Body Size and the Infantry??

JJ_BPK · 10-20-2016, 05:33

I wonder if anyone has ever created a report similar to this, about "average" player sizes,, for Infantry, Rangers, & SF??

The discussion of sexes might be easier if one had basic information on what it takes to be a successful troop in an Infantry unit??

This article is not pointed at my question. It has a different agenda, but the base info and premise that to be a top tier troop in a sport you need certain physical attributes..

Quote:

Professional athletes have come to represent the pinnacle of physical ability, serving as a cultural image of performance and physique. With millions watching sporting events, these body ideals have been planted firmly in the mainstream’s consciousness. But what happens when these examples inspire behavior that goes beyond what’s healthy in pursuit of the perfect body?

When it comes to eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa, male sufferers of such conditions have historically been a less-studied group. Yet about one in four people struggling with eating disorders are men – and there are likely more who are reluctant to seek assistance due to embarrassment or stigma. Just as women’s eating disorders are often influenced by cultural and media beauty standards, men’s disordered eating habits and body image concerns can be affected by images idealizing peak fitness and muscularity. Rather than simply trying to lose weight, many male sufferers of eating disorders are instead focused on attempting to gain muscle while shedding fat, in pursuit of a body reflecting these promoted ideals. But in trying to attain such a body, men may engage in dangerous eating behaviors and other habits that can put their health at risk.

So just how much do these images of pro athletes diverge from the average man’s body? How far would men have to go to get the physiques of sports stars? We compiled statistics from the NFL, MLB, NBA, and other major sports leagues to determine the average body size of players in each field and compared them to the body sizes of men around the world. Read on to learn about the dangerous lengths men would have to go to make these ideals a reality.
http://www.psychguides.com/interact/...erage-athlete/

Chairborne64 · 10-20-2016, 09:14

When I was in the requirements shop at USSOCOM I was doing some research and there had been a study done by big Army on the average size of Infantrymen I believe it was related to light infantry in AFG. Anyway, it seems like it was about 5'11 180. I remember thinking to myself that is a decent size High School linebacker. I will see if I can dig that study up again.

Chairborne64 · 10-20-2016, 10:06

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brush Okie

You guys don't understand. Women are superior to men in every way, just watch the movies and the 125lb female whipping a bunch od 200+lb hand to hand experts. Did you people not watch kill bill?

I guess I am just a caveman!

I do know that I am 6'2 and well over 200lbs and am really broken by some of the loads I carried. Here is a link to one of the studies. It does not have size but if you do the math on their fighting load to percentage of body weight the average infantryman is about 180lbs.

http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/m...LoadReport.pdf

PSM · 10-20-2016, 10:51

JJ, this immediately came to mind:

Old Dog New Trick · 10-20-2016, 10:54

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chairborne64

I guess I am just a caveman!

I do know that I am 6'2 and well over 200lbs and am really broken by some of the loads I carried. Here is a link to one of the studies. It does not have size but if you do the math on their fighting load to percentage of body weight the average infantryman is about 180lbs.

http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/m...LoadReport.pdf

The average Infantrymen is also 22-24 years old and 180lbs of lean muscle. (Don't quote me on that. I may have made it up but I'm close. It would go down quite a bit if you got rid of the platoon sergeant.)

sg1987 · 10-20-2016, 11:12

FWIW, I was an 18 yr. old 11B; 6’2 – 165 to 170 lbs. I could max the PT test and met rucking requirements. That said, I must confess, as a skinny kid, the rucking did kick my ass. (quit laughing Q.P’s)

PSM · 10-20-2016, 11:36

Does anyone know what the VN Infantry stats are? It seems that we were smaller overall back then. I would think a draft tends to skew the results.

Pat

RomanCandle · 10-20-2016, 12:26

I am currently at age 46 176 lb anfd 5'75 around the same as I weighed when I was in. You carried what you carried or RTU'd (to Mech) Only real problem was my feet with the shitty boots we had, I'm not sure my feet ever really recovered but they never slowed me down. I was one of the smallest in the Bn but some of these "Boere seuns" were seriously big boys it made for a troops nightmare and an instructors wet dream during Buddy PT.

GratefulCitizen · 10-20-2016, 17:48

In terms of skeletal muscle mass, both total and relative, the difference between men and women is probably greater than the difference between the average man and elite male athlete.

Scroll down to table 1 (SM is for skeletal muscle):
http://jap.physiology.org/content/89/1/81.figures-only

There are significant differences among men with regards to strength, but even elite women don't make it far into the the upper half of men, much less get anywhere near the elite men.

There are better sources than this link, but it gives a quick visual reference of the variance among men, and the severity of disparity between the sexes:
http://www.unz.com/gnxp/men-are-stro...en-on-average/

Hope that helps.

abc_123 · 10-20-2016, 19:23

How does cup size factor into this?

sfshooter · 10-20-2016, 20:04

As an 11B in the Reserves and a short time on Active before SF I was 5'10'' and 140lbs. I was a skinny dude but had good endurance. I would say from my experience the 11B's I knew were roughly same height as me but definitely stockier.

Go Devil · 10-21-2016, 05:28

5'11" 195lbs OO'

I found the infantry to be more like a professional running club.

1/2 marathon every Friday morning for Company PT.

TJ11B · 10-21-2016, 08:13

6'3", 195 lbs. I was more than maxing the 21 y/o APFT when I ETSd. We liked to run.

bblhead672 · 10-21-2016, 08:16

A former GB who I met while in the Navy was about 5'9" and 170. By all appearances not a strong man. We worked out together a few times and I learned that he was solid as a rock and strong as a horse. Also unbelievably fast with his hands and feet.

Sohei · 10-21-2016, 10:56

I was a USMC Machinegunner at 5'6" and 138 pounds. I marched that M-60 up and down mountains more times than I want to remember. I was THE smallest guy in my platoon.

But, my HEART was bigger than many twice my size.

Maybe I was too stupid to know that I was too small to be a grunt!