Are you getting enough exercise each week?
For 16 percent of airmen, the answer is no.
The government recommends that Americans get at least 150 minutes of moderate physical activity, such as brisk walking — or 75 minutes of vigorous exercise, such as running — plus at least two days of strength training, said Col. John Oh, of the Air Force Medical Support Agency.
Overall, 84 percent of airmen responded on the most recent Periodic Health Assessment that they get that much exercise per week, Oh said in a Jan. 29 interview.
Generally, airmen who belong to units where the policies and the culture “is that fitness is part of the duty day probably are going to do a little bit better,” he said.
Oh provided data on how well airmen are meeting the recommended minimum amount of physical activity by mission set. Air Force Times used that information to break down what percentage of airmen are not meeting the recommended minimums:
Medical: 22 percent.
Professional: (judge advocate general, chaplain): 20 percent.
Acquisition: 18 percent.
Enlisted special duty identifiers: 18 percent.
Operations: 16 percent.
Logistics: 16 percent.
Support: 15 percent.
Enlisted reporting identifiers: 15 percent.
Special investigations: 14 percent.
The Air Force does not ask airmen in these mission categories, which cover all career fields, why they are getting less than the minimum recommended amount of exercise, but Oh knows how hard it is for medical airmen to find time to work out.
“As a physician, I can tell you that when you work in a MTF [medical treatment facility] and you’re seeing patients, whether you are a health care provider or a med technician or a nurse, it’s fundamentally a service-based field,” he said. “We have our customers, our patients, and there’s certainly an expectation that we’re accessible and we can see patients from 7 a.m. or 7:30 when the doors open until they leave. So it is challenging to incorporate physical activity into the day, compared with if someone was in another field where it wasn’t as much service-based.”
Air Force Times wants to hear what challenges you face in trying to carve enough time into your duty day for exercise and what the Air Force could do to make it easier for you to work out. You can email reporter Jeff Schogol at jschogol@airforcetimes.com or call him at 703-750-7436.
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