Unfit, undertrained U.S. military no longer tolerated (extract only)

Physical fitness and combat training standards will be raised, said Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, who spoke Sept. 30 to an audience of hundreds of generals, admirals and senior enlisted personnel at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Va.
Those same standards will apply to both genders, he said, be it for the combat fitness test or weapons qualification.
Every active component service member will be required to exercise vigorously every duty day and take two physical fitness tests annually, he said.
Hegseth also spoke about beards in the military. “If you want a beard, you can join special forces. If not, then shave. We don’t have a military full of Nordic pagans,” the secretary said.
In another memo, “Grooming Standards for Facial Hair Implementation,” Hegseth signed Sept. 30, he wrote that all personnel must maintain a clean-shaven face consistent with the following:
•Sideburns will be above the ear opening.
•Beards, goatees, and other facial hair are prohibited unless specifically authorized.
•Mustaches are authorized but will be neatly trimmed; not to extend past the mouth corners or into a respirator seal zone.
Overweight troops and their leaders will no longer be tolerated, Hegseth said. “It’s completely unacceptable to see fat generals and admirals in the halls of the Pentagon, leading commands around the country [and] in the world.”