Hegseth orders ‘fat generals’ out of US military

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00:00Fat generals and overweight chair-born rangers are a bad look for the U.S. military,

00:05and we don't want them anymore. That's the message from U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete

00:09Hegseth to the nation's top brass. We now know why every active duty general and admiral in the

00:18United States military was ordered to attend a presentation by U.S. Secretary of Defense

00:23Pete Hegseth. It was not to sign a loyalty pledge like internet comment sections would

00:29have you believe, or prepare for war with China or Russia, but to outline the sect F's new vision

00:35for the Pentagon, one where the warrior's ethos can be unchained, where beardos and overweight officers

00:43are no longer welcome. Frankly, it's tiring to look out at combat formations or really any formation

00:49and see fat troops. Likewise, it's completely unacceptable to see fat generals and admirals

00:56in the halls of the Pentagon and leading commands around the country and the world. It's a bad

01:00look. It is bad, and it's not who we are. So whether you're an airborne ranger or a chair-born

01:06ranger, a brand new private or a four-star general, you need to meet the height and weight standards

01:12and pass your PT test. The height and weight standards to serve in the U.S. military, as

01:16well as the physical fitness tests a service member must pass each year, are a little different

01:22for each branch. For the most part though, if you signed up to be a sailor, soldier, marine,

01:28airman, guardian, or guardsman before the sect F's new standards kick in, you needed to be at least

01:354 foot 10 inches tall, but not taller than 6 foot 8 inches. Your weight depended on your height,

01:42but most branches said men with a BMI over 26% were too heavy, women with a 36% BMI were considered

01:51overweight. The Marine Corps is a little stricter when it comes to BMI. But the Secretary of Defense

01:57said there would be one gender neutral standard moving forward for each branch, based on the current

02:04male standards. It's not clear yet how certain exemptions may be handled. For instance, the Navy and

02:11Army have policies that say if a sailor or soldier passes their PT tests with high enough marks,

02:17they don't necessarily need to meet the body fat standards. When officers turn 60 in the Army,

02:24they don't need to take the Army fitness test every year, but they still must maintain a doctor-approved

02:30fitness program and meet the height-weight standards. And in certain cases, a service member

02:37might be given a medical exemption for the height and weight requirements. When it comes to annual

02:42physical fitness tests, again, each branch does things a little differently. In the Army,

02:48the largest U.S. service branch, the fitness test includes a strength deadlift, standing power throw,

02:55push-ups, a sprint-drag-carry exercise, where the candidate runs through an obstacle course while also

03:01dragging and carrying heavy items to simulate movement on the battlefield. The Army PT test also

03:08includes a plank for as long as you can portion and a two-mile run. All of this is expected to be

03:16completed in one 50-minute session. A soldier would get a passing grade if they could deadlift around

03:22220 pounds three times, throw a 10-pound ball 25 feet, do about 35 push-ups, complete the sprint-drag-carry

03:32exercise in about two minutes, then plank for three minutes, and run two miles in about 16 minutes.

03:40If they do more reps or throw the ball further or run faster, their grade goes up. If they do worse in

03:47those tests, they don't pass. Planking replaced sit-ups in most military fitness tests. Each of

03:54the other U.S. service branches also have some sort of push-up and or pull-up requirement,

04:00as well as a cardiovascular test involving running, swimming, even cycling. But each metric is adjusted

04:07based on the individual's height, weight, age, and up until now, gender. Depending on the job the

04:14service member performs, there may be different standards as well. For instance, elite combat

04:20units like Navy SEALs and Army Special Forces already maintain gender-neutral standards, which are higher

04:28than the standards a radar operator might have to meet. Under the Hegseth policy shift, though,

04:34all branches will maintain gender-neutral standards regardless of the job performed.

04:40We very much value the impact of female troops. Our female officers and NCOs are the absolute best

04:48in the world. But when it comes to any job that requires physical power to perform in combat,

04:55those physical standards must be high and gender-neutral. If women can make it, excellent.

05:01If not, it is what it is. If that means no women qualify for some combat jobs, so be it. That is

05:10not the intent, but it could be the result, so be it. In addition to outlining his vision for the U.S.

05:16military in terms of physical fitness, Hegseth also said members of the U.S. military are expected

05:22to be clean-shaven, saying the era of unprofessional appearance is over.

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