The Tactical Athlete: Building the Optimal Warfighter

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 When you hear the word athlete, you most likely picture a high-performing, sport-playing individual: soccer players, basketball players, football players, etc.

However, the word athlete finds its roots in the Latin word athleta, which means combatant in public games. The root word of combatant is combat - fighting between armed forces (hence, the "Armed Forces"). The word athleticism refers to someone who possesses characteristics of physical strength and capability of robust activity.

In this light, military personnel would be classified as athletes - but instead of competing in games and sports, we are competing in combat and war.

The Tactical Athlete is anybody who contributes to carrying out tactical operations. In other words, if you are in the military, you are considered a tactical athlete.

Several, if not all MOS's (military occupational specialty) require some form of physical strength and capability. Failure to perform certain physical tasks (e.g., carry up to 100 lb of PPE, sprinting across enemy fire, or hoisting cargo into a C-130) could result in mission failure, not to mention severe injury or death to those involved.

So what physical qualities does a tactical athlete need in order to be successful in his/her mission? Does it really require running 1.5 miles in under 10 minutes and doing 3 1/2 minutes of planks? And how can you train to help yourself be the most successful in carrying out your missions?

The Anatomy of the Tactical Athlete

The physical qualities required by the tactical athlete will be largely dependent on the warfighter's MOS. For example, a Green Beret in the Army will have completely different physical requirements than an Aviation Mechanic in the Navy.

However, there are general similarities across the board.

Whereas past wars have required long treks of 15+ miles, which demands high aerobic fitness for long-term activity, today's operational environment is characterized as an anaerobic battlefield. This means that shorter, but more intense bouts of activity are required instead of long-term, but lower intensity activity. Think of a sprint vs a mile run, or bench-pressing 250 lbs for 5 reps vs doing 80 push-ups.

An anaerobic battlefield requires personnel to be able to perform the following tasks:

• Load Carriage
• Sprinting
• Heavy Lifting
• Repetitive Lifting
• Casualty Evacuation
• Offensive/Defensive Maneuvers

These tasks require the following physical qualities:

• Strength
• Power
• Load Carriage
• Aerobic Fitness
• Coordination

Strength

Strength is the amount of force a muscle can produce in a given movement (for future reference, strength = force and force = strength). Strength is not how many repetitions of lighter movements you can perform. Bench pressing 3x your bodyweight is pure strength. Performing 80 push-ups is not. Rather, performing many reps of a lighter movement would be classified as "strength-endurance" or simply "muscular endurance."

Strength, strength endurance, and muscular endurance could all be important factors in being able to effectively perform one's warfighting duties. However, the vast majority of military fitness programs and workouts focus purely on muscular endurance (think countless push-ups, pull-ups, air squats, and planks). Rarely is strength and power incorporated into the fitness routine. This is unfortunate because, given the anaerobic demands of the battlefield, strength and power are often the limiting factors in how well the warfighter is able to perform their tasks.

• Strength is developed by lifting heavy amounts of weight, usually for lower reps and longer rest periods between sets.

• Strength endurance is building your capacity (slowly over time) to lift heavier weight for larger amounts of reps and shorter rest periods.

• Muscular endurance is building your capacity to lift moderate, or lighter amounts of weight for higher reps and shorter rest periods.

Power

Technically speaking, power = force x velocity.

In other words, power is

1. The amount of strength a muscle can produce (force)
2. How quickly that muscle can produce that strength (velocity)

Think of sprinting. The stronger your legs are, the better able they will be to propel you forward. However, without their ability to push rapidly (or quickly) into the ground, you wouldn't cover much ground.

The same goes for jumping, throwing, pushing, etc.

With that in mind, improving your strength will increase your ability to produce power. But equally important is how quickly you can contract your muscles to produce that strength.

Some athletes are more strength dominant, and others are more speed (velocity) dominant.

Power is developed by increasing force (remember, force = strength), improving your velocity, or both.

Changing the amount of weight, and the speed at which you lift that weight, will determine which quality on the "force-velocity continuum" you are targeting - the heavier you lift, the less quickly you will be able to move (developing force). The less weight you lift, the faster you will be able to move (developing velocity). High-intensity, plyometric training would fit in the "developing velocity" category.

Load Carriage

Load Carriage is exactly what its name implies: carrying load. It refers to the amount of weight a soldier, airman, sailor, or marine must carry. This includes their weapons, protective equipment, uniform, provisions, radios, etc.

During the conflict in Afghanistan, US Armed Forces Infantry often carried between 97-101 lbs. In addition to the weight carried, this weight was sometimes carried over difficult and uneven terrain.

The vast majority of injuries during deployment are traced back to load carriage (specifically injuries to the lower back), accounting for about 78% of medical discharges from the US Military.

Heavy load carriage exerts force on the lumbar spine (low back), hips, shoulders, and knees. Although larger, more muscular people often perform better during load carriage, strength training can help offset the stress imposed by and improve performance during load carriage activities, regardless of body size/type. In fact, simply strength training, without any load carriage training, can improve load carriage performance.

Aerobic Fitness

The word aerobic means utilizing oxygen. Training the aerobic system in your body generally means performing longer-duration activities at lower intensities, such as running, biking, and swimming.

Developing aerobic fitness can help improve the tasks that are performed throughout a routine day by improving what is called exercise capacity. Essentially, if you have a high exercise capacity, you can perform more tasks while using less energy.

The largest problem with aerobic fitness is that the US Military tends to completely overemphasize and overtrain this quality. Not only does this lead to overuse injuries, such as shin splints and stress fractures, but it is not conducive to the anaerobic battlefield environment. 

Think of the last time an airman was required to run 1.5 miles in a plane, or a sailor on a ship. While Marines and the Army do require longer treks across land while carrying load, actual combat is composed of several short bursts of high-intensity movements.

Whereas aerobic fitness is essential to mission and combat readiness, too much emphasis may lead to injuries and less improvement in other, more impactful areas of tactical fitness.

Training for aerobic fitness can be complex, and is discussed in detail here.

Coordination

Coordination refers to one's ability to use their senses to coordinate movements that perform tasks smoothly and accurately.

Coordination can be split into two different types of movements: Gross Motor Skills and Fine Motor Skills.

Somebody with poor gross motor skills lacks large-scale coordination, such as running, walking, swimming, etc. Imagine a Navy Seal or a member of MARSOC who lacks coordination enough to perform basic physical skills necessary to complete a mission, such as swimming.

Fine motor skills refer to smaller, more meticulous movements. Imagine an electrician using his hands and fingers to wire some cables, an EOD defusing a bomb, or a Marine/Soldier who can't aim their weapon properly.

We all know that unathletic, out of shape kid who we never want to work with because their clumsiness is going to get us all killed. Maybe you were that kid, at one point. Luckily, coordination can be improved by consistent, mindful practice.

Creating a strong mind-muscle connection through performing athletic tasks specific to the skill you want to improve is crucial to developing coordination. Important here is the "SAID" principle - Specific Adaptation to Imposed Demands. In other words, if you want to get good at running, run. If you want to get good at swimming, swim. And do it with 100% mindfulness and concentration.

One of the best ways to improve coordination and athleticism is to participate in sports that require physical and athletic qualities, such as soccer, basketball, tennis, etc.

Summary and Key Points

• The physical demands required of you is largely dependent on your MOS.
• Today's operating environment is characterized as an anaerobic battlefield, meaning short bursts of intense movements is required.
• In order to perform many of the tasks required for tactical operations, you need to develop physical qualitites such as:
• Strength
• Power
• Load Carriage Ability
• Aerobic Fitness
• Coordination
• Develop strength by lifting heavy weights for lower reps with longer rest between sets.
• Develop power by lifting weights for lower reps at higher speeds with longer rest between sets.
• Train aerobic fitness, but don't overemphasize it.
• Consistent, mindful practice is crucial to developing coordination. Consider participating in athletic sports.