The History of Army Physical Fitness
Dr. Chip East
This is a special episode in more ways than just being twice as long as the rest. Dr. Whitfield "Chip" East literally wrote the book on the history of Army physical fitness, and the incredible depth of knowledge he has on historical physical culture is absolutely astonishing. His insight reveals that many of the problems we're reckoning with today are echoes of extremely similar problems from decades ago.
Dr. East played an integral role in the development and implementation of the ACFT, and you'll see over the course of this episode how it fits into the broader context of military fitness history. As we chronologically work our way through a couple of hundred years of history, we pause at several key junctures to discuss the implication of these events for our current fitness culture.
I (Alex) have been lucky enough to be both taught by and work alongside Dr. East, and every visit to his office led to a fascinating conversation. This episode is no exception, and you'll definitely learn something interesting. From the origins of Turnverein gymnastics training to the role of political and social trends in military fitness to tracing the history of fitness testing, we cover centuries of relevant history in this conversation.
Most of the episode centers around summarizing key pieces of Dr. East's book A Historical Review and Analysis of Army Physical Readiness Training and Assessment (available as a free pdf here)
Dr. East also makes several references to West Point's Indoor Obstacle Course Test (IOCT). For those who are unfamiliar, these videos provide some context:
