The U.S. Air Force is making physical fitness assessments biannual for all airmen and introducing a 2-mile run as part of the service’s fitness initiative in the new year.
The U.S. Air Force is making physical fitness assessments biannual for all airmen and introducing a 2-mile run as part of the service’s fitness initiative in the new year, the Air Force announced Wednesday.
Beginning Jan. 1, the Air Force will pause all physical fitness testing to facilitate the updated program, the service said in a statement. The Air Force will begin testing airmen March 1 on the new standards. From March 1 to Aug. 31., all testing will be diagnostic to provide service members time to adapt. The Air Force will resume scoring official testing Sept. 1.
“These fitness changes are about having a healthy, ready force prepared to meet today’s mission and the demands of the future fight,” Gen. David Allvin, the Air Force chief of staff, said in a statement. “The updated model reflects our high standards for fitness and ensures our airmen have the tools they need to protect their long-term health.”
The updated PFA features a 100-point scoring system across four categories — cardiorespiratory (50), waist-to-height ratio (20), muscle strength (15) and muscle core endurance (15).
Airmen who currently score 90 or higher out of a possible 100 points are allowed to test just once per year, a policy introduced in 2010 as an incentive for high performers. Under the new guidelines, service members will be required to take the physical fitness assessment every six months regardless of their score, according to the statement.
The current fitness assessment includes a cardiovascular component — either a 1.5-mile run or a 20-meter shuttle run introduced in 2022 — along with pushups and situps or approved alternatives. All alternate exercises for cardiovascular, strength and endurance components remain an option for airmen during their assessment.
Service members will be required to perform a 2-mile run during at least one fitness assessment per year, according to the announcement.
The updates also aim to correct pandemic-era policies that did not adequately prepare airmen for operational demands, an Air Force spokesperson said in June. In 2020, amid COVID-19 restrictions, the Air Force removed waist circumference as a scored component of the fitness test and moved it to a standalone body composition program.
At the time, officials said the change was permanent. Since then, airmen have been required to schedule a separate waist measurement during their birth month in addition to completing their fitness assessments.
In February, the Air Force briefly updated its official fitness assessment scorecard to include waist circumference as a scored element but removed the category just days later without explanation.
The Air Force has not formally updated its fitness assessment guidance since 2022.
The fitness assessment announcement comes a week after the service launched its Culture of Fitness initiative which included 24-hour access to all fitness facilities and provides healthier dining options to service members.
Air Force Secretary Troy Meink in his memo wrote that the department found the traditional approach “has fallen short of fostering” the well-being of service members.
The Air Force has been making changes after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in March ordered a review and enhancement of physical fitness standards.
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