Fit-to-Fight or Just Fit-to-Test?

  • Published
  • By Capt. Jeremy Baxter
  • 436th Maintenance Squadron Operations officer
DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, Del. --  Across the Air Force and here at Dover Air Force Base, increased emphasis and great strides are being made to ingrain a physically fit culture, but still we must do better. Passing a fitness test once every six months or annually should not be our goal. Rather, we must ask ourselves whether we are ready for the worst-case scenario. In August 2014, during a Comprehensive Airman Fitness Senior Leader Symposium, Chief of Staff of the Air Force General Mark A. Welsh III stated, "Our job is to fight and win the nation's wars.  We'll never be good enough at it; we've got to get better every day. It's not an easy task, which is why Comprehensive Airman Fitness is so important!" The general's words are a reminder of our dedication to excellence and our need to be prepared. Whether we are deployed in a joint environment working side-by-side our sister services or simply driving through the front gate here at Dover AFB, threats exist all around us, and we never know when we might need to get ourselves or someone else out of harm's way. Are we doing enough? Are you?

According to Air Force Instruction 36-2905, Fitness Program, the following excerpt is the intent of our current program: It is every Airman's responsibility to maintain the standards set forth in this AFI 365 days a year. Being physically fit allows you to properly support the Air Force mission. The goal of the Fitness Program is to motivate all members to participate in a year-round physical conditioning program that emphasizes total fitness, to include proper aerobic conditioning, muscular fitness training, and healthy eating. An active lifestyle will increase productivity, optimize health, and decrease absenteeism while maintaining a higher level of readiness. Commanders and supervisors must incorporate fitness into the Air Force culture establishing an environment for members to maintain physical fitness and health to meet expeditionary mission requirements.

Understanding the intent of this program is important, but how do we turn intent into ingrained behavior and an established culture? Though I do not claim to have the right answer, I believe it starts at the very beginning, one step at a time. Our current program is reactive not proactive in nature.  Emphasis on our fitness capabilities are not improved upon until an assessment identifies a failure. This process is reactive. Commanders are challenged to be more proactive and "incorporate fitness into the Air Force culture, establishing an environment for members to maintain physical fitness and health," but with varying mission requirements, manning constraints, and long hours, commanders struggle to stay ahead of fitness shortfalls. The current guidance rightly places ownership on the Airman, but it fails to address how members should incorporate a physically fit lifestyle. Commanders who are seeing successful fitness assessment rates understand the importance of leading by example, educating and developing their Airmen on a continuous basis, and pushing their units beyond the assessment standards. 

Our core values are presented from the start of our careers, ingrained in every level of Professional Military Education, and incorporated into our daily lives; CAF needs to be ingrained just the same. Have we started to do this, yes! But when do you receive dietary education or physical fitness coaching?  These are not addressed in Basic Military Training, Officer Training School, Airman Leadership School, or Squadron Officer School...at least, not to any degree useful for application to help us turn this knowledge into repeatable action and in-turn, an ingrained culture. In absence of this proposed paradigm shift in developing our Airmen and in an attempt to improve upon the intent of our current fitness program, I challenge us all to do the following:

1) Enroll in a dietary class of some sort that will show you how to shop and cook healthy meals even while on a budget. The fitness center has information available. As we get older, our metabolisms slow down and the weight begins to stack on. Additionally, energy levels decrease if you do not fuel your body with what it needs to replenish. We tend to fill our stomachs with what sounds or tastes good and our bodies repay us with putting that excess waste somewhere we do not need or want it to go. 

2) Own your personal fitness! Schedule repeatable times four to six days out of the week to work your program. Work with a peer, supervisor or even fitness staff to find your program and what works for your total health. If you pair up with a buddy, you can hold each other accountable for your schedules and goals, but work to build your own self-discipline!

3) Set goals and take it slow! Find out where you are currently and set achievable goals each week/month for measurable improvement. Along with setting these goals, I encourage you to perform a mock fitness assessment each month with a physical training leader within your unit.  This continuous assessment will keep you ahead of the test and more importantly, keep you engaged year-round with your program and the goals you set.

The standards levied upon us in the military are much higher than the civilian sector, and for good reason. Our nation expects that we will prevail and protect our interests at home or abroad. In order to live up to that expectation, we must own this responsibility and continuously strive to condition ourselves for the what-if scenarios. The nation does not care if you pass your fitness test, but it cares that you come home safely and can help those around you do the same all while accomplishing your mission. Working your fitness program enables you and your teams to live up to that expectation. Are you doing enough?

Note: An article from Staff Sgt. Carlin Leslie titled, Air Force Public Affairs Agency OL-P, Comprehensive Airmen:  A Lifestyle and Culture, published August 19, 2014, was used as reference for this article.