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"Seeing fat soldiers in any formation is boring to me, and it is totally unacceptable..."

As soon as U.S. Secretary of Defense Hagerseth finished speaking, this photo was posted in the U.S. media report:

Many US soldiers are "out of shape" US media ABC

Last Tuesday (7th), according to the instructions of US President Trump, hundreds of Texas National Guard members were sent to Chicago, Illinois, in response to civil protests against the government's immigration policy.

According to reports by the Capitol Hill and others on the 13th, photos subsequently released by ABC News on social platform X showed that several U.S. soldiers arrived in the southern suburbs of Chicago in trucks, holding rifles and carrying luggage bags on their shoulders. However, the plump figure of these soldiers with big bellies quickly aroused ridicule among netizens.

A lot of people immediately mentioned that Hegel just last month made a statement to senior U.S. military officers about physical fitness standards, "this photo clearly does not meet what he said requirements" and "Pitt (Hegel) to see this picture must have exploded" the rhetoric is not ever heard.

The British media "Daily Telegraph" also stated that some critics gave these soldiers jokingly nicknames: "meal team six" (adapted from the US military's elite "SEAL Team Six") and "green cafeteria" the green buffets.

According to US media reports, as of October 12, this photo has been widely circulated, with nearly 30 million views.

In response to the photo controversy, the U.S. National Guard issued a statement on Thursday, saying that ¡°all U.S. Army and Air Force soldiers must always meet the specific height, weight and fitness standards of the army.¡±

The statement explained, "When mobilizing to perform active duty tasks, relevant personnel need to pass the verification process to ensure compliance with the above standards. In rare cases, if personnel are found to do not meet the standards, they will not be allowed to participate in the task and need to return to their original residence and be replaced by those who meet the standards. Personnel take over their posts."

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The spokesman also said, ¡°In less than 24 hours, the Texas National Guard was mobilized to carry out federal defense missions. Because the response was too fast, we had to carry out verification procedures at different times.In the process, we found a small portion of the military who did not meet the standards, and the replacement was now completed.¡±

Local time on Monday (13), the previously silent Hegerseth, forwarded the clarification report of "mission and purpose" on the X, while adding that "the Ministry of War has returned to standards."

The X-ray of Hertz.

Of course, it is nothing new for American soldiers to be overweight. The Associated Press quoted statistics that being overweight has long been one of the main obstacles for Americans aged 17 to 24 to apply for the military.

But everything starts with Hagerseth suddenly and strictly grasping the "military appearance". At the end of September, the defense chief suddenly and hastily issued an order to urgently convene U.S. military generals from all over the world to hold a meeting at the Marine Corps Base in Quantico, Virginia.

There was a lot of commotion, but in his speech, Hagerseth spent a lot of space demanding "strengthening the US military's physical fitness standards and testing": in his nearly 50-minute speech, he required that soldiers in combat-related positions must participate in physical fitness tests according to male standards, with scores of 70% or above; in terms of appearance, he announced a ban on growing beards and also severely criticized obese soldiers and generals.

Hegseth said at the time, "Frankly speaking... whether it's a combat formation or any other formation, it makes me bad to see fat soldiers. Similarly, it's totally unacceptable to see fat generals in the Pentagon, or in commands across the United States and around the world. This looks bad, and it doesn't fit our image."

After the meeting, a senior U.S. defense official tweeted, ¡°What¡¯s the job of reporting to the generals? it¡¯s clearly a press conference where the content can be said by email.¡±Another former senior U.S. defense official also criticized, ¡°Gathering so many leaders in public time and place is an unforgivable strategic risk to deliver such worthless information.¡±

Even more ¡°abstract¡± is the fact that Hegel later broke a world record.

According to U.S. media reports, on October 4, local time, he led Maryland to organize 3068 practitioners, officers and scene spectators to bow down, breaking the Guinness world record of "most simultaneous bow down in a minute".

The incident was seen as a "symbol" for Hertz promoting military fitness standards, but also attracted more criticism. The outside world accused him of neglecting national security duties and addicted to "personal performance".

In his speech at the end of September, Hegerseth spoke to the navy and army generals present, "If these words I say today make you feel disappointed, then you should do something decent - resign."

According to the Hill, shortly thereafter, General Thomas Bussier, commander of the U.S. Air Force Global Strike Command, and General Brian Fenton, commander of the U.S. Special Operations Command, announced their resignations one after another.

related news

Recently, a photo spread rapidly on U.S. social media, sparking Twitter enthusiasm and ridicule. This photo shows several U.S. National Guard soldiers with fat body sizes, coinciding with U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hectoris previously publicly criticized the problem of obesity inside the U.S. Army, the photo also scratched his face.

On the 13th local time, Hegseth announced on social media that the overweight soldiers photographed in the photos had been replaced, and said that "high standards have returned". However, the weight crisis of the US military is a big problem that is difficult to solve. According to current data from the Pentagon, the obesity rate of the U.S. military exceeds 20%. However, according to estimates by U.S. military professional websites, nearly 70% of U.S. military personnel have a body mass index in the range of overweight or obesity, and about 78% of U.S. veterans are plagued by obesity.

Hegel says overweight soldiers in the photo have been withdrawn

Pictures are red.

Sparking heated discussions on social media

On October 7, local time, Associated Press photographer Erin Holly took a photo in Elwood, Illinois, showing more than 20 Texas National Guard soldiers arriving in the suburbs of Chicago, preparing for border security missions.

After the photo was released, it spread rapidly on social platforms, with more than 30 million views. Some netizens commented that ¡°they look more like looking for a fast-food restaurant rather than performing a task¡±. Another popular post joked: ¡°The defense minister just said about the problem of fat, this photo came to face.¡± This photo was spread by American netizens in the form of expressions and inscriptions, further amplifying the irony of the incident.

The photo isly not intentionally aimed at military fitness issues, but as a regular news image, but has still sparked media and public discussion about U.S. military obesity rates. Some veterans say this reflects the loosening of U.S. military fitness standards under pressure to recruit, while critics worry that this will affect the overall image and combat capabilities of the military. According to previous reports, U.S. teenagers face great difficulties in military recruitment work, and about one-third of the candidates will be eliminated due to weight problems.

within the European Union.

The U.S. wants the most relaxation.

As early as September 30th, Hegerseth delivered a speech to all senior U.S. military officers at the Pettyco base in Virginia. He said straight: "I'm tired of seeing physically obese soldiers, which makes me feel tired and not in line with the image of the army." Hegerseth stressed that the U.S. military needs to implement stricter physical fitness standards, including testing twice a year and gender neutral assessment to improve combat preparedness. This statement was rapidly amplified by the media and linked to photo events, forming a public opinion hotspot.

According to Pentagon data, the obesity rate (BMI¡Ý30) among active-duty military personnel in the U.S. military has exceeded 20%, which is higher than the national average. About one-third of the candidates for young people aged 17-24 are unable to join the army due to unqualified weight. Hagerseth's speech was aimed at promoting reform. Starting in 2025, the U.S. Army will allow the use of diet drugs and introduce new body fat estimation methods, but standards will still be further tightened.

In 2023, relevant reports mentioned the obesity problem in the US military

Faced with pressure from public opinion, the U.S. National Guard issued a statement on the 9th, clarifying that the soldiers in the photos were temporarily mobilized and did not represent the overall military's physical level. The statement reiterated that all active personnel must meet height, weight and physical fitness standards, and those who fail will be withdrawn or replaced. On October 13, Hagerseth forwarded relevant reports on platform X and said that some unqualified soldiers had been replaced from the initial 200. Hagerseth also said that "high standards are finally back." Illinois Governor Pritzker and others criticized Hagerseth, saying his remarks ignored the reality of recruitment difficulties. Some analysts believe that the obesity problem in the US military stems from the overall trend of society and is expected to deteriorate further by 2030. Although the Pentagon is promoting reforms, it needs to balance the contradiction between adhering to high standards and manpower needs.

According to the U.S. Department of Defense, obesity in the U.S. military causes approximately $1.35 billion in annual medical costs and productivity losses, including a 33% increase in the risk of musculoskeletal injury. The U.S. Army's 2025 version of the ACFT test requires men aged 18-24 to complete a 2-mile run in 21 minutes and 30 push-ups.

In contrast, the British army's 1.5-mile run time limit is 10 minutes and 30 seconds, and it needs to do 40 push-ups, while the German army requires a 3-kilometer run to be completed in 14 minutes, and it needs to do 30 push-ups. Public opinion believes that only in Europe and America, the physical requirements of the US military are the most relaxed.