No new PFT in the works

[unhappycamper]

No new PFT in the works
By Gina Cavallaro - Staff writer
Posted : Saturday Jun 14, 2008 6:43:31 EDT

Within six months, a proposed new physical fitness manual could be approved and made operational Army-wide. It would institutionalize workout routines aimed at getting soldiers in better condition for the jobs they do and the physical challenges of the battlefield.

But Army leaders are mum on the possibility of updating the Army Physical Fitness Test to more closely match the new drills contained in the draft of the proposed PT manual.

Lt. Gen. Benjamin Freakley, commanding general of the U.S. Army Accessions Command, would not touch the topic of the APFT.

“I’m not going to discuss that right now because if you want to get the Army spun up, talk about a new uniform, a new rifle or a new PT test,” he said.

He spoke highly of the draft PT manual’s focus on training for strength, endurance and mobility. As an example of its merits, he described his son’s experience at the Basic Officer Leaders Course, where he and his team carried a patient on a litter (with his rucksack on top) and lugged several full 5-gallon water cans on a three-mile march.


Rest of article at: http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/06/army_PT_test_061408w/