Perspectives on resilience for military readiness and preparedness: Report of an international military physiology roundtable

Abstract

Modern warfare operations often occur in volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous (VUCA) environments accompanied by physical exertion, cognitive overload, sleep restriction and caloric deprivation. The increasingly fast-paced nature of these operations requires military personnel to demonstrate readiness and resiliency in the face of stressful environments to maintain optimal cognitive and physical performance necessary for success. Resiliency, the capacity to overcome the negative effects of setbacks and associated stress on performance, is a complex process involving not only an individual's physiology and psychology, but the influence of factors such as sex, environment, and training. The purpose of this moderated roundtable was to address five key domains of resiliency in a point/counterpoint format: physiological versus psychological resiliency, sex differences, contributions of aerobic and strength training, thermal tolerance, and the role of nature versus nurture. Each speaker was given three minutes to present and the moderator facilitated questions and discussion following the panel's presentation. The interconnectedness of the five domains highlights the need for an interdisciplinary approach to understand and build resilience to enhance military performance.

The Importance of Respiratory Rate Monitoring: From Healthcare to Sport and Exercise

“…While it has also been suggested that the increase in f R may reflect the metabolic demand of the cognitive task [9], this interpretation is unlikely in light of the notion that metabolic inputs do not play a substantial role in the regulation of f R [11,[19][20][21][22]. Hence, f R is a sensitive marker of the cognitive effort exerted in a task, with important implications for the health and performance of a variety of workers [198][199][200].…”

“…Cognitive load is also common in a variety of workers performing dynamic tasks, including soldiers [200] and healthcare professionals (e.g., nurses) [198]. Contact-based techniques are the best candidates to monitor f R in these workers [24].…”

Trait-like vulnerability of higher-order cognition and ability to maintain wakefulness during combined sleep restriction and circadian misalignment

“…Military personnel are often required to maintain performance while experiencing profound sleep and circadian disturbance, due to rapid travel across time zones and continuous or sustained operations. Sleep restriction and circadian misalignment have negative health, performance, and safety consequences, including reduced effectiveness, efficiency, resilience, and readiness [6,7], a greater risk of motor vehicle crashes and injuries [8], higher rates of posttraumatic stress disorder and risky health behaviors in military personnel [4,9], more safety violations and citizen complaints for police officers [10], and greater risk of metabolic disease and cancer [11,12]. To mitigate these health, performance, and safety risks, a greater understanding of vulnerability to sleep restriction and circadian misalignment is needed.…”

Enhanced physical and cognitive performance in active duty Airmen: evidence from a randomized multimodal physical fitness and nutritional intervention

“…Adaptive military operations are a hallmark of modern warfare and depend on the capacity for flexible, resilient behavior. Airmen face extreme physical and mental demands that require the capacity to overcome the negative physical and psychological effects of operating in challenging field environments characterized by “volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous” events 1 . A primary aim of research in the nutritional sciences is therefore to establish and validate nutritional interventions for the modern warfighter that are designed to provide optimal nutritional support and supplementation for body and mind.…”