U.S. Army’s New Fitness Test Boasts Different Standards For Men And Women

In most cases, the standards will be lowered, “following a congressionally mandated report from Rand Corp, a Washington D.C.-based think tank, that found nearly half of the service’s women could not pass earlier standards for the test,” Military.com reports, adding, “The most significant changes to the six-event ACFT is that it no longer is meant to prepare soldiers for combat but instead built as a general fitness assessment.”

Military.com explained some differences in the expectations for men and women:

For example, a female soldier between 17 and 21 years old now has to deadlift between 120 and 210 lbs. while a male soldier has to lift between 140 and 340 lbs. In that same age group, female soldiers have to run two miles between 23:22 and 15:29 minutes while male soldiers must perform that exercise between 22 and 13:22 minutes.

Leg tucks, which were required by the previous standards, have been eliminated to measure core strength. The new test requires planks instead. “Test designers were concerned that the leg tuck doesn’t strictly measure core muscle strength but also requires that a soldier spend a lot of energy on upper-body and grip strength. Previously, the plank was introduced as an alternative event during the ACFT’s beta phase when it was discovered women were struggling with the leg tucks,” Military.com stated.

As The National Guard explains of leg tucks:

On the command, “Get set,” the soldier will assume a straight-arm on the bar with feet off the ground, knees bent if necessary with hands at the midpoint of the bar with alternating grip. On the command, “Go!”, the soldier flexes the elbows, knees and waist to bring the knees up to the elbows. The elbows must flex; they cannot remain straight. Both elbows must touch both knees and/or thighs. The soldier must return to under the control of the straight-arm position to complete each repetition.