Assessing Fitness For Military Enlistment

The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) faces short-term and long-term challenges in selecting and recruiting an enlisted force to meet personnel requirements associated with diverse and changing missions. The DoD has established standards for aptitudes/abilities, medical conditions, and physical fitness to be used in selecting recruits who are most likely to succeed in their jobs and complete the first term of service (generally 36 months). In 1999, the Committee on the Youth Population and Military Recruitment was established by the National Research Council (NRC) in response to a request from the DoD. One focus of the committee's work was to examine trends in the youth population relative to the needs of the military and the standards used to screen applicants to meet these needs. When the committee began its work in 1999, the Army, the Navy, and the Air Force had recently experienced recruiting shortfalls. By the early 2000s, all the Services were meeting their goals; however, in the first half of calendar year 2005, both the Army and the Marine Corps experienced recruiting difficulties and, in some months, shortfalls. When recruiting goals are not being met, scientific guidance is needed to inform policy decisions regarding the advisability of lowering standards and the impact of any change on training time and cost, job performance, attrition, and the health of the force. Assessing Fitness for Military Enlistment examines the current physical, medical, and mental health standards for military enlistment in light of (1) trends in the physical condition of the youth population; (2) medical advances for treating certain conditions, as well as knowledge of the typical course of chronic conditions as young people reach adulthood; (3) the role of basic training in physical conditioning; (4) the physical demands and working conditions of various jobs in today's military services; and (5) the measures that are used by the Services to characterize an individual's physical condition. The focus is on the enlistment of 18- to 24-year-olds and their first term of service.

Military readiness requires service members to be mentally and physically fit to perform duties in various environments. To determine whether service members have the requisite physical fitness to serve, the U.S. Air Force (AF) and its sister services have established various medical and physical standards. These standards are first applied as part of an initial screening for military entrance. After joining, service members must continue to maintain fitness in accordance with their respective service policies. This report presents an overview of research relevant to fitness assessment (FA) components to ensure airmen readiness, support the National Defense Strategy, and promote a culture of health and well-being across the AF. The authors conducted an evaluation of the AF-FA using scientific evidence drawn from published literature on relevant FA components, with an emphasis on the potential for current assessments to meet overall health and deployment requirements. Evidence from the literature was augmented with workshops and discussions with a variety of subject-matter experts, including those familiar with deployment readiness training. The authors also identify potential gaps and offer recommendations for improvement. The work in this report should be of interest to military policymakers and researchers involved in setting and evaluating military physical fitness standards.

This book surveys the entire field of body composition as it relates to performance. It includes a clear definition of terminology and a discussion of the various methods for measuring body composition. The authored papers represent a state-of-the-art review of this controversial field and address questions such as: What is a better measure of body compositionâ€"body fat or lean body mass? Does being overweight for one's height really affect performance? The book also addresses the issue of physical appearance as it relates to body fatness and performance. It includes an in-depth discussion of many of the topics of interest to those involved in sports medicine and exercise physiology.

The fraction of American youth meeting U.S. Army enlistment standards for weight and body fat has declined markedly. In response, the Army developed a waiver program tied to a fitness test known as the Assessment of Recruit Motivation and Strength (ARMS) test. Through difference-in-differences estimates and other analytic techniques, the authors examine the program's effect on Army accession and attrition rates.

The primary purpose of fitness and body composition standards in the U.S. Armed Forces has always been to select individuals best suited to the physical demands of military service, based on the assumption that proper body weight and composition supports good health, physical fitness, and appropriate military appearance. The current epidemic of overweight and obesity in the United States affects the military services. The pool of available recruits is reduced because of failure to meet body composition standards for entry into the services and a high percentage of individuals exceeding military weight-for-height standards at the time of entry into the service leave the military before completing their term of enlistment. To aid in developing strategies for prevention and remediation of overweight in military personnel, the U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command requested the Committee on Military Nutrition Research to review the scientific evidence for: factors that influence body weight, optimal components of a weight loss and weight maintenance program, and the role of gender, age, and ethnicity in weight management.

This regulation, Army Regulation AR 40-501 Medical Services: Standards of Medical Fitness June 2019, governs medical fitness standards for enlistment, induction, and appointment, including officer procurement programs; medical fitness standards for retention and separation, including retirement; medical standards and policies for aviation; and medical fitness standards for diving, Special Forces, airborne, Ranger, free fall parachute training and duty, small unmanned aircraft system (SUAS) operators, and certain enlisted military occupational specialties (MOSs) and officer assignments such as civil affairs, psychological operations, and Army maritime sea duty. This regulation applies to the Regular Army, the Army National Guard/Army National Guard of the United States, and the U.S. Army Reserve, unless otherwise stated. It also applies to candidates for military service. During mobilization, the proponent may modify chapters and policies contained in this regulation.