Photo By Petty Officer 2nd Class Tyler Priestley | 210104-N-QQ548-1032 MILLINGTON, Tenn. (Feb. 208, 2021) Information Systems Technician...... read more read more
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MILLINGTON, Tenn. (NNS) - The Navy is replacing the “curl-up” portion of its Physical Readiness Test (PRT) with the “plank,” as well as adjusting the physical health assessment (PHA) requirements. The changes improve requirements while taking into consideration current pandemic challenges.
A plank is a core strength exercise that looks much like a push-up in the raised position with the person using their feet and arms to support their weight while holding their core body straight. The main difference is using a person’s forearms rather than the palms of their hands while keeping perfectly still.
COVID-19 has brought many changes to the Navy, with one of them being the cancelation of multiple PHAs. In 2021, there will be one PHA instead of the usual two. This PRT will introduce the plank and will also introduce a rowing machine as an alternative cardio option.
The Navy chose to do only one cycle of the PHA to aid in mitigating the spread of the coronavirus and allow more time for the COVID-19 vaccine to be widely distributed throughout the fleet. The PHA cycle will go from July 1 to Dec. 31, 2021.
For this cycle, Sailors will not receive a “fail” for the PRT if they do not meet minimum requirements for the plank as long as they pass the push-ups and cardio portions. As of now, this exception is only for the upcoming 2021 cycle.
“The transition to the plank is a wise move on the Navy’s part,” said Chief Cryptological Technician (Interpretive) Justin West, Navy Recruiting Command’s Command Fitness Leader. “It is a better gauge of an individual’s core strength than the curl-up is, and there is less chance of sustaining injury or strain on the lower back than with the curl-ups.”
An example of the plank scoring goes as follows: Sailors age 17-19 must reach a minimum time of one minute 30 seconds in order to pass. The required time to achieve maximum points is three minutes 40 seconds. From there, the time needed is decreased by five seconds as you go up each age bracket. The plank scoring is gender-neutral just as the curl-up portion was.
“I’ve seen the PHA and PRT changes come and go the last seven years, and I think planks make the most sense of any of the improvements,” said Information Specialist Technician 1st Class Caleb Womack. “I like running the cardio portion, but can see where rowing is a lot easier on your knees. It’s a better option for many people.”
With rowing being introduced as an alternative cardio option, Sailors must row a set distance of 2,000 meters. Score is based on how long it takes a Sailor to reach the 2,000-meter mark. Unlike the plank, the scores for the row are affected by gender and altitude.
At an altitude of less than 5,000 feet, a male age 17-19 must reach 2,000 meters by seven minutes for maximum score, and nine minutes 20 seconds would net them a probationary score. A female of the same age and altitude would be eight minutes and 10 minutes 30 seconds for the same respective scores. Sailors above 5,000 feet are allotted slightly more time.
“I think it will be well-received,” said West. “Planks are a fairly standard exercise for core workouts, and the rowing machine is a popular cardio workout for a lot of Sailors. More so, in my opinion, than the recently removed elliptical.”
For more information, please reference NAVADMIN 024/21.
Navy Recruiting Command consists of a command headquarters, three Navy Recruiting Regions, 26 NTAGs and 64 Talent Acquisition Onboarding Centers (TAOCs) that serve more than 1,000 recruiting stations around the world. Their mission is to attract the highest quality candidates to assure the ongoing success of America’s Navy.
For more news from Commander, Navy Recruiting Command, go to http://www.cnrc.navy.mil. Follow Navy Recruiting on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/MyNAVYHR), Twitter (@USNRecruiter) and Instagram (@USNRecruiter).
| Date Taken: | 02.12.2021 |
| Date Posted: | 02.12.2021 11:54 |
| Story ID: | 388979 |
| Location: | MILLINGTON, TN, US |
| Web Views: | 483 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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