Diet Quality Is Associated with Physical Performance and Special Forces Selection

Abstract

The U.S. Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences (ARI) conducted research for more than a decade in support of U.S. Army Special Operations Forces (ARSOF) assessment, selection, and training. This research was completed prior to the events of September 11, 2001. Leaders at the John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School (SWCS) at Fort Bragg, NC, requested that ARI begin updating research in support of Special Forces. This report documents a new effort to understand better the roles of cognitive ability, physical fitness, and performance events in the Special Forces Assessment and Selection (SFAS) process. In addition, researchers identified a measure of perseverance, viewed as an individual Soldier characteristic, to include in the investigation at the SWCS's request. The 824 Candidates who participated in this research completed a series of cognitive ability tests, physical fitness measures, SFAS performance events, and the test of perseverance. The results showed that almost all the tests and measures included in the analyses contributed to valid predictions of Soldier success with SFAS, but that their individual strengths of prediction varied. The SFAS performance events provided the greatest predictive strength, followed by the cognitive ability and physical fitness tests. While perseverance provided a unique contribution, its role was incremental, at best, and should not be used as a criterion for selection decisions in isolation from the other measures. Taken together, the tests and measures form an empirically-sound foundation upon which SFAS decisions can be based. Once obtained and analyzed, the outcome data from the Special Forces Qualification Course (SFQC) and subsequent training will provide a more complete view of how well the tests and measures included in this research predict long-term success in Army Special Forces.

Nutritional Requirements During Training for Special Operation Forces – An Observational Study

“…At the observed physical activity level, we estimated energy intake requirements during the training to be 4773 kcal/d, or ~ 60 kcal/kg body weight per day. These estimates con rm energy requirement studies using gold-standard methodology, that is doubly labeled water [7,16,17]. Importantly, accelerometry measures body movements and energy requirements are estimated as a function of body movements and body weight.…”

“…Responses to exercise training can vary greatly between individuals [5]. Factors that may explain such variability may include training intensity [6], nutritional adequacy and quality [7], and compensatory changes in habitual physical activity and nutrition [6,8]. In a relatively standardized setting of location, training schedules, and diets, it is important to determine whether such variability in exercise reponse is also observed in military recruits and to identify factors that modify training effects.…”

Association Between Diet Quality and Cardiorespiratory Fitness in Korean Adults: The 2014–2015 National Fitness Award Project

“…Studies have shown the association of diet quality indices with CRF. For example, the Healthy Eating Index (HEI)-2015 is positively associated with CRF, measured by the Army Physical Fitness Test (APFT) run in healthy, active American soldiers [ 35 ]. Another study showed that a priori diet quality score was positively associated with the treadmill exercise time in European Americans aged 38‒50 years [ 36 ].…”

Healthy Eating Index and Nutrition Biomarkers among Army Soldiers and Civilian Control Group Indicate an Intervention Is Necessary to Raise Omega-3 Index and Vitamin D and Improve Diet Quality

“…The DGAs assist health professionals and the public in adopting healthy eating patterns, and are applied when developing policies, programs, and strategies to help prevent chronic diseases. What is clear is that nutrition choices and food habits affect every aspect of life, from physical performance [ 6 , 7 , 8 ], cognitive performance [ 9 , 10 , 11 ], sleep [ 12 ], and mood [ 13 ] to overall health [ 14 ]. Thus, a high-quality diet is critical for the health and performance of all soldiers, and assessing a soldier’s adherence to the DGAs would provide pertinent feedback on their dietary choices.…”

“…It can be used by dietitians to gain a general sense of whether nutrients consumed by SMs are adequate or insufficient [ 22 ]. Educating soldiers on areas of dietary improvement is necessary, and strategies for implementing dietary changes might be beneficial across the DoD [ 8 , 23 , 24 , 25 ]. As such, we sought to directly compare HEI scores and nutritional status between a cohort of active-duty US Army soldiers and civilians by using age/sex matched NHANES data.…”