Posted on Oct 24, 2015
How did you feel when the AF changed the standard of the walk test?
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Previously the standard was using your heart rate to determine your walk then it was changed to a pass or fail. To me having been injured before and taken the previously and current standard of test liked the old standard because to me it proved if you were in fact doing what you could do per your profile and to some effect progressing to get better and back to doing the run.
Air Force
Fitness
Posted 9 y ago
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I haven't done the new walk test but I did do the old one once. It was after a surgery and I wasn't cleared to run, only walk. That test sucked. A mile and a half run was easy, that walk was no joke. I passed but my shins were on fire.
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SSgt Paul Esquibel
Yea, I agree people don't realize it's not actually walking, it's power walking and that's not something we do really ever, it is in it's own right a specialized cardio and I think that's the misconception people have about the test due to it's name
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Here's what I don't like. The fitness test consist of 4 components. Cardio (run or walk), push-ups, sit-ups, and BMI. If you meet your required time on the run, it goes in AFFMS as a pass. If you meet the required time on the walk, it goes in AFFMS as exempt, but don't meet the time? Fail shows. How are you exempt if you performed 1 of 2 cardio's? Secondly, I feel the AF punishes members who have a medical condition that prevents them from running by making them test every 6 months even though they scored over a 90 doing the walk test. The walk test is by no means a "walk in the park." Last point. They did away with the heart rate, fine. Then added a lap. Funny. And before anyone asks. Yes, I take the walk test and pass it with no problem. Just like runners have to run to stay in compliance, us walkers have to walk as well.
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SSgt Paul Esquibel
I agree sir, I mean it's not technically walking it's speed walking the name of test alone is misleading which is why I think people were really failing and not because their heart rate was higher. I think because they probably thought you know it's just walking that they would be fine and perhaps and again this is speculation that they didn't adhere to their profile for the cardio portion due to lack of understanding the test. I've taken the walk since I broke my ankle in 2010 and from there it was just one problem after the next, the first time I took it I was fine but that's because my heart rate conditioned for that speed walking as even with a broke ankle I was still doing the bike or eliptical and even after the test my chins were about to break. I liked the heart rate measurement, because if it takes a while to heal from a foot injury especially at an older age as you still have to walk on it everyday, so having the heart rate plus the incentive that if you got a 90 or above you could take that time to heal and get back to running, it took me almost 5 years to get back to be able to run, I'm good now but I think having to test every six months definitely did not help my injuries at all.
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