U.S. Army Physical Readiness Division: Mission success at Fort Polk, LA

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U.S. Army Physical Readiness Division: Mission success at Fort Polk, LA while teaching Soldiers from the Bayne-Jones Army Community Hospital BJACH and Delta Troop 1-509th the Pose Method of Running and the Army Combat Fitness Test. These Leaders have learned to run better, faster, injury free; and are now Level 2 ACFT Certified. They’re tasked with the responsibility of training their units to the standard.

A big shout out goes to the 519th Military Police Battalion for allowing USAPFS MFT / ACFT Instructors to utilize their equipment and mini-SPRC for our training. Thank You!

U.S. Army Center for Initial Military Training U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command

THE HISTORY

Running has always been part of military training. It is an essential activity that is part of virtually everything else soldiers must do on regular basis. And it's been known for years, that as an activity, running is also the most dangerous athletic movement solely due to the amount of injuries that soldiers sustain. More than 2 out of 3 injured soldiers face injuries from running. However, running itself is not the issue.

THE PROBLEM

Soldiers are trained and taught how to do virtually every task, however, running, the activity directly responsible for an overwhelming majority of all military related musculoskeletal (MSK) injuries, is not taught as a skill.

THE SOLUTION

Health and Holistic Fitness, or H2F is a big initiative by the Army to revamp training protocols. One of the major updates in the new doctrine is the addition of Running Skill (Pose Method) in FM 7-22 (Chapter 7).

Running Skill training is now available on demand, forcewide,  through the Army IgnitED program. Individual Soldiers can watch Pose Method running skill training videos online, and take an exam to become a certified instructor (technical certification, promotion points).

Questions? Contact us for assistance.

[ READ MORE ]

Combat ready, physically fit

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – “If you can’t pass the Army Combat Fitness Test, then there’s probably not a spot for you in the Army,” said Secretary of the Army Mark T. Esper.

On July 9, the U.S. Army announced a new physical fitness test—the Army Combat Fitness Test, or ACFT. The test is designed to replace the APFT with a gender- and age-neutral assessment that will more closely align with the physical demands Soldiers will face in combat. Field tests for the ACFT will begin in October 2018, and by October 2020, all Regular Army, Army National Guard, and U.S. Army Reserve Soldiers will be required to take the test.

“That doesn’t mean you’ll immediately get kicked out,” he added. It means there will be some sort of remedial program, the details of which are still being worked out.

Esper addressed a range of issues during a Defense Writers Group breakfast Aug. 29.

The current Army Physical Fitness Test, which has been around some 40 years, is flawed, Esper said.

“I grew up in the Army with the APFT and I personally never thought it was a good indicator of combat physical fitness, nor did many of my colleagues. The testing has proved that out,” he said.

The secretary said studies done by U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command show that the APFT captures “maybe 30 or 40 percent relevance of what you demand in combat … the ACFT is upwards of 80 percent.”

Combat ready, physically fit soldiers

The main purpose of the ACFT is twofold, he said. First, the test ensures soldiers are ready for combat. Second, preparation for the test improves physical fitness as it relates to injury prevention.

Esper said losing soldiers to injuries during physical training or field exercises contributes to decreased readiness, because injured soldiers can’t deploy.

At one point, upwards of 15 percent of soldiers were categorized as nondeployable, he said. That’s about 150,000 soldiers across the entire force. Now, that figure has been reduced to 9 percent, and there are vigorous efforts underway to lower that percentage still more.

“If you’re not physically fit for combat, then we’re not only doing you an injustice, we’re doing an injustice to your colleagues and peers as well,” Esper said, explaining that if a soldier can’t deploy, that means someone else has to deploy twice as much.

“At the end of the day, we need soldiers who are deployable, lethal and ready,” he emphasized.

Beginning October 2020, all soldiers will be required to take the ACFT, which TRADOC fitness researchers term “gender- and age-neutral.”

[ Click here to read full article ]

THE HISTORY

Running has always been part of military training. It is an essential activity that is part of virtually everything else soldiers must do on regular basis. And it's been known for years, that as an activity, running is also the most dangerous athletic movement solely due to the amount of injuries that soldiers sustain. More than 2 out of 3 injured soldiers face injuries from running. However, running itself is not the issue.

THE PROBLEM

Soldiers are trained and taught how to do virtually every task, however, running, the activity directly responsible for an overwhelming majority of all military related musculoskeletal (MSK) injuries, is not taught as a skill.

THE SOLUTION

Health and Holistic Fitness, or H2F is a big initiative by the Army to revamp training protocols. One of the major updates in the new doctrine is the addition of Running Skill (Pose Method) in FM 7-22 (Chapter 7).

Running Skill training is now available on demand, forcewide,  through the Army IgnitED program. Individual Soldiers can watch Pose Method running skill training videos online, and take an exam to become a certified instructor (technical certification, promotion points).

Questions? Contact us for assistance.

[ READ MORE ]

Ace Your 2 Mile

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Make sure to use code MRW50 when signing up to receive a Military Discount of 50%.

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THE HISTORY

Running has always been part of military training. It is an essential activity that is part of virtually everything else soldiers must do on regular basis. And it's been known for years, that as an activity, running is also the most dangerous athletic movement solely due to the amount of injuries that soldiers sustain. More than 2 out of 3 injured soldiers face injuries from running. However, running itself is not the issue.

THE PROBLEM

Soldiers are trained and taught how to do virtually every task, however, running, the activity directly responsible for an overwhelming majority of all military related musculoskeletal (MSK) injuries, is not taught as a skill.

THE SOLUTION

Health and Holistic Fitness, or H2F is a big initiative by the Army to revamp training protocols. One of the major updates in the new doctrine is the addition of Running Skill (Pose Method) in FM 7-22 (Chapter 7).

Running Skill training is now available on demand, forcewide,  through the Army IgnitED program. Individual Soldiers can watch Pose Method running skill training videos online, and take an exam to become a certified instructor (technical certification, promotion points).

Questions? Contact us for assistance.

[ READ MORE ]

ACFT Overview

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The Army Combat Fitness Test will better connect fitness with combat readiness for all Soldiers.

  • IMPROVE SOLDIER AND UNIT READINESS
  • TRANSFORM THE ARMY’S FITNESS CULTURE
  • REDUCE PREVENTABLE INJURIES AND ATTRITION
  • ENHANCE MENTAL TOUGHNESS AND STAMINA

 

 

THE HISTORY

Running has always been part of military training. It is an essential activity that is part of virtually everything else soldiers must do on regular basis. And it's been known for years, that as an activity, running is also the most dangerous athletic movement solely due to the amount of injuries that soldiers sustain. More than 2 out of 3 injured soldiers face injuries from running. However, running itself is not the issue.

THE PROBLEM

Soldiers are trained and taught how to do virtually every task, however, running, the activity directly responsible for an overwhelming majority of all military related musculoskeletal (MSK) injuries, is not taught as a skill.

THE SOLUTION

Health and Holistic Fitness, or H2F is a big initiative by the Army to revamp training protocols. One of the major updates in the new doctrine is the addition of Running Skill (Pose Method) in FM 7-22 (Chapter 7).

Running Skill training is now available on demand, forcewide,  through the Army IgnitED program. Individual Soldiers can watch Pose Method running skill training videos online, and take an exam to become a certified instructor (technical certification, promotion points).

Questions? Contact us for assistance.

[ READ MORE ]

Goodbye, situps. The Army is rolling out a new fitness test

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“Good test,” huffed Aiton, who will soon turn 50. “I’m smoked.”

Army leaders are touting the test, which is gender- and age-neutral, as a generational change in how soldiers approach physical fitness.

Instead of situps, pushups and a 2-mile run — the standard yardstick since 1980 — the Army Combat Fitness Test includes exercises to improve how soldiers perform on the battlefield.

For example, dragging that 90-pound sled isn’t just good exercise that builds muscle. It can simulate pulling a comrade to safety.

All soldiers will be required to take the test by October 2020. Field-testing is set to begin this fall, initially with 40,000 soldiers.

Senior leaders are already sweating it out, but in a productive way.

On Wednesday around 6:30 a.m., two-star generals, colonels and command sergeants major clad in workout gear gathered on a field at Fort Eustis. They’re under the Army’s Training and Doctrine Command, headquartered at Eustis, and were already here for a commander’s forum.

TRADOC operates schools around the country. So if TRADOC is considered the Army’s university, these men and women represented its senior faculty.

At the top of the organization is Gen. Stephen Townsend, TRADOC commander, who wasn’t wearing his four stars Wednesday. Looking fit in a T-shirt and shorts, he was ready to take the test along with his subordinates. He’d already taken it once.

“I think it’s far superior to what I’ve been doing for the past 36 years,” he said. “The day I took it, I knew this is exactly what the Army needs.”

 

[ Click here to read full article ]

THE HISTORY

Running has always been part of military training. It is an essential activity that is part of virtually everything else soldiers must do on regular basis. And it's been known for years, that as an activity, running is also the most dangerous athletic movement solely due to the amount of injuries that soldiers sustain. More than 2 out of 3 injured soldiers face injuries from running. However, running itself is not the issue.

THE PROBLEM

Soldiers are trained and taught how to do virtually every task, however, running, the activity directly responsible for an overwhelming majority of all military related musculoskeletal (MSK) injuries, is not taught as a skill.

THE SOLUTION

Health and Holistic Fitness, or H2F is a big initiative by the Army to revamp training protocols. One of the major updates in the new doctrine is the addition of Running Skill (Pose Method) in FM 7-22 (Chapter 7).

Running Skill training is now available on demand, forcewide,  through the Army IgnitED program. Individual Soldiers can watch Pose Method running skill training videos online, and take an exam to become a certified instructor (technical certification, promotion points).

Questions? Contact us for assistance.

[ READ MORE ]

Major initiative seeks to combat U.S. soldiers’ weight problems and injuries

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“That’s why the military — just like you — is thinking about how to get healthier in the new year and beyond.

These base makeovers are setting the scene for the launch of Holistic Health and Fitness (H2F), a larger initiative that strives to radically change how the Army prepares service members. The proposal includes the introduction of a new field manual for training, plus the creation of Soldier Performance Readiness Centers (SPRC, pronounced “spark”), which will be state-of-the-art fitness facilities staffed by experts who can educate and offer real-time feedback on proper form, psychological well-being, nutrition and more.

An SPRC is not exactly a gym, says Maj. Gen. Malcolm Frost, who commands the Center for Initial Military Training at Virginia’s Fort Eustis, which is behind H2F. He compares it to the way the Army cares for equipment. “What we don’t have is a range to improve yourself,” he explains.

A better understanding of human performance is part of the impetus behind H2F, Frost says. But the initiative is also a reaction to the current American population, which is not nearly as fit as in previous generations. Frost says it’s a challenge to fight when tens of thousands of soldiers — or, as he calls them, “our primary weapons system” — are non-deployable because of weight problems and injuries.

Folks signing up to serve were once in peak condition, Frost says. “I like to say that 15 to 30 years ago, recruits were better prepared.  We were analogous to marinated steaks,” he explains.  “Throw us on the grill and we were ready to be soldiers.

[ Click here to read full article ]

 

THE HISTORY

Running has always been part of military training. It is an essential activity that is part of virtually everything else soldiers must do on regular basis. And it's been known for years, that as an activity, running is also the most dangerous athletic movement solely due to the amount of injuries that soldiers sustain. More than 2 out of 3 injured soldiers face injuries from running. However, running itself is not the issue.

THE PROBLEM

Soldiers are trained and taught how to do virtually every task, however, running, the activity directly responsible for an overwhelming majority of all military related musculoskeletal (MSK) injuries, is not taught as a skill.

THE SOLUTION

Health and Holistic Fitness, or H2F is a big initiative by the Army to revamp training protocols. One of the major updates in the new doctrine is the addition of Running Skill (Pose Method) in FM 7-22 (Chapter 7).

Running Skill training is now available on demand, forcewide,  through the Army IgnitED program. Individual Soldiers can watch Pose Method running skill training videos online, and take an exam to become a certified instructor (technical certification, promotion points).

Questions? Contact us for assistance.

[ READ MORE ]

Preventing running injuries through education at Fort Leonard Wood

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The 43rd Adjutant General Battalion’s Fitness Training Unit hosted a Pose Method Specialist Certification Course Oct. 26 and 27, taught by the U.S. Army Center for Initial Military Training in an effort to help prevent running injuries.

According to Lt. Col. David Feltwell, CIMT command physical therapist, Army Physical Fitness Doctrine primary developer and Master Pose coach, it’s all part of the Army’s new approach to holistic health and fitness.

 

…although everybody can run, they don’t know how to create that movement or coach it to someone who is having trouble.

 

Feltwell said this new system includes training and testing that is “cutting edge” and will have a doctrinal base supported and spread across the enterprise.

“We’re in the early stages of writing and completing that doctrine and of pushing out that system to the force,” he said. “This training block is the proponent office moving out ahead of that to see how well we can train and teach this to our Soldier population especially in the initial entry where it might have the biggest impact on Soldiers.”

[ Click here to read full article > ]

 

THE HISTORY

Running has always been part of military training. It is an essential activity that is part of virtually everything else soldiers must do on regular basis. And it's been known for years, that as an activity, running is also the most dangerous athletic movement solely due to the amount of injuries that soldiers sustain. More than 2 out of 3 injured soldiers face injuries from running. However, running itself is not the issue.

THE PROBLEM

Soldiers are trained and taught how to do virtually every task, however, running, the activity directly responsible for an overwhelming majority of all military related musculoskeletal (MSK) injuries, is not taught as a skill.

THE SOLUTION

Health and Holistic Fitness, or H2F is a big initiative by the Army to revamp training protocols. One of the major updates in the new doctrine is the addition of Running Skill (Pose Method) in FM 7-22 (Chapter 7).

Running Skill training is now available on demand, forcewide,  through the Army IgnitED program. Individual Soldiers can watch Pose Method running skill training videos online, and take an exam to become a certified instructor (technical certification, promotion points).

Questions? Contact us for assistance.

[ READ MORE ]

Airmen improve run, reduce pain with new 86th MDOS run class

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Running is both an integral part of Air Force physical fitness assessments and, if done incorrectly, a potential source of injury. The 86th Medical Group physical therapy flight introduced a new running class called the Pose Method to help patients correct their stride, reduce or eliminate pain and avoid future injury so they can improve their scores on the cardiovascular component of the Air Force fitness tests.

Airman 1st Class Alexia Roberts, 86th Communications Squadron personnel technician, has been attending the Pose class for two weeks to recover from knee and leg pain.

“My pain has definitely decreased since I started the class,” Roberts said.

Roberts said her Pose Method run analysis identified problems in her stride. The way she landed on her heel when she ran and the way she walked on the side of her foot were causing knee problems and pain in her leg. She learned that if she did not improve her stride she could further injure herself.

“My injuries made it harder to do physical fitness,” Roberts said. “Also my friends understand that when I go out I always have to take some time to sit because my feet hurt.”

Tech. Sgt. Lizmarie Linares, 86th MDOS physical therapy flight chief, began implementing the Pose Method techniques at Ramstein in March, 2017.

 

…the most common injuries she sees among runners are shin splints and patellofemoral syndrome, or chronic knee pain. However, out of 48 sessions and 288 patients, Linares said that the Pose Method class has had 95% treatment success.

 

While currently the Pose Method classes are only for 86th MDOS physical therapy flight patients, Linares hopes to make them available to the entire 86th Airlift Wing. She also hopes to teach physical training leaders in Pose Method techniques so that they can properly conduct PT sessions and help those who are failing, which in turn allows Airmen to continue doing their jobs and stay deployable.

[ Click here to read full article ]

 

THE HISTORY

Running has always been part of military training. It is an essential activity that is part of virtually everything else soldiers must do on regular basis. And it's been known for years, that as an activity, running is also the most dangerous athletic movement solely due to the amount of injuries that soldiers sustain. More than 2 out of 3 injured soldiers face injuries from running. However, running itself is not the issue.

THE PROBLEM

Soldiers are trained and taught how to do virtually every task, however, running, the activity directly responsible for an overwhelming majority of all military related musculoskeletal (MSK) injuries, is not taught as a skill.

THE SOLUTION

Health and Holistic Fitness, or H2F is a big initiative by the Army to revamp training protocols. One of the major updates in the new doctrine is the addition of Running Skill (Pose Method) in FM 7-22 (Chapter 7).

Running Skill training is now available on demand, forcewide,  through the Army IgnitED program. Individual Soldiers can watch Pose Method running skill training videos online, and take an exam to become a certified instructor (technical certification, promotion points).

Questions? Contact us for assistance.

[ READ MORE ]

New running technique could help soldiers pass fitness test

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Lt. Col. Mae Miranda, chief of physical therapy at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center and the Army’s physical therapy consultant for the region, invited MAJ Blake, the inspector general for U.S. Army Medical Command in San Antonio, to hold a Pose Method workshop for about 45 Army and Air Force physical therapists, physical therapist assistants and technicians, and fitness trainers from around Europe.

 

Mechanical efficiency leads to aerobic efficiency, which leads then to an overall (better) efficiency because I could recover faster and I could train more.

 

The goal of learning the Pose Method is for military physical therapists and fitness trainers to be able to help personnel reduce injury and increase speed when it comes to running. Some fitness experts in the Army swear by it, which partly explains why the technique is gaining a foothold in military circles. Such claims are appealing to the military, where injuries from running and fitness test failures from slow run times are costly and contribute to decreased readiness. About 60 to 66 percent of soldiers who report to sick call — the Army’s term for needing medical attention — have muscular-skeletal related injuries.

[ Click here to read full article ]

THE HISTORY

Running has always been part of military training. It is an essential activity that is part of virtually everything else soldiers must do on regular basis. And it's been known for years, that as an activity, running is also the most dangerous athletic movement solely due to the amount of injuries that soldiers sustain. More than 2 out of 3 injured soldiers face injuries from running. However, running itself is not the issue.

THE PROBLEM

Soldiers are trained and taught how to do virtually every task, however, running, the activity directly responsible for an overwhelming majority of all military related musculoskeletal (MSK) injuries, is not taught as a skill.

THE SOLUTION

Health and Holistic Fitness, or H2F is a big initiative by the Army to revamp training protocols. One of the major updates in the new doctrine is the addition of Running Skill (Pose Method) in FM 7-22 (Chapter 7).

Running Skill training is now available on demand, forcewide,  through the Army IgnitED program. Individual Soldiers can watch Pose Method running skill training videos online, and take an exam to become a certified instructor (technical certification, promotion points).

Questions? Contact us for assistance.

[ READ MORE ]

Joint Services learn Pose Running method from the master

SCHOFIELD BARRACKS, Hawaii – For many service members of various services, running is an integral part of their physical training regimen. Many have gotten used to someone telling them to push harder, go faster, use certain muscles or lengthen their stride. Few are told, quite simply, to use gravity to their advantage. Joint Service Members, fireman, Federal Bureau I… and SWAT members from across Oahu were introduced to that very concept as part of an armed services “Pose” Running Seminar given by Dr. Nicholas Romanov and hosted by Crossfit Oahu in Honolulu Oct. 15.

Romanov, who conceptualized and began to implement Pose Running, visited Oahu for a three day running seminar and certification where he taught Soldiers and civilians how to run and even teach the Pose Method. Romanov has been coined as one of, if not the, most innovative thinker on running in our time. He is the author of Dr. Romanov’s Pose Method of Running.

Romanov discovered the concept of Pose Running in 1977, and has worked ever since to spread his wealth of knowledge to old and new runners alike, training world champions and record breakers for years.

Romanov likens his method to that used by the ancient Greeks, who brought a philosophical approach to running.

“The Greeks always viewed nature as a whole,” said Romanov. “Our definitions of structures and systems are derived from the Greeks. They understood how to effectively integrate all they did into the natural scheme of life’s science.”

Gravity is the most powerful force on earth. For Romanov, it is only natural to use it to an advantage as a runner. He states that once we have learned to integrate our running to the natural science of life, then our body will reward us.

For many Soldiers, running has become unpleasant as over the years they have experienced over-fatigue and recurring injuries. With Pose, Romanov hopes to help break that chain.

“I don’t really understand why anyone would run any other way, ” said Staff Sgt. Aaron Cheateaux, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 8th Military Police Brigade. “The injury rates (for Soldiers) from overuse alone are substantial. We could prevent the majority of them just by teaching Soldiers to run with style.”

According to Romanov, many of these ailments begin as they overextend their muscles and strive at unnatural angles to propel themselves over the earth. What is proposed by Romanov is that they adopt a proper “pose” for running that takes undue tension from the joints and muscles. This pose consists of a bent knee stance with back and head aligned and feet positioned beneath the body so as to utilize one’s natural center of gravity. Once this pose is attained, then the runner simply “falls” forward, using gravity, then “pulls” the foot up under their center of gravity again to resume the original pose.

For many Soldiers, they have worked very hard for years to reach their running goals, fighting through difficulty and muscle pain to become elite.

“I have made it through some of the toughest Army training to include Ranger School,” said Maj. Iven Sugai, USARPAC G-3 Training Division. “But I did so by ‘muscling’ my way through. In other words, keep running frequently and hard until I saw results. I hope that learning Pose running will teach me about running what learning proper swimming technique did for my lap swimming. Once I learned proper form I spent the same, if not less, energy that I used before but was able to swim farther and faster.”

Many senior military personnel who attended the seminar were excited to learn the new method for themselves and for their subordinates.

“I will definitely look to implement many of Dr. Romanov’s skill development drills and flexibility training into our weekly Physical Training sessions,” said Lt. Navy Dude, Base Facility Engineer for Coast Guard Base Support Unit Honolulu. “Although running is not everyone’s favorite cardio building exercise, I believe staying injury-free by allowing your body to work more ‘skillfully’ is something that EVERYONE should be interested in.”

[ Click here to read full article ]

 

THE HISTORY

Running has always been part of military training. It is an essential activity that is part of virtually everything else soldiers must do on regular basis. And it's been known for years, that as an activity, running is also the most dangerous athletic movement solely due to the amount of injuries that soldiers sustain. More than 2 out of 3 injured soldiers face injuries from running. However, running itself is not the issue.

THE PROBLEM

Soldiers are trained and taught how to do virtually every task, however, running, the activity directly responsible for an overwhelming majority of all military related musculoskeletal (MSK) injuries, is not taught as a skill.

THE SOLUTION

Health and Holistic Fitness, or H2F is a big initiative by the Army to revamp training protocols. One of the major updates in the new doctrine is the addition of Running Skill (Pose Method) in FM 7-22 (Chapter 7).

Running Skill training is now available on demand, forcewide,  through the Army IgnitED program. Individual Soldiers can watch Pose Method running skill training videos online, and take an exam to become a certified instructor (technical certification, promotion points).

Questions? Contact us for assistance.

[ READ MORE ]