You've probably heard the rumors or seen the viral clips of soldiers struggling with a massive hex bar. It’s been a wild ride for the military lately. After years of back-and-forth, legal reviews, and some pretty heated debates in Congress, the army pt standards new system—better known as the Army Combat Fitness Test (ACFT)—is finally the law of the land. But honestly, it’s not just about doing some push-ups anymore. The transition from the old APFT (Army Physical Fitness Test) to the ACFT represents the biggest shift in military culture since the end of the Cold War.
If you’re still thinking about the old two-mile run and a few sit-ups, you're in for a shock. The Army basically decided that being "skinny-fast" wasn't cutting it on the modern battlefield. They realized that dragging a 200-pound casualty or lifting heavy ammo crates requires more than just cardio. So, they built a six-event gauntlet. It was supposed to be gender-neutral. Then it wasn't. Then it was modified again. It’s been a mess, frankly. But as of now, the standards are locked in, and they are tiered based on age and gender, much like the old days, though the exercises themselves are a total departure from the past.
What Actually Matters in the Army PT Standards New Manual
The biggest hurdle for most people isn't the running. It’s the 3-Rep Maximum Deadlift (MDL). For the first time, the Army is asking every single soldier to move heavy iron. You get three attempts to lift the maximum weight possible using a hex bar. If you’ve never used a hex bar, it’s a bit more forgiving on your lower back than a traditional straight bar, but it still requires legitimate form. The minimums vary, but if you’re a young soldier in a combat arms role, you better be ready to pull some serious weight.
Then there’s the Standing Power Throw (SPT). You take a 10-pound medic ball, stand with your back to the field, and hurl it over your head. It looks goofy. It feels goofy. But it's actually a great measure of explosive power. If you can't generate force from your hips, that ball is going nowhere. Soldiers who spent years focusing only on endurance are finding that they actually need to hit the squat rack to pass this one.
The Hand-Release Push-Up (HRP) is another beast. Gone are the days of "half-reps" where you just bob your head up and down. Now, you have to go all the way to the ground, extend your arms out into a T-shape (or just lift them off the floor, depending on the specific grader's strictness with the current FM 7-22), and then push back up. It completely kills your momentum. It’s a chest-burner. You might think you can do 60 push-ups, but under these army pt standards new rules, you might only hit 30 before your triceps give out.
The Sprint-Drag-Carry: The Real Soul Crusher
Ask any soldier which event they hate most. They won't say the run. They'll say the Sprint-Drag-Carry (SDC).
This event is 250 meters of pure misery. You sprint 25 meters, drag a 90-pound sled back, sprint again, carry two 40-pound kettlebells, and then do a final sprint. It’s usually over in about two minutes, but those two minutes feel like an hour. It’s designed to simulate high-intensity combat movements. By the time you get to the kettlebells, your grip strength is usually shot and your lungs feel like they're on fire. This is where the "new" in army pt standards new really shows its teeth. It tests anaerobic capacity, something the old test ignored entirely.
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Planks Over Leg Tucks: The Great Controversy
We have to talk about the Leg Tuck. Originally, the ACFT required soldiers to hang from a pull-up bar and tuck their knees to their elbows. It was a great measure of core and upper body strength. But it was also a massive point of failure, especially for female soldiers and those with longer limbs.
After a lot of data review and some pressure from the Pentagon, the Army officially replaced the Leg Tuck with the Plank. Everyone has to do the Plank now. To get a maximum score, you’re looking at holding it for nearly four minutes. Is it easier? Maybe for some. But it’s definitely a different kind of mental toughness. Some "old school" NCOs hate the change, arguing it lowers the bar for physical readiness. Others say it’s a more equitable way to measure core stability without the bias of grip strength. Regardless of where you stand, the plank is here to stay.
The Scoring Tier Reality
The Army finally settled on age and gender-blind scoring for a minute, but that didn't last. The current army pt standards new tables are broken down by age groups and gender. This was a response to the 2023 National Defense Authorization Act, which basically told the Army they needed to ensure the test didn't unfairly disadvantage certain demographics while still maintaining "combat effectiveness."
The scoring is on a scale of 0 to 100 for each event, with a maximum possible score of 600. To pass, you generally need a 60 in every category. However, "passing" is rarely enough if you want to get promoted. The competition for promotion points is stiff. If you're a sergeant trying to make staff sergeant, a 360 total score is going to look pretty weak on your record. You really want to be aiming for that 500+ range to stay competitive.
Understanding the 2-Mile Run Evolution
The 2-mile run is still the final boss. After you’ve exhausted your legs on the deadlift and destroyed your lungs on the Sprint-Drag-Carry, you have to go out and run two miles. It sucks. Your legs feel like lead.
One thing people get wrong about the army pt standards new is thinking the run times are easier. Sure, the minimum passing times might seem generous compared to the old APFT, but you aren't running on fresh legs anymore. You're running after five other high-intensity events. That changes the math significantly. Most soldiers see their 2-mile times drop by at least 60 to 90 seconds compared to when they do a standalone run.
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Equipment and Logistics: A Logistics Nightmare
One reason the rollout took so long? The gear. The old test required a flat piece of ground and a stopwatch. That was it. The ACFT requires:
- Hex bars and bumper plates
- 10-pound medicine balls
- Nylon sleds with straps
- Kettlebells
- Pull-up bars (for the hanging tuck, though now mostly used for training)
- Level grass or artificial turf
For National Guard and Reserve units, this was a nightmare. Imagine a small unit in rural Montana trying to find a facility with ten sets of weights and 250 meters of turf during a blizzard. The Army had to spend millions shipping "ACFT sets" to every corner of the globe. This logistics hurdle is part of why the army pt standards new were delayed several times. Even now, some units struggle with "diagnostic" vs. "for record" testing because of equipment availability.
Training for the New Standard
If you're preparing for this, stop just running. Seriously. If you run five miles a day but never touch a weight, you will fail.
You need to incorporate "functional" movements. Think deadlifts, farmer's carries, and interval sprinting. The Army’s Holistic Health and Fitness (H2F) initiative is supposed to help with this. They’re putting dietitians and strength coaches into brigades to help soldiers train like athletes. It’s a cool concept, but it's only in about 30-40% of the force so far. If you're in a unit without H2F, you're basically on your own to figure out a gym routine that works.
Why This Change Actually Matters for the Future
The move to these army pt standards new isn't just about fitness; it's about injury prevention. The Army loses a staggering amount of money and "man-hours" every year to musculoskeletal injuries—mostly lower back and knee issues. By forcing soldiers to build a stronger "posterior chain" (your back, glutes, and hamstrings), the leadership hopes to create a more durable force.
There is also the "Lehigh Study" and other research from the Army Public Health Center that suggested the old test only predicted success on about 30% of combat tasks. The ACFT is supposed to predict success on about 80% of those tasks. Whether that proves true in the long run remains to be seen, but the data so far suggests that soldiers are getting stronger.
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Common Misconceptions About the ACFT
- "The test is getting scrapped." Nope. It’s been through the ringer in Congress, but it’s the standard now. Stop waiting for it to go away.
- "You can't fail the run if you pass everything else." Wrong. A failure in any one of the six events is a failure of the entire test.
- "The plank is just a rest period." Try holding a perfect plank after doing hand-release push-ups and a sled drag. Your core will be screaming.
The ACFT is a beast. It’s complicated, it’s gear-heavy, and it’s physically taxing in a way the old Army never was. But it's the reality of the army pt standards new.
What You Should Do Right Now
If you're a soldier or someone looking to join, don't wait for your unit to schedule a test to see where you stand.
First, go get a 10-pound medicine ball. Practice the Standing Power Throw. It’s all about the release point. If you release too early, it goes straight up; too late, and it hits the dirt. It’s the easiest event to "buy" points on just by improving your technique.
Second, start doing "EMOM" (Every Minute on the Minute) workouts. Do 10 kettlebell swings and 5 burpees every minute for 10 minutes. This mimics the heart rate spikes you'll hit during the Sprint-Drag-Carry.
Third, check the latest scoring scales on the official Army website or the Central Army Registry. They change slightly based on the latest directive (the 2024 and 2025 updates tweaked some of the age-group brackets). Knowing exactly what number you need to hit for a 70 or 80 in each event takes the guesswork out of game day.
Finally, focus on your grip. Between the deadlift, the sled drag, and the kettlebell carry, your hands are going to be the first thing to give out. Buy a grip trainer or just spend more time hanging from a pull-up bar. It sounds small, but it's often the difference between a mediocre score and a great one. The army pt standards new are designed to find your weaknesses. Don't let your grip be the reason you stay a Specialist for another year.
The transition is over. The era of the "three-event" soldier is dead. It's time to get under the bar and get to work.