Last year, Hegseth introduced new sex-neutral fitness standards that sought to eliminate sex-based grading for combat soldiers on the military’s physical fitness exam. That exam includes a 3-mile run, push-ups or pull-ups, and an abdominal plank. When the standards were announced, some analysts worried it could lead to fewer women enlisting.
But a new report from The War Horse, a nonprofit newsroom, suggests that Hegseth’s new standards were not making the military more masculine, as he seemed to hope. The report found that 90% of female Marines in combat roles who took the fitness test passed or exceeded expectations.
I guess it’s just shoulders, then? I do think shorter people would have an advantage and women generally are shorter as well. But I have not known a woman who could beat a similarly fit guy in push ups.
I know I could not do one good push up until I had too much mass to manage a pull up, lol. I can now because of yoga, my strength is more distributed than when I was dancing, and there is a lot of tricep work in power yoga.