More members getting serious about fitness
By Kristina Davis
Sometimes it is a solitary pursuit.Sometimes it is an event so ruckus you can’t hear yourself think. But whether it is a solo or team endeavor, promotion and postings now demand the same thing: fitness.
Photo: Lyndon Goveas
Gyms like this PSP facility at CFB Kingston may see an increase in traffic given the re-newed emphasis on fitness and wellness in the CF.
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Mike Taylor, the national physical fitness policy and Resources manager with the Personnel Support Programs (PSP) division of the Canadian Forces Personnel Support Agency (CFPSA), says with this renewed emphasis on fitness, the agency foresees a few changes.
First, he explains, a new DAOD on Physical Fitness will soon hit the streets— and with it, two significant modifications. “There’s a wider application,” he explains. “There will be annual fitness testing for all primary Reservists (Class A, B or C) and there are thousands of them.”
Coupled with more members actually being tested, he says there are now more defined parameters for assisting members who are unable to attain the fitness standards.“The old CFAO was not specific on administrative actions,” he says. The new DAOD, however, has a series of charts, which clearly delineate a course of action for those who are unsuccessful. “It’s tied into promotions and postings,” he explains. “There are serious career implications.”
While Mr. Taylor says the numbers who actually fail the test average about 10 percent, given the increase in those being tested, the failure rate could also increase in the short term as Reservists come to terms with the new fitness expectations. The good news he says, is that more people may head to the gym.
“It means more business for PSP staff,” he explains. “But in the long run, it also means more people adopting a culture of fitness, health and wellness.”
Asked if he worries that gyms may become over-crowded, he sites the tremendous upgrades that have occurred to CF fitness facilities over the last five years which should enable PSP to fulfill the agency’s motto of “Serving those who serve”.
Lieutenant-Colonel Pat Henry, with the Director Military Employment Policy (DMEP), says the new DAOD was a few years in the works. Complete with working groups and consultations, she says the policy drafters considered the entire CF and its mandate in the process.
Describing it as a “long policy”—coming in at 24 pages—LCol Henry says the bottom line is that CF members must be fit and must take the appropriate physical test. “It all depends upon where you are and what you are doing,” she explains.
For example, a Class B Air Force Reservist deploying with an Army Unit would have to take the Army Fitness Test, arguably one of the most challenging, rather than the test used by the Air Force. That means instead of doing the EXPRES Test, that Reservist would have to do the ruck march, casualty evacuation and trench dig.
And while some.aspects of the policy are new, LCol Henry emphasizes that the career administrative measures have always been in place. Now, however, the policy is much clearer and will be enforced.
Plus, she adds, the testing itself, while it remains largely the same, has also been clarified. “The training schedule to get yourself in shape is very well laid out,” she explains.
And it is not necessary to have access to a gym. For example, tasks included EXPRES Test like push-ups, sit-ups and even the shuttle run, she says, can be perfected at home.
Ultimately, though, as emphasized by the Chief of the Defence Staff, General Rick Hillier, the DAOD is not just about fitness testing. Rather, it is about operational success where every little bit counts. “I am convinced,” he says, “that adherence to a physical fitness program will not only increase strength, energy and endurance, but also improve an individual’s ability to cope with mental and emotional stresses.”
For more on physical fitness and testing, visit www.cfpsa.com.