Ranger Athlete Warrior Assessment Performance in a Reserve Officer Training Corps Training Environment

Muscular strength, power, and aerobic capacity are vital to Army Reserve Officer Training Corps (AROTC) Cadets as well as active-duty Soldiers, especially when lifting heavy objects, traveling long distances, or moving with maximum speed and agility. The purpose of this study was to examine the change (after a pre/post intervention) of 5 weeks of resistance strength training and aerobic capacity training on a Ranger Athlete Warrior (RAW) assessment. Twelve (males, n = 10; females, n = 2) college-aged AROTC Cadets volunteered for this study during their train-up for the annual Ranger Challenge Competition. Each training week consisted of two resistance, two aerobic, and one tactical training session lasting about 90 minutes. The RAW assessment consisted of the following: 5-10-5 shuttle, standing broad jump, 3-repetition maximum (RM) trap bar deadlift, pull-ups, metronome pushups, heel claps, and two 300-yard shuttles. Paired samples t tests produced statistically significant differences (pre vs post): 5-10-5 (p = .04), 3-RM trap bar deadlift (p = .01), and metronome push-ups (p = .01). The results suggest that combining resistance strength and endurance and aerobic capacity training at a set volume with a self-selected intensity improved the Cadets' agility, lower-body strength, and upper-body muscular endurance. Implementing a program similar to this in other AROTC programs could also improve Cadet performance in the field. This study also showed the benefit of an AROTC program collaborating with human performance professionals to optimize Cadets' human performance capabilities.