11th MEU conducts a Combat Fitness Test

Photo By Master Gunnery Sgt. Jimmy Bention | Cpl. Jonathan Waldman, 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit combat photographer, conducts ammo can lifts duing the combat fitness test here July 12. (Photo by: U.S. Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Jimmy H. Bention, Jr. Public Affairs, 11TH Marine Expeditionary Unit)  

CAMP PENDLETON, CA, UNITED STATES

07.12.2013

Story by 2nd Lt. Brendan McIntyre 

11th Marine Expeditionary Unit   

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. – Marines with the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit conducted a Combat Fitness Test here, July 12.

In 2008, the Marine Corps established the Combat Fitness Test to complement the already existing Physical Fitness Test. The CFT was designed to test a Marine’s physical fitness in a combat environment.

Conducted in the Marine Corps utility uniform and boots, the CFT consists of an 880 yard run to simulate movement to contact, a two minute max ammo can overhead press using a 30 pound ammo can, and a maneuver under fire course. The maneuver under fire consists of low crawls, buddy drags, and ammo can carries.

These events test Marines strength and conditioning utilizing movements they can be expected to perform in combat.

For Marines who served in both the pre- and post-CFT eras, the CFT brought a paradigm change to the way they train their bodies.

“I get to train more how we fight,” said Gunnery Sgt. Ronald Miller, the 11th MEU Electronic Key Management Systems Chief and Cody, Wyo. native. “In today’s Marine Corps, it’s a much better gauge of fitness for our Marines: That quick, powerful burst of energy needed in combat while in boots.”

With the CFT consisting of more complex movements, one might expect a higher injury rate in the CFT when compared to the PFT. That doesn’t seem to be the case. The CFT provides Marines with realistic training using movements Marines will encounter on deployment, with no increase in training injuries, said Hospital Corpsman Third Class Kevin Daniels, a corpsman with the 11th MEU and Trenton, N.J. native.

This is the first CFT the 11th MEU has conducted this year. CFT season began on July 1 and will carry throughout the rest of the calendar year. From January through June Marines run the PFT, but now need to change their mindset and get ready for the CFT.

The 11th MEU will continue to run CFT’s until all Marines have completed their annual training requirement. This ensures that the Marines of the 11th MEU maintain physical readiness and are prepared to accomplish any mission asked of them.

• Date Taken: 07.12.2013
• Date Posted: 07.12.2013 13:46
• Story ID: 110118
• Location: CAMP PENDLETON, CA, US
• Hometown: CODY, WY, US
• Hometown: TRENTON, NJ, US