ASSOCIATION OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY

The Army is changing its tape test as the service refines how it measures soldiers’ body fat and fitness, the service announced. 

“For years, we have been committed to reducing body fat across the force,” Sgt. Maj. of the Army Michael Grinston said in an Army news release. “It’s one of the driving factors in supporting the Holistic Health and Fitness program, as well as one of the reasons to request a study on the Army Body Composition Program.”

Army leaders are reviewing the findings of a newly completed body composition study, and changes in how soldiers are measured for body fat could soon become policy, Sgt. Maj. of the Army Michael Grinston said.

For decades, the Army has determined soldiers’ body fat with a tape test that measures a man’s neck and abdomen or a woman’s neck, waist and hips. There will be no change in the percentage of body fat allowed in the Army’s current height and weight tables, but under Grinston’s proposed changes, soldiers would be measured with a tape around the waist only.

Initiatives to sharpen soldier fitness, leadership skills and readiness continue to be top priorities for Sgt. Maj. of the Army Michael Grinston as he enters the last six months of his tenure as the Army’s senior enlisted leader.

The Association of the U.S. Army is releasing four new podcasts in May on topics ranging from owning your own business to deterring Russian aggression to financial fitness for Army families.

First up in the “Army Matters” series is an episode focused on veteran-owned businesses. 

Changes to the Army Combat Fitness Test will make the Army better, the service’s top general said. 

“The way I look at the ACFT, this is going to improve the Army,” Army Chief of Staff Gen. James McConville said during a recent event hosted by the Project for Media and National Security. “What we do not want to do is disenfranchise anybody. If you just do the six events, you’ll be in shape. It is a much better training event than we had before.” 

An independent review of the Army Combat Fitness Test found the Army needed more evidence to prove that the test’s six events adequately predict performance on combat tasks.

The report by Rand Corp. also showed that women and other groups, including Army National Guard and Army Reserve soldiers, were passing the gender-neutral test at “significantly lower rates.”

A revised Army Combat Fitness Test, with new scoring scales and without the leg tuck event, will become the service’s official test of record beginning Oct. 1.

The March 23 announcement by the Army follows an independent review of the test by Rand Corp. and a three-year evaluation period with soldier feedback. Soldiers will start taking diagnostic tests of the revised ACFT beginning April 1, and Regular Army and Active Guard Reserve soldiers will be required to take a record ACFT beginning Oct. 1, the Army said.

A panel of senior Army leaders will discuss the importance of holistic health and fitness to the force during an upcoming Association of the U.S. Army webinar.

The Thought Leaders event will begin at 2 p.m. Eastern July 21. It is free, but registration is required here.