020 7:38 AM

CPT Lawrence Cable — Fri, 31 Jan 2020 07:38:59 -0500

I'm an old timer, but I went to Infantry OSUT at 204 lbs and failing push ups on the initial PT test to 182 lbs six weeks later and above 240 on the APFT. I was doing better than that by the time I finished OSUT. After I commissioned, I showed up at what was then Infantry Officers Basic Course at 178 scoring above 280 on the APFT, I left at 164 and scoring 297 on my final test. Never could get 100 percent on the run.
Did I mention that I was 27 during OSUT and over 30 at IOBC.
I think that the APFT was only marginally effective in keeping you in shape to do what you need to do as an Infantry Soldier. The new test is a real step in the right direction if they actually start training to maximize the scores on that test.
Scoring 100% on the run on the 19 year old scale really didn't mean much when you were humping a 50 lb mountain ruck and a M60.

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 31 at 2020 7:49 AM

SSG Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 31 Jan 2020 07:49:03 -0500

More than helping or hurting, over time the military has changed my fitness goals. At one point in my life I was just a bit over 300lbs (I'm 6'4") and going nowhere, a friend got me into running and I was able to drop enough weight to consider enlisting, by the time I shipped to OSUT I was 189lbs. The running in OSUT was a huge drop off in volume for me and the food was much more calorie dense than what I had been eating. By the time I graduated from my IET I had gone up to 225lbs (it wasn't muscle) and was borderline with PT. I went back to what had worked for me prior (running a lot) and dropped some weight, but I barely had the strength to pass push-ups and sit-ups. After spending most of my time as a private struggling with PT I came to realize that I needed more strength to pass the APFT and began seriously lifting weights. After training this way for about six months my PT scores shot up and at this point in my career I generally score very high on my APFT. My fitness goals are now centered mostly around adding strength with a few cardio sessions per week to keep my run times down. I haven't taken the ACFT yet, but I have no fears of poor performance in any of the six events.

TL;DR: The military took my fitness goals from being a great runner to being strong and fit. I went in to OSUT in shape as a distance runner, I now find myself in shape but a stronger, somewhat slower shape.

Response by SGT Robert Pryor made Jan 31 at 2020 7:52 AM

SGT Robert Pryor — Fri, 31 Jan 2020 07:52:03 -0500

From my point of view it's a no brainer question. I went from being a wimpy kid in high school, afraid of his own shadow, who was frequently bullied by others, to being a fully qualified Special Forces soldier a year and a half later. Oh ya, the military got me in shape alright, and that's an understatement. I gained weight in the military, but would have done so anyway as I grew three inches taller in two years. I was a late bloomer.

Response by SPC Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 31 at 2020 9:13 AM

SPC Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 31 Jan 2020 09:13:24 -0500

When I went to basic the first time I was 17 and weighed 170 @ 6'4 ( a bean pole in all respects) when I left BCT I was still 170, just a little more muscle tone. When I went to AIT I clocked in at 190lbs and left at 200 lbs. ( I did only the Barr minimum effort in pt.

I am now 29 and getting ready to go back to basic @ 250lbs. I am Fat according to the army but I can pass tape no problem, so we will see how much I lose at BCT round 2.

Response by SSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 31 at 2020 9:49 AM

SSgt Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 31 Jan 2020 09:49:47 -0500

Ashley Nicole When I joined the Air Force & was going through BMT, it was the first time in my life that I weighed what I was told I was supposed to weigh for being 5'7" - 150lbs. I was always a skinny little sh*t. I was in MUCH better shape in the military.
When I got out, I went back to being a skinny little sh*t because I wasn't working out as often. I got back in to military physical shape when I went to police academy.

Response by SSgt Richard Kensinger made Jan 31 at 2020 10:03 AM

SSgt Richard Kensinger — Fri, 31 Jan 2020 10:03:00 -0500

The military taught me team work, discipline, and the integrity of the squad. The connections formed in the combat zones are unmatched anywhere else!
As far as my physical fitness I've been engaging in aerobic exercise for 45 yrs. now.
Rich

Response by SPC Elijah J. Henry, MBA made Jan 31 at 2020 10:34 AM

SPC Elijah J. Henry, MBA — Fri, 31 Jan 2020 10:34:25 -0500

I started OSUT in great shape. I gained nearly a pound each week throughout, and I graduated in even better shape. Then I got injured in Airborne School, which made it difficult to exercise for quite a while. I did what I could, and largely through independent PT (profile PT was basically going to the gym and doing what you could on your own, in my unit at that time) I got myself in good enough shape to graduate RASP. In the 75th, it was easy to stay in shape, but not to really excel. There are too many surprises. Does it make sense to crush yourself at the gym after work when there very well may be an unannounced PT test or ruck march the next morning? It was the same when I went to the 82nd. However, the best shape I ever got in was while I was on gate guard at Fort Bragg. I always knew exactly what my schedule would be. Therefore, I was able to work out on my own for about ten hours a week. I had a walk/run program that was about an hour each day, and a strength conditioning program that was about an hour three times a week. Shortly after I got pulled from that, we were still on Rear D, and I often got to do PT on my own. I would run Ardennes and Longstreet in kit. I had a hard time finding a squad-sized element or larger (who would be wearing regular PTs) that I couldn't leave behind. Typically, no one passed me at all as I ran the length of both streets (the PT sections, anyway) during PT hours. That was probably the best shape of my life.
Now, I'm a full-time MBA student with a family and a job, and I am out of shape. Not terribly by most standards, but I would be in better shape if I were still in the Army getting paid to work out most days.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 31 at 2020 11:00 AM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 31 Jan 2020 11:00:07 -0500

I think only people who were high school or college athletes before basic get slowed down. Your average high schooler who is doing PT every day and being physically active from sunup to sundown. While basic isn't hard, it is exhausting, and the PT and diet are consistent. Even the Drill Sergeants have to cycle on and off every other day to prevent from being burned out.

Response by SSG Laurie Mullen made Jan 31 at 2020 11:22 AM

SSG Laurie Mullen — Fri, 31 Jan 2020 11:22:20 -0500

I went to Basic while I was still in high school. I started working out about a year before I enlisted so I started with an ok base. I will be honest though, softball spring training was tougher than basic training PT. I only lost about eight pounds in basic.

Response by 1LT Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 31 at 2020 11:44 AM

1LT Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 31 Jan 2020 11:44:35 -0500

I lost around 20 pounds in basic. Almost a little too much lol

Response by CPL Gary Pifer made Jan 31 at 2020 11:46 AM

CPL Gary Pifer — Fri, 31 Jan 2020 11:46:22 -0500

Current ACFT standards... over 70% of women fail. Military doesn't get you in shape.
You do...

Response by SGT Philip Roncari made Jan 31 at 2020 12:15 PM

SGT Philip Roncari — Fri, 31 Jan 2020 12:15:40 -0500

I’ll let the facts speak for themselves,I joined the Army in 1965 ,weighing 128 lbs,heavy smoker,pretty good drinker,totally out of shape at nineteen ,I cannot speak of current fitness standards obviously,but the Military did definitely in my case transform an out of shape young man into a physically fit member of the US Army

Response by Sgt John Steinmeier made Jan 31 at 2020 12:23 PM

Sgt John Steinmeier — Fri, 31 Jan 2020 12:23:59 -0500

Enlisted while a Senior in High School and started prepping for Basic right away. Went into Basic at about 6-foot 145 lbs and left Primary Tech School (AIT) at about the same. Left Air Base Ground Defense School at a lean 140 lbs, even after eating everything in sight every day. A Ranger Tabbed Air Force Cadre made sure we were never idle, and we never used the Cattle Cars (only boots on the ground) to get from point A to B. I left active duty at 160 lbs as I always self motivated on cardio and strength training in some shape or form because I didn't want to be "that guy" on the "fat boy" program. I found that gym time was also a mental recoup time for me. Many moons later with a few lazy years in the mix I am now around 180 lbs with about a 31-inch waist and still use the gym as mental recuperation 5-days a week.
Air Force Fitness Standards were never as difficult as they should have been, and from a recent article I read are about to be even worse than ever. The Air Force is concerned about personnel stressing over the test and making allowances for that.

Response by SFC Casey O'Mally made Jan 31 at 2020 2:28 PM

SFC Casey O'Mally — Fri, 31 Jan 2020 14:28:18 -0500

I was in pretty decent shape when I got to OSUT. My very first APFT I was in the 230 range. Throughout the next 13 weeks I added about 15 pounds of muscle and got up to a 287 (100, 87, 100... Situps were always my weakness).

Response by SGM Steve Wettstein made Jan 31 at 2020 3:01 PM

SGM Steve Wettstein — Fri, 31 Jan 2020 15:01:36 -0500

It depends on what your life style is prior to Basic. If it is a sedentary life style, Basic will get you in shape, or at least to able to pass the APFT. If you are a gym rat and do a lot of cardio, it might drop your fitness level because I can almost guarantee that you won't be going to the gym until you get in to AIT and then you still might not be allowed to go.

Response by SPC Joseph Kopac made Jan 31 at 2020 9:05 PM

SPC Joseph Kopac — Fri, 31 Jan 2020 21:05:16 -0500

When I was issued my uniforms, I wondered why they were too big for me. I weighed 145. After Fort Dix and Polk, it never dawned on me that I was growing into those clothes. On home on leave before Nam, everyone was commenting on how good I looked. Now weighed 165. All muscle.

Response by MAJ Ken Landgren made Jan 31 at 2020 9:48 PM

MAJ Ken Landgren — Fri, 31 Jan 2020 21:48:15 -0500

The army helped me to run 2 miles in 11:05 minutes.

Response by SPC Stewart Smith made Feb 2 at 2020 2:56 PM

SPC Stewart Smith — Sun, 02 Feb 2020 14:56:01 -0500

The military turned me from a weightlifter into a runner.
Now I do neither.