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Army Looks Into Fat Camp For Future Recruits

Posted on: Monday, 12 January 2009, 14:35 CST

The U.S. Army’s top recruiter said on Monday that so many of its applicants are being rejected for being overweight that the Army is considering forming a fat camp to help recruits meet weight requirements.

“We want to see a formal diet and fitness regimen running alongside a new school at Fort Jackson that helps aspiring troops earn their GEDs,” said Maj. Gen. Thomas Bostick, head of the Army Recruiting Command.

Obesity is expected to be a bigger challenge for the Army in the years ahead than any other problem that keeps young people from entering the military, including lack of a GED or high school diploma, misconduct or criminal behavior and other health issues such as eye or ear problems, Bostick said.

Over the past four years, 47,447 potential recruits flunked induction physicals at the nation's 35 Military Entrance Processing Stations because they were overweight, according to Defense Department figures.

Recruiters say even though those figures are a fraction of the 205,902 such exams given in 2005 and 250,764 in 2008, it is still a considerable number that comes at a time when the military is more interested than ever in recruits.

Both the Army and Marine Corps have shelled out more than $600 million in bonuses and other financial incentives over the past year to attract volunteers.

The Pentagon remains under pressure to find a constant flow of recruits even though the services have reportedly exceeded recruiting goals in the past year.

The Defense Department has announced plans to boost the active duty Army by 65,000 to a total of 547,000 soldiers by next year, and grow the Marines from 175,000 to 202,000 by 2011.

Fire departments are also making a "major push" to encourage better fitness among young people who want to join, according to Deputy Chief Ed Nied, chair of the safety, health and survival section of the International Association of Fire Chiefs.

"We draw from the same exact population that they (the military) draw from," Nied said from his Tucson, Ariz., headquarters. "This comes from a lack of physical education in the high schools."

Bostick said a slim-down camp could be part of the new Army Prep School at Fort Jackson, S.C. The school opened in August, and gives recruits who didn't graduate from high school the chance to earn a GED before starting their nine weeks of basic training.

He said the Army Prep School could be a place where they can send some recruits that have weight issues.

At the prep school, GED candidates wear Army uniforms, exercise before breakfast and study under the guidance of enlisted officers.

Many of the young people who want to join the Army have a hard time understanding a healthy diet and the importance of daily exercise, but could get within the military limits with guidance, Bostick said.

"It took them 18 years to get to where they are at, so it's very difficult for them to lose the kind of weight that they need to on their own," Bostick added.

The Army has to fight even harder than the other service branches to get the recruits they need, according to Lawrence J. Korb, a former Pentagon chief of personnel during the Reagan administration.

Korb said the Army has a tough time recruiting compared to the other services, as the burden for fighting an unpopular war in Iraq has fallen primarily on the military's largest service.

"They are doing this because they are desperate," said Korb, a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress, a liberal think tank in Washington.

Recruiters around the country agree that weight issues among potential candidates are stressing the military.

Sgt. Darryl Bogan, a recruiter in Columbia, said out of every 10 applicants that come in, probably three are too obese. He said an additional 20 percent to 30 percent of recruits are slightly overweight, but some can get the weight off.

"We are getting heavier as a nation as far as our young people are concerned," Bogan said.

Bogan said the Army uses body fat percentages and an aerobics test to determine whether recruits can withstand the rigors of basic training.

Recruits must step up and down on a riser at a certain rate per minute, and then perform some push-ups and sit-ups and have their heart rates measured.

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On the Net:

• U.S. Army
• Defense Department
• International Association of Fire Chiefs
• Army opens Prep School at Fort Jackson

Source: redOrbit Staff & Wire Reports

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