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Marines delay female fitness plan after half fail pullup test
Fox News ^ | 01/02/2014 | Associated Press

Posted on 01/02/2014 1:58:35 PM PST by thetallguy24

More than half of female Marines in boot camp can't do three pullups, the minimum standard that was supposed to take effect with the new year, prompting the Marine Corps to delay the requirement, part of the process of equalizing physical standards to integrate women into combat jobs.

The delay rekindled sharp debate in the military on the question of whether women have the physical strength for some military jobs, as service branches move toward opening thousands of combat roles to them in 2016.

Although no new timetable has been set on the delayed physical requirement, Marine Corps Commandant Gen. James Amos wants training officials to "continue to gather data and ensure that female Marines are provided with the best opportunity to succeed," Capt. Maureen Krebs, a Marine spokeswoman, said Thursday.

Starting with the new year, all female Marines were supposed to be able to do at least three pullups on their annual physical fitness test and eight for a perfect score. The requirement was tested in 2013 on female recruits at Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Parris Island, S.C., but only 45 percent of women met the minimum, Krebs said.

(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: fitness; marines; military; militaryreadiness; militarywomen; obama; usmc; women
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"Walk around. Walk around, sugar britches!" - Sgt. Foley
1 posted on 01/02/2014 1:58:35 PM PST by thetallguy24
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To: thetallguy24

If I were a female who had enlisted in the USMC, I would be sure I could do plenty of pull-ups before ever arriving at boot camp. Seems like it would make life much easier.


2 posted on 01/02/2014 2:00:24 PM PST by NEMDF
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To: thetallguy24

Police & Fire already knew this.


3 posted on 01/02/2014 2:04:04 PM PST by SandRat (Duty - Honor - Country! What else needs said?)
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To: thetallguy24

I guess they haven’t been keeping up with the times.

We are all supposed to pretend that there is nothing a man can do that a woman can’t do.
And nothing a wonman can do that a gay boy can’t do.

There is no room for objective fact and actual results in Obama-Land.


4 posted on 01/02/2014 2:06:16 PM PST by Iron Munro (Orwell: There are some ideas so absurd that only an intellectual could believe them.)
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To: thetallguy24

Pullups? Had infantry combat training in 1944. Had to walk/run 20 miles with full field pack, rifle, steel helmet in combat boots but no pullups. It was legs and endurance.


5 posted on 01/02/2014 2:07:36 PM PST by ex-snook (God is Love)
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To: thetallguy24

The attempt to offer ‘equality’ in the military by allowing female recruits to train for and serve in combat is running head-on into the reality that military combat requires a level of muscle strength that many females simply do not have due to the difference in body structure. Duh! I suspect that most young men seeking to enter the Marine Corps could accomplish three pullups. The military, now run by PC types, will find ‘alternative’ tests (that females can pass) to justify their acceptance into combat training. This likely won’t end well for the military or the women involved.


6 posted on 01/02/2014 2:08:46 PM PST by Jim Scott
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To: NEMDF

The respective branches of the U.S. military encourage getting into shape prior to going to basic training. I’m trying to remember the source, but I read that the USMC encouraged recruits to start weight training prior to going off the Parris Island, or San Diego. I for one lost 40 pounds before I went to Lackland for basic, lot of cardio and marching with the 65 pound ruck.


7 posted on 01/02/2014 2:09:44 PM PST by Antihero101607
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To: thetallguy24

Hey just lower the standards for the poor dears...its more important they they FEEL like real Marines...who cares that a lack of upper body strength might mean they can’t help the injured out of danger...

Lowering standards worked so well in the public schools...didn’t it?

/s


8 posted on 01/02/2014 2:09:45 PM PST by Adder (No, Mr. Franklin, we could NOT keep it.)
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To: ex-snook

In the 70s, it was slightly more than 20 miles, but we also had a PT test that included situps, pushups and a few other gyrations.

Everything else was ok, but the mile run almost killed me.


9 posted on 01/02/2014 2:11:39 PM PST by jimt (Fear is the darkroom where negatives are developed.)
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To: jimt

“...the process of equalizing physical standards to integrate women into combat jobs.”

Are there not objective dangers that demand a certain level of strength to defeat them?!


10 posted on 01/02/2014 2:14:41 PM PST by utahagen
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To: ex-snook

“Pullups? Had infantry combat training in 1944. Had to walk/run 20 miles with full field pack, rifle, steel helmet in combat boots but no pullups. It was legs and endurance.”

From US Army WWII Fitness Manual ....

TEST 1: PULLUPS

This event requires a horizontal bar. This may be made of a pipe or gymnasium horizontal bar, or other rigid horizontal support which is not over 1½ inches in diameter. The bar should be high enough to permit the performer to hang at full length without touching the ground. A height of 7 feet, 9 inches to 8 feet is recommended.

Starting Position. Hanging at full length from the bar with arms straight. The forward grasp is used with the palms turned away from the face.

Pullup

Movement. Pull up until the chin is above the level of the bar. Then lower the body until elbows are completely straight. Continue for as many repetitions as possible.

Instructions. The men should be told that it is permissible to raise the legs and flex the hips when pulling up but not to kick or execute a jerking motion with trunk or legs. The body must be kept from swinging. The chin must be raised above the bar. The arms must be completely straight at the bottom of the movement.

Administration and Scoring. Each time the performer pulls his chin above the bar in correct form, he is given credit for one pullup. He is not credited with a pullup if he fails to raise his chin above the level of the bar or if he stops to rest. If the performer does not straighten his arms at the bottom of a movement, if he kicks or jerks, only half a pullup will be counted. If there are four half-pullups, the performer should be stopped and retested later. If the performer starts to swing, the judge should stop the swinging with his hands. Some such aid as a resin-bag or a cake of magnesium carbonate should be available to prevent the hands from slipping.


11 posted on 01/02/2014 2:14:54 PM PST by TexasGator
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To: Adder

Don’t you love outcome based education for Marines? lol


12 posted on 01/02/2014 2:21:55 PM PST by thetallguy24
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To: TexasGator

Interesting. Do you think the manual means that if you couldn’t pass the PT, you would not be sent to combat duty?


13 posted on 01/02/2014 2:22:03 PM PST by ex-snook (God is Love)
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To: thetallguy24
Commandant Gen. James Amos wants training officials to "continue to
gather data and ensure that female Marines are provided with the best
opportunity to succeed," Capt. Maureen Krebs, a Marine spokeswoman said

"Pullups?? That's like ... WORK!"

14 posted on 01/02/2014 2:25:25 PM PST by mikrofon (Maynard G.)
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To: ex-snook

20 is excellant, 6 is poor but it doesn’t say what is pass/fail. I suspect it is based on a ‘sum’ of the eight required tests.


15 posted on 01/02/2014 2:26:05 PM PST by TexasGator
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To: thetallguy24

When I was in basic training in the late 50s we had to do 12 pull-ups in good form before we got breakfast.

Probably some failed the test but I cannot recall seeing many not do it. Hunger does that to a man.


16 posted on 01/02/2014 2:36:03 PM PST by OldPossum ("It's" is the contraction of "it" and "is"; think about ITS implications.)
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To: thetallguy24

They will now start lowering the standards.


17 posted on 01/02/2014 2:37:06 PM PST by GeronL (Extra Large Cheesy Over-Stuffed Hobbit)
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To: Antihero101607

A series of my son’s friends went into USMC over a period of about a year and a half or so, five altogether. The fifth one in was the star of his recruit class, due to he had taken all of the advice the other four had for him before boot camp.


18 posted on 01/02/2014 2:38:08 PM PST by NEMDF
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To: TexasGator

I was a very good athlete in college. I don’t remember how many pull ups I could do but it was probably over 20.

A few years after I got married and put on a few pounds, my wife and I were in a park and I noticed a chin up bar. I grabbed it, relaxed and then tried to do a pull up.

To my everlasting irritation, I could not do one.


19 posted on 01/02/2014 2:39:35 PM PST by yarddog (Romans 8: verses 38 and 39. "For I am persuaded".)
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To: yarddog

“A few years after I got married and put on a few pounds, my wife and I were in a park and I noticed a chin up bar. I grabbed it, relaxed and then tried to do a pull up.”

Just wait till you go to the park with the grandkids ....


20 posted on 01/02/2014 2:45:06 PM PST by TexasGator
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