The term PREG was previously used to denote pregnant or postpartum Marines on fitness reports because of their exemption from body. The operation and maintenance of the Marine Corps Performance Evaluation System. (PES), and the submission of fitness reports for Marines.
Military.com|By Gina Harkins
Marines will face several new standards next year that will make it harder to pass their physical and combat fitness tests.
More pull-ups for female Marines, less recovery time between Combat Fitness Test events, and higher minimum passing scores on both fitness tests are coming in 2019, Marine officials announced Monday.
The effort is meant to up the standards for all Marines, who will be pushed to strive for higher scores and better athleticism across the board, said Col. Stephen Armes, director of the Marine Corps' Force Fitness Division.
'I think, as with any [physical fitness] program, you have to modify it and adapt it,' Armes told Military.com. 'If you continue doing the same thing year in and year out, you're not going to get any better.'
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The changes are based on data from the last two seasons of fitness test results as well as a push from Commandant Gen. Robert Neller to ensure all fitness requirements are 'reasonable, fair and challenging,' Armes said.
Details on the upcoming changes were released Monday in aservice-wide administrative message. Here's a look at what's on tap for every Marine.
More Pull-Ups for Women
Starting Jan. 1, almost all female Marines will have to perform at least three pull-ups on their PFT.
Two years after the end of the flexed-arm hang, more women are opting to do pull-ups on their PFT, Armes said. But the number of reps of the upper-body strength exercise they must perform to pass the event is about to increase.
Female Marines ages 26 to 30 are going to see the toughest increase, with the minimum required jumping from one to four. Most women in the Marine Corps -- those ages 21 to 25; 31 to 35; and 36 to 40 -- will need to increase the minimum number of pull-ups from one to three.
New 2019 Minimum/Maximum Female PFT Pull-up Requirements, by Age
![Report Report](http://images05.military.com/media/military-fitness/flexedarmhang600.jpg)
- 17-20 (1 minimum, 7 maximum)
- 21-25 (3 minimum, 11 maximum)
- 26-30 (4 minimum, 12 maximum)
- 31-35 (3 minimum, 11 maximum)
- 36-40 (3 minimum, 10 maximum)
- 41-45 (2 minimum, 8 maximum)
- 46-50 (2 minimum, 6 maximum)
- 51+ (2 minimum, 4 maximum)
Source: Marine administrative message 539/18
Any female Marine age 41 or above will need two pull-ups to pass the minimum standard. The only female Marines whose standards won't change are the youngest -- aged 17 to 20.
That's by design, Armes said.
'You grow, from a muscular perspective, into your 20s,' he said. 'A 25-year-old will be stronger than when you're 17. They have more time to develop, especially in a structured program like the Marine Corps.'
Most female Marines will also need to perform more pull-ups to earn maximum points on that event of the PFT. In the past, women needed between three and 10 pull-ups to max out, depending on age. Now that will jump from four to 12 pull-ups.
Women ages 26 to 30 will again see the highest rate needed for full marks, at 12 pull-ups. Those ages 21 to 25 or 31 to 35 will need 11, and women over 40 will need between four and eight to max out, depending on age.
The tougher requirements are a direct result of female Marines' pull-up performance, Armes said.
About 30 percent of female Marines opted for pushups in place of pull-ups on their 2018 PFTs, but that number is on the decline from 35 percent in 2017. More than 1,000 female Marines also cranked out 20 pull-ups when taking their PFTs this year, Armes said, which is on par with the number some men need to earn full marks.
'Once we did away with the flexed-arm hang and introduced pull-ups for the females, they're just showing that they're getting stronger overall ... and they're quickly closing that gap,' he said.
Shorter Recovery Times
Marines taking the CFT will no longer get a five-minute reprieve between their movement-to-contact, ammunition-can lifts and maneuver-under-fire events.
Effective July 1, Marines will have only three minutes to recover between those events while taking the CFT.
'Going back to the commandant's desire to make something reasonable, fair and challenging, five minutes is a long time, and he thought by making it three minutes was definitely going to make it more challenging for the Marines,' Armes said. 'That's ultimately his aim, is to continue to challenge the Marines and continue to raise that bar for what they're trying to shoot for.'
That change -- along with the other PFT and CFT changes Marines will see next year -- is likely to cause a dip in scores on both fitness tests, he added. But over time, Marines adapt, and they've consistently shown that they rise to meet new physical standards, Armes said.
Since the CFT is meant to ensure Marines are ready for combat, a shorter recovery time is something they could experience downrange too.
'In combat, things happen rapidly,' Armes said. 'You don't get a set time to recover. You might get a Marine across the danger zone and then they might have to do something like lift ammo cans. They're going to be doing one thing after another in combat.'
Tougher Minimum Combined Scores
No Marine is going to be able to do the bare minimum on all six PFT and CFT events and expect to pass the tests anymore.
Starting Jan. 1, Marines will need a minimum combined score of 150 points to pass the PFT. Similarly, they'll need 150 points on the CFT to pass that test starting July 1.
'Ideally, Marines will look at the maximums across all events and they'll go after [those],' Armes said. 'If they go after the maximums, they're not going to have any problems.'
Currently, less than 1 percent of Marines taking the PFT across all age groups score less than a 150, he said. For the CFT, it's even lower. 'But the big takeaway is that they cannot score a minimum on all three events and pass.'
The timing for all of these changes is right, Armes said. It's been about two years since the last PFT/CFT overhauls, and the Marine Corps now has force fitness instructors developing tailored PT plans for units and squadrons across the service.
No Marine should be training just to pass the PFT or CFT, he said, but to improve their overall fitness and nutrition so they perform as best they can on and off the battlefield.
'Like with any athlete, you continue to put the body through more calculated stress, and those stressors -- if given the proper recovery -- will make the athlete stronger,' he said. 'This is one way to get after that.
'Marines now know that they're going to have to push themselves harder,' he added.
-- Gina Harkins can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter at@ginaaharkins.
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As this year's promotion board season ends and rotation slating begins, I am reflecting on personal experiences and anecdotes of my colleagues and mentors, both past and present. This has resulted in a strange revelation: It pays to be mediocre, and this is not good for anyone.
This is not about promotion board reform. This is merely a quick synopsis of my stated revelation that can be debated by peers and veterans alike.
Below-Average Performers:
For evaluation purposes, few adverse fitness reports are given for performance; nearly all negative evaluations are due to misconduct or being blatantly out of standards (i.e. body fat). As such, the Marine Corps tends to deal with its weaker officers in a manner where supervisors give below average quantitative markings while writing nice things in evaluation comment sections to avoid the perception of adversity. This results in an officer's false sense of security as few supervisors have the intestinal fortitude to provide counseling to improve the officer, both during the evaluation period or afterwards. This does a disservice to the institution as it reduces the talent pool of officers with potential that may only need a simple tweak to their performance or conduct. Often, commands view these officers as less critical and are quick to give up these weaker officers to fill in as external taskers or individual augments. This can result in increased deployments and personal awards that may extend one's career, but eventually these officers are weeded out through education and command boards that select average performers at minimum.
Average Performers:
As promotions in the Marine Corps do not truly get competitive until the rank of colonel (O-6), 45 percent selection rate this year, a large percentage of average officers will meet the requirements to have long, successful careers by any standard. As a Marine, I truly believe that Marine Corps officers are exceptional in themselves and that being average in this talented population is a significant achievement. The average Marine officer will likely get selected for schools early in their career, will hold billets that are somewhat important but not critical, and be taken care of by their command as the Marine Corps rewards consistency, both in terms of performance and demeanor. These officers knowingly or not have a significant advantage over their peers. Their record is good enough to make the cut above their below-average peers for promotion; they will receive end of tour awards on par with their rank; and many will obtain battalion command. The key is that they will do this while maintaining a position under the radar where they are not actively sought after in the same manner as above-average performers to hold 'key billets' that entail ridiculous amounts of responsibility for a single human being and 60+ hour work weeks. These average performers can survive on reading doctrine, publications, and after action reports to get the job done to standard and maintain status quo. They will then leave the service on their own terms with a respectable resume, a decent amount of recognition and awards, and a solid work-life balance. It pays to be mediocre.
Above-Average Performers:
These are the 'water walkers' that are consistently above average as a way of life. These officers are not motivated by the institution but have an internal drive that would make them successful in any career field they pursue. These Marines likely do not get many opportunities for 'fun' billets or downtime, are selected to attend the standard military schools to meet the grooming requirements for command, and are often put in multiple key billets simultaneously or back-to-back as their command cannot function without their high-level of proficiency and leadership. These water walkers can be divided up into above-average staff officers and above-average commanders with a very select few being extremely talented at both. You can often pick these officers out by the point of contact paragraph of important correspondence that lists them and not the signer, by the after action reports references utilized by planners, by intriguing Gazette articles, and by a reputation that quickly builds among the officer community. Do these officers that nearly always guarantee mission success and often times are the driving forces for bold institutional change receive any incentives for their exceptional performance? No. There is currently no accelerated promotion as the below-zone has not been considered for several years; there is no recognition as pay is based only on time and grade; and awards are limited to billet with very little deviation between average and above-average performers. In reality, these officers are punished with careers that flow from one stressful billet to another with the promise of rank ascension and opportunity. This continues until the above-average achiever is no longer needed or no longer above-average. For the lucky ones, they catch on early before the this happens or burnout occurs and parley their military career into a successful corporate position. The others leave the Marine Corps with a sense of regret of knowing the hard work results in the same prize at the end of race as the average performer.
What's the point?
The point is that in the Marine Corps there is no incentive to perform beyond average. This reduces individual officer potential as well as slows institutional progression. Above-average performers serve their country because they love the Marine Corps and have natural drive to perform at high levels. These officers will always exist but many leave too early or their potential is limited due to “traditional” requirements. The easy thing to do is ride on the backs of these above-average performers knowing the system is flawed. But this results in untapped potential. Firstly, the Marine Corps must incentivize average performers to push their limits. At the same time, the Marine Corps must reward their water walkers with opportunities to excel in nontraditional endeavors that will likely result in a next-level of innovation and thought as well as simply give an opportunity to recharge their batteries. The Corps is not meant to be a mediocre institution so I propose a paradigm shift that does not merely make marginal changes to officer retention, promotion, and assignment but creates a level of freedom and development to encourage average officers to be great and above-average officers the opportunity to change the world.