What changes would you recommend be made to the ACFT?

2021-05-28T01:42:05-04:00

So with all of the back and forth on the ACFT, obviously the big thing is the gender neutral standards that come up in every case/ argument. One thing that I believe that needs to change is the run. It should be dropped down to either 1 mile or even an 800 M sprint/ Run. Failing time at 5:30 seconds, faster time = better score. We already have the sprint /drag /carry... thoughts?

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made May 28 at 2021 1:53 AM

2021-05-28T01:53:13-04:00

More like a Police Academy. Reminds me of the end of Blackhawk down.
https://youtu.be/c0mLYr_5aos

The Mogadishu Mile - Black Hawk Down

The Mogadishu Mile refers to a route that was run by American Rangers and Delta Force soldiers from a helicopter crash site to an appointed rally point held ...

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made May 28 at 2021 2:01 AM

2021-05-28T02:01:31-04:00

I like it. Make it 3-3:30 for males to get a 100. I like the idea! Easy for people to train on a 400m track.

Response by 1SG Private RallyPoint Member made May 28 at 2021 4:32 AM

2021-05-28T04:32:23-04:00

I'm not sure that such a short distance will be an adequate indicator of aerobic fitness. Isn't that what the run is supposed to measure?

Response by SFC Casey O'Mally made May 28 at 2021 7:59 AM

2021-05-28T07:59:17-04:00

The long run is there, I believe, to test for cardio endurance. Every other event is a "sprint" in terms of muscle usage and aerobic fitness - high intensity, short duration. Even with the fact that there have been a number of event in a (relatively) short period, there is still recovery in between each event. Especially cardio-respiratory recovery, even if the muscles themselves are continuously fatigued. Shortening the run to 1/2 mile, or even a mile, defeats this test of endurance. Personally, I would rather see it go UP to four or five miles, to truly test fortitude - both cardio-respiratory and intestinal. (However, I have a strong feeling that extending the run in this manner will cause a LOT of additional injuries, especially when run on fatigued muscles, so it is probably impractical for a force-wide solution.)

Response by CW2 Private RallyPoint Member made May 28 at 2021 10:08 AM

2021-05-28T10:08:56-04:00

Easiest thing is to just go back to what they ripped off to make the ACFT in the first place...The Upper Body Round Robin (UBRR). 1 min pushups - min score 40 and +2pts for each additional, 1 min situps - min 40 +3pts for each additional, pullups - min 6 and +3.5pts for each additional, 80% bodyweight benchpress - min 6 and +3pts for each additional, dips - min 6 and +2.5pts for each additional, kip-ups (like the leg tuck but you touch your heels together OVER the bar then go back down) - min 6 and +3.5pts for each additional, rope climb w/ 20lb vest - pass/fail - no points, shuttle sprint (25m course, 200m total)- max 24 seconds +2pts for each 1/10th of a sec faster, 5 mile run - 40 min +2pts for every full 5 sec faster. No gender/age group/MOS/anything differences - just 1 scoring system.

No more than 5 min between exercises (some sources say 1 others say 10, but it's not really the important part of the test, 10 could be fine). Achieving the min grants you 100 points, however you need 1,100 points to pass the test. So passing each event does not mean you pass the test, you MUST do more than the minimum and find 300 points in there (since the rope climb is worth nothing, just pass/fail). A lot of points can come from the shuttle sprint and run, but not enough no matter how fast you are. Sources say that a 5 mile ruck @45# maybe be substituted for the run (at the Soldier's discretion) but I've always seen the run forced.

This test covers total body fitness, is very difficult to "wargame", and allows different types of people to excel in different areas, rather than needing to be great at 3-6 events. Using total fitness rather than just the specific exercises creates a more rounded and fit Soldier, which is what we need. Not gym rats who weigh more than the fat Soldier and are impossible to carry if they go down....

Response by SFC Michael Hasbun made May 28 at 2021 1:15 PM

2021-05-28T13:15:53-04:00

You can still maintain one standard. Whatever adjustment you were going to make to accommodate one gender, have that be the standard for both. If you're going to say "to accommodate women, we will do XYZ", then XYZ simply becomes the standard. Simple. If it's good enough for one gender, it's good enough for both.

Response by MAJ Private RallyPoint Member made May 28 at 2021 2:37 PM

2021-05-28T14:37:43-04:00

Well first I’d say if we are going to change grading between genders rather than just based on MOS/AOC then why are they not doing the same for age? The last 2 practice ACFTs I’ve seen in the reserves the older guys were out scoring all the young soldiers on the entire test, yet we have the same standards.

I can score high on the ACFT except for the leg tuck and the run. I’ve never been a fast runner, but the hilarious thing is after don’t the ACFT my run time only increased by around 30 seconds. Leg tuck I struggle with. Just not the body build for that. I have a long upper body and short lower torso. I keep training for it, but still don’t see how it’s testing my strength or endurance. I can scale a wall, climb a wall with a rope, etc, but I’ll be damned if I can get more than 2 leg tucks.

Response by CPT Private RallyPoint Member made May 30 at 2021 9:23 PM

2021-05-30T21:23:51-04:00

The big one for me is the ability to administer the test without all the equipment coordination.

1) Recruiters cannot administer it to prospects.
2) Units below the battalion level need to coordinate equipment usage.
3) Units without an equipment MTOE (basically without a warehouse and cages) don't have a means to store equipment even if they could get the equipment.
4) The ACFT is now on par with a weapons qual event in terms of execution. We all know how that works, and not everyone makes it, and not everyone is current. When one is not current, there is not a means to catch up without having to wait for the next planned event.
5) Every single advanced PME TRADOC school now needs to administer the ACFT and the equipment coordination associated with it. They also probably need to be able to administer it twice. This comes out of an already finite time table. So something else will have to go.

I can tell you this right now. There is a tier of USAR soldiers excluded from re-enlisting because they are flagged for APFT. If they can't get that waived they need to pass the APFT before their ETS date. Before the ACFT all they needed to do was walk into the unit office during business hours and the full time staff could administer an APFT before EST expired. More than a few of mine magically applied themselves to the test and re-enlisted. All those soldiers are now lost. We can argue the value of trying to keep such soldiers, but push comes to shove those are now numbers that will absolutely fall off the Generals' Excel Spreadsheet that have to be replaced with new PVT's from scratch.

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 2 at 2021 4:55 PM

2021-06-02T16:55:43-04:00

I would like to see a spring replace the run, seems more practical. Alternate events should be on a graded scale, since the plank is. There should be no alternate for the leg tuck....do the damn thing, get rid of the plank.

I thought this test was to "simulate combat conditions". How can we have alternates to that?

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 21 at 2021 8:56 PM

2021-08-21T20:56:46-04:00

Replace run with ruck, increase minimum of push-ups