The Army Combat Fitness Test (ACFT) and the Health of the Active Component : RAND Corporation , March 11 , 2025
The Army Combat Fitness Test (ACFT) and the Health of the Active Component : RAND Corporation , March 11 , 2025
From the report: “The Army Combat Fitness Test (ACFT) became the U.S. Army’s physical fitness test of record in October 2022. The test consists of six events intended to measure muscular strength and endurance, power, speed, agility, aerobic endurance, balance, flexibility, coordination, and reaction time. One of the Army’s stated goals for the test was to reduce injuries. More than half of soldiers experience a new injury in 2021, so success in reducing the risk of injury could have a significant impact on both medical costs and lost workdays. Because the ACFT has been administered for a relatively short period, there are limited data available to assess the relationship between the ACFT and soldier health and injuries. Nevertheless, this research effort used available data to gain initial insights into this relationship. This study was part of RAND’s ongoing independent assessment of the ACFT, focusing specifically on injury risk.
To determine the empirical relationship between the ACFT and injuries, we reviewed the literature on the associations between fitness testing and injury rates, as well as existing surveillance systems and information. We also combined the Army’s ACFT data on physical fitness performance with data from the Defense Health Agency on medical encounters and examined reported injury rates for the active component of the Army during periods when the Army Physical Fitness Test (APFT) was still in place, as well as during the rollout and full implementation of the ACFT. Most of our statistical analyses use tests collected after April 1, 2022, because the ACFTs recorded after this date are most representative of the state of current ACFT policies.”
Authors - Hicks, Daniel, Sims, Carra S., Avriette, Mary, Steiner, Max, Baker, SarahSubjects
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