The biggest mistake I see people make with their PT is not teaching their Soldiers how to work out. One of the craziest things we do in the military is run PT programs for Soldiers with no education background in physical fitness, exercise science, or personal training. There is a reason musculoskeletal issues make up the biggest amount of permanent profiles and disability percentages. Take the time to stretch with your Soldiers, and don’t run them a million miles a week. Understand the importance of stability exercises, plyometrics, and variety in cardiovascular exercises. Understand the value in assessing and treating each Soldier differently and being accomodating to their needs. I think as leaders, we can assess pretty well when someone is faking it out there…I don’t mean to let them do what they want. Force people to work hard when its necessary, but recognize that not everyone is going to be on the same fitness level. It is you and your NCOs’ responsibility to know what your Soldiers need to be successful. Teach them about nutrition, hyrdration, recovery, and proper escalation of work. If they’re injured, let them rest. Don’t force them to keep running through pain just because you’re trying to get them to get rid of weakness. It doesn’t do your medical readiness any good.

I highly recommend looking into cross-fit type functional fitness workouts, and taking personal responsibility to add physical training books to your professional reading list (i.e. “The Supple Leopard”, and/or a book on stretching/yoga). This is a culture we have to change. It starts with us.