Hegseth orders fitness standards to be gender neutral for combat jobs. Many already are

WASHINGTON (AP) — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered the military to make fitness standards for all combat jobs gender neutral, formalizing a process that largely exists for many of those jobs already.

In a new memo, Hegseth told leaders of the military services to distinguish which jobs are considered combat arms — such as special operations or infantry, and require “heightened entry level and sustained physical fitness" — and which are not.

The memo released Monday said all physical fitness requirements for those combat arms positions must be gender neutral, “based solely on the operational demands of the occupation and the readiness needed to confront any adversary.”

The new order expands on a memo Hegseth put out March 12 that said the undersecretary for personnel must gather information on military standards “pertaining to physical fitness, body composition, and grooming, which includes but is not limited to beards.”

Both reflect Hegseth's public complaints about fitness standards well before he took on the Pentagon job. While working as a Fox News commentator, Hegseth spoke about his opposition to women in combat jobs and his belief that standards were lowered to accommodate women.

The order, however, could require some complicated assessments as all the services go through their jobs and determine which should be considered combat arms. For example, which sailors on a Navy warship deployed to the Middle East and being fired on by the Houthi rebels should be considered in a combat post?

On smaller ships, it's not unusual for sailors to perform a number of different tasks, including firing weapons. And, should intelligence officers, who often were on the front lines in Iraq and Afghanistan, also count as combat arms?

The military has long had what is largely a two-part system for physical fitness standards:

— Routine annual fitness tests with different requirements based on gender and age.

— More grueling standards for specific combat, special operations, infantry, armor, pararescue jumpers and other jobs that are the same for everyone in that occupation, and are not adjusted for age or gender.

Hegseth's memo appears to focus on the second grouping — arguing that combat jobs require more stringent fitness standards.

Already, however, specific military jobs like special operations, infantry, armor and pararescue require different, higher-level physical — and often mental and psychological — tests, requirements and qualification courses.

Those standards require everyone to meet the same requirements, regardless of their age or gender. For example, an Army soldier who wants to be a Green Beret or a Ranger, or a sailor who wants to be a Navy SEAL, must pass grueling monthslong qualification courses.

Also, after the Pentagon allowed women to be in all combat jobs, the Army set specific fitness standards for each military occupation that are the same regardless of age or gender.

Recruits who want to serve in an infantry or armor job must pass a specific physical assessment that has higher, more significant demands in order to sign a contract for that specialty.

Similarly, Marines also require more extensive fitness standards for their special operations forces and combat jobs.

Hegseth's memo mentions higher fitness requirements for special operations forces — which already exist. And it says Navy divers and explosive ordnance disposal technicians also should be required to have proficiency in tasks such as water rescue and demolition, which they already do.

The order gives service leaders 60 days to provide their proposed changes. They have 30 days to provide an interim report.

“As the nature of warfare evolves and the demands on our service members grow more complex, it is imperative that we assess and refine the physical fitness standards that enable our readiness and lethality,” Hegseth said in the memo.