Leaders and master fitness trainers from across the 8th Theater Sustainment Command attended a Soldier Athlete Summit from March 28 to April 1, 2022 at various U.S. Army installations located on the Island of Oahu, Hawaii.
This Summit brought together unit leaders and Army medicine professionals from the Desmond Doss Health Clinic to review and discuss injury prevention and physical performance enhancement for soldiers. It was also an opportunity to gather MFTs across the 8th TSC and to train them on effective techniques under the supervision of Army medicine professionals who specialize in exercise physiology.
The 8th TSC Deputy Commanding Officer, Col. Theodore White, said the Summit’s goal was to train-the-trainers so effective physical training programs are designed and implemented at the unit level.
“Additionally, it provided the Desmond Doss medical professionals the opportunity to educate leaders about the service and capabilities the health clinic provides to improve soldier physical performance and post injury recovery,” said White.
Preventing physical readiness training injuries directly ties into the roles and responsibilities of leaders at every level of responsibility.
Neil Santiago, human specialist, Desmond Doss Health Clinic, believes readiness is directly tied to a soldier’s fitness and ability to deploy when required.
“Injuries that result in medical profiles degrade unit readiness rates,” said Santiago. “The program is designed to assist leaders develop and execute physical fitness programs that improve soldier fitness and simultaneously prevent exercise related injuries. It is also designed to expose the resources available to assist soldiers recover fully from any injuries,” said Santiago.
The summit also focused on how small unit leaders and MFTs prepare soldiers in their units for the newly revised Army Combat Fitness Test. The summit devoted three days to training MFTs on proper techniques and other fitness activities designed to improve soldier performance on the ACFT. Special attention was paid to proper exercise execution, position, movement, and load bearing to improve performance and prevent injury.
White’s expectation is that leaders and MFTs will incorporate new techniques and exercises learned to improve performance within their respective units and reduce chances for injury.
“A soldier is the most lethal and complex multi-dimensional weapon system on the battlefield,” said White. “Ensuring soldiers are physically strong, spiritually sound, and emotionally resilient strengthens them holistically and gives them the confidence to accomplish any mission,” said White.
Date Taken: | 04.11.2022 |
Date Posted: | 04.21.2022 23:08 |
Story ID: | 418287 |
Location: | SCHOFIELD BARRACKS, HI, US |
Web Views: | 16 |
Downloads: | 0 |
This work, 8TSC holds Soldier Athlete Summit, by SFC Richard Lower, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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