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Do they still use the old PT model for fitness upkeep? Culturally that was like telling people you can walk to work...even if you work 20 miles away. Our socie

Do they still use the old PT model for fitness upkeep? Culturally that was like telling people you can walk to work...even if you work 20 miles away. Our society needs more interesting and subjectively calibrated brain food for fitness maintenance. Ideally they could switch to a relatively flexible multi-model fitness system. Give a bit more freedom and education to people who showed they are willing to fight for it. And if somebody still wants PT? Go for it.

LinuxBender 4y ago
Do they still use the old PT model for fitness upkeep? According to the General in the linked video from 2012 they have tried to make some improvements, though there is only so much they can do with someone that has been eating poorly and sitting still for most of their life leading up to enlistment. I have not kept up to date with what they are currently doing but there are others here that I believe are still in the military.
- themodelplumber 4y ago
  > only so much they can do It's curious though. We also live in a couch-to-5K world now, so it'd be interesting to know how far "only so much" might go. It also seems strangely commingled with lack of motivation, the way people complain about others sitting around, which teasing those apart is a good way to attack such problems. (Especially factoring in the actual, likely fitness needs of a given individual in a given MOS being at war and maybe charging drones most of the day while periodically jogging for cover, or whatever the numbers show is likely-activity vs contingency-plan.)
- rubyfan 4y ago
  > only so much they can do with someone that has been eating poorly and sitting still for most of their life leading up to enlistment That's kind of BS. Young people that enlist are not fully formed adults yet and have a huge opportunity to reshape themselves to be fit for military service. I can speak from experience here. Basic training sheds pounds and builds muscle, I've seen it first hand. The problem is that it lasts only 8 week which is not nearly long enough to create new habits or break old ones.
  - deleted 4y ago
    [deleted]
  - LinuxBender 4y ago
    I entirely believe you made it work but I think you are one of the exceptions now. Basic training will induce crazy weight loss but it will not reverse T2D which many young people now have. Many of them can't do a single push-up. Run 1 to 1.5 miles? Most of them would end up in the hospital. There are parts of the U.S. where this is the exception rather than the norm. The high-school kids around me are like freight trains and ready for the NFL. But this is not the case in most big cities.
    - rubyfan 4y ago
      Sure type 2 diabetes or being drastically overweight disqualifies you from service. Lots of people have never done a push up or run outside of gym class by the time they serve, it’s not a new challenge. Couch to 5K is solvable and the military is pretty good at it. I’d love to quantify your comment a bit more… how many young people have a disqualifying health issue like type 2 diabetes, heart problems or obesity? How much of a problem is it really?
rubyfan 4y ago
> Give a bit more freedom and education to people who showed they are willing to fight for it. People need to eat properly and exercise on a daily basis in to stay fit for service. Most 18-20 year olds have a hard time with discipline. Routine mandatory exercise is a must have for military service. Thus the people with the discipline and "who show willingness to fight for it" and basic competence are the ones that end up leading in the military.
- themodelplumber 4y ago
  > Most 18-20 year olds have a hard time with discipline Discipline is a lens though, not a binary state of having/not having a permanent heart condition. If it's hard, there are usually much better lenses for military levels of upkeep. Just like there are better models than "willpower" for losing weight. (As to whether anyone who is proud of their personal discipline level wants to admit that, on the other hand...)
  - rubyfan 4y ago
    To be clear discipline in the military is a couple things that are pretty good basic life skills that a lot of people at that age especially lack, i.e. go to sleep at a reasonable hour, show up to work on time, exercise daily, eat well, avoid alcohol abuse, follow through with assigned tasks. These are real challenges for people at that age and who come from many walks of life, sometimes unhealthy environments. The military immediately rewards and punishes for lack of that discipline and it’s a pretty good environment to develop young people. But absent the persistent structure the military provides won’t happen on its own.
    - themodelplumber 4y ago
      > But absent the persistent structure the military provides won’t happen on its own. Hmm, but this is different from saying "the military never changes its approach to things like this, to get better results with the people it works with" which it does. In fact in recent years all branches have advertised their desire to "adapt". Slow process, but it's there & needs to be. Change processes to get the results you need, as returns diminish. Some destabilization required--brass will survive

LinuxBender 4y ago

Do they still use the old PT model for fitness upkeep? According to the General in the linked video from 2012 they have tried to make some improvements, though there is only so much they can do with someone that has been eating poorly and sitting still for most of their life leading up to enlistment. I have not kept up to date with what they are currently doing but there are others here that I believe are still in the military.

themodelplumber 4y ago
> only so much they can do It's curious though. We also live in a couch-to-5K world now, so it'd be interesting to know how far "only so much" might go. It also seems strangely commingled with lack of motivation, the way people complain about others sitting around, which teasing those apart is a good way to attack such problems. (Especially factoring in the actual, likely fitness needs of a given individual in a given MOS being at war and maybe charging drones most of the day while periodically jogging for cover, or whatever the numbers show is likely-activity vs contingency-plan.)
rubyfan 4y ago
> only so much they can do with someone that has been eating poorly and sitting still for most of their life leading up to enlistment That's kind of BS. Young people that enlist are not fully formed adults yet and have a huge opportunity to reshape themselves to be fit for military service. I can speak from experience here. Basic training sheds pounds and builds muscle, I've seen it first hand. The problem is that it lasts only 8 week which is not nearly long enough to create new habits or break old ones.
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
- LinuxBender 4y ago
  I entirely believe you made it work but I think you are one of the exceptions now. Basic training will induce crazy weight loss but it will not reverse T2D which many young people now have. Many of them can't do a single push-up. Run 1 to 1.5 miles? Most of them would end up in the hospital. There are parts of the U.S. where this is the exception rather than the norm. The high-school kids around me are like freight trains and ready for the NFL. But this is not the case in most big cities.
  - rubyfan 4y ago
    Sure type 2 diabetes or being drastically overweight disqualifies you from service. Lots of people have never done a push up or run outside of gym class by the time they serve, it’s not a new challenge. Couch to 5K is solvable and the military is pretty good at it. I’d love to quantify your comment a bit more… how many young people have a disqualifying health issue like type 2 diabetes, heart problems or obesity? How much of a problem is it really?

rubyfan 4y ago

> Give a bit more freedom and education to people who showed they are willing to fight for it. People need to eat properly and exercise on a daily basis in to stay fit for service. Most 18-20 year olds have a hard time with discipline. Routine mandatory exercise is a must have for military service. Thus the people with the discipline and "who show willingness to fight for it" and basic competence are the ones that end up leading in the military.

themodelplumber 4y ago
> Most 18-20 year olds have a hard time with discipline Discipline is a lens though, not a binary state of having/not having a permanent heart condition. If it's hard, there are usually much better lenses for military levels of upkeep. Just like there are better models than "willpower" for losing weight. (As to whether anyone who is proud of their personal discipline level wants to admit that, on the other hand...)
- rubyfan 4y ago
  To be clear discipline in the military is a couple things that are pretty good basic life skills that a lot of people at that age especially lack, i.e. go to sleep at a reasonable hour, show up to work on time, exercise daily, eat well, avoid alcohol abuse, follow through with assigned tasks. These are real challenges for people at that age and who come from many walks of life, sometimes unhealthy environments. The military immediately rewards and punishes for lack of that discipline and it’s a pretty good environment to develop young people. But absent the persistent structure the military provides won’t happen on its own.
  - themodelplumber 4y ago
    > But absent the persistent structure the military provides won’t happen on its own. Hmm, but this is different from saying "the military never changes its approach to things like this, to get better results with the people it works with" which it does. In fact in recent years all branches have advertised their desire to "adapt". Slow process, but it's there & needs to be. Change processes to get the results you need, as returns diminish. Some destabilization required--brass will survive