{"id":15545,"date":"2019-10-07T20:15:57","date_gmt":"2019-10-07T20:15:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/uncategorized\/2019\/10\/07\/sma-grinston-reveals-his-acft-scores\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T01:45:27","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T01:45:27","slug":"sma-grinston-reveals-his-acft-scores","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/news\/your-army\/2019\/10\/07\/sma-grinston-reveals-his-acft-scores\/","title":{"rendered":"SMA Grinston reveals his ACFT scores"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Army\u2019s senior enlisted leader tweeted out<\/a> his Army Combat Fitness Test scores<\/a> Sunday morning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sergeant Major of the Army Michael A. Grinston<\/a> said on Twitter<\/a> that two years ago he could only reach the minimums on the deadlift portion of the test.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That would have put him in the ballpark of 200 pounds. On his latest testing, Grinston hit 300 pounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The improvement highlights how important the diagnostic phase of the ACFT roll-out will be for soldiers across the force, according to the Army\u2019s senior enlisted soldier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over the course of the next year, all soldiers in the active-duty Army will take two ACFT diagnostic tests, while soldiers in the Guard and Reserve components will take one diagnostic test.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTwo years ago, I didn\u2019t do deadlifts,\u201d Grinston previously told Army Times in an interview. “I said, at the time, \u2018I\u2019m 49, turning 50. How is this going to work?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI really thought that either my back or something\u2019s going to hurt when I start lifting weights off the ground,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd what I actually found was the exact opposite. I became much stronger, and I felt better, not worse, that I was doing deadlifts. The posterior of my body got trained … also I\u2019m working more on my back. … Actually, I felt like I had less back pain, I felt stronger.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Grinston said he started small, lifting about 100 pounds, before increasing to 135 pounds and up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The sprint-drag-carry event was also a \u201cgasser\u201d for Grinston because he was used to running at pace for two miles. But the new sprint event better mirrors the sudden bursts of speed required during combat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDoing those short bursts, I think, was a little different. And it just took me a little bit of time to train,\u201d he added. \u201cYou can do it, and I\u2019ve done it at over 50 [years old].”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The leg tuck has been one event that concerns many soldiers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A leaked document posted on social media<\/a> last month showed that many of the ACFT failures from 11 battalions tested over the last year were attributed to the leg tuck event.<\/p>\n\n\n\t