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The Pentagon has announced a review of military standards on physical fitness, body composition, and grooming after a directive from top leadership.
Some shit you should know before you read: If you’re unaware, the United States military has long maintained strict standards for physical fitness, grooming, and tattoos to ensure discipline, uniformity, and combat readiness. Each branch sets its own fitness benchmarks, but historically, all service members were required to pass rigorous physical assessments, including timed runs, push-ups, and sit-ups, with standards varying by age and gender. Body composition rules enforced strict limits on body fat percentages, with most branches capping male recruits at around 20% and female recruits at 28%. Grooming regulations mandated clean-shaven faces for men—except for rare medical or religious exemptions—while women faced restrictions on hair length, styles, and cosmetics to maintain a professional appearance. Tattoo policies were also stringent, banning visible ink above the collar, with some branches, like the Marine Corps, enforcing even stricter rules to preserve a disciplined and uniform look.
What’s going on now: In a directive issued by Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, the Pentagon has ordered a review of military standards related to physical fitness, body composition, and grooming. The order requires the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness to assess existing policies, examine how they have changed since January 1, 2015, and determine the reasons and impact of those changes. Hegseth has emphasized that maintaining high and uncompromising standards is essential for ensuring military readiness, stating that the review will be conducted in a “gender-neutral way” to evaluate whether standards have been eroded.
Hegseth’s directive said, “We must remain vigilant in maintaining the standards that enable the men and women of our military to protect the American people and our homeland as the world’s most lethal and effective fighting force. Our adversaries are not growing weaker, and our tasks are not growing less challenging. This review will illuminate how the Department has maintained the level of standards required over the recent past and the trajectory of any change in those standards.”
In response to Hegseth’s review, the Marine Corps has already issued a new directive tightening beard regulations, requiring Marines with medical shaving exemptions to undergo reevaluation every 90 days. The order states that Marines who require long-term waivers may be considered for administrative separation due to “incompatibility with service.”
