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PURPOSE: Improving and sustaining high fitness is important for United States (US) military personnel. Current Army Physical Readiness Training (APRT) has been criticized for subpar fitness preparation; concurrently significant grass roots participation in high intensity functional training (HIFT) programs has occurred. Neither has been tested in a randomized clinical trial (RCT) among military personnel, which was the purpose of this study. METHODS: Data are from protocol adherent participants (N = 59) of a 5-year cluster-RCT among active duty US military personnel. Participants were randomized in small groups to 6- months of training in APRT (n = 26; 38.5% women, 85% Officers, age 33.3 ± 5.3 yrs) or HIFT (n = 33; 21.2% women, 73% Officers, age 34.2 ± 6.6 yrs) 5 days/wk for approximately 60 minute sessions. APRT used the reset phase and the HIFT program was also ramped to increase in exercise complexity and intensity over time. At baseline and 6-months, participants completed fitness tests including the Army Physical Fitness Test (i.e., 2 min of push-ups, 2 min of sit-ups, 2 mile run), 1 rep max (1RM) deadlift, max reps pull-ups, horizontal jump, and timed dummy drag (165-lb). Within-groups analyses were conducted by sex using a single group t-test comparing change scores to no effect. A mixed effect model was conducted for between-group fitness changes. RESULTS: Within-group changes were statistically significant in APRT men for pull-ups (1.9 ± 2.4 reps; t = 2.99, p = .01), 1RM deadlift (23.3 ± 19.9 lbs; t = 4.55, p < .001), and dummy drag (-1.3 ± 2.0 sec, t = -2.6, p = .02); APRT women for sit-ups (7.4 ± 9.8 reps; t = 2.83, p = .04); HIFT men for pull-ups (2.1 ± 1.8 reps; t = 5.85, p < .001), 1RM deadlift (27.2 ± 32.6 lbs; t = 4.17, p < .001), dummy drag (-1.0 ± 2.0 sec; t = -2.49, p = .02), and horizontal jump (13.0 ± 12.1 cm; t = 5.38, p = .001); and HIFT women for 1RM deadlift (20.7 ± 13.7 lbs; t = 4.01, p = .007). No significant between-group differences were found (all p > .05). CONCLUSIONS: Results indicate both exercise programs increased fitness (i.e., upper body muscular endurance, abdominal endurance, and lower body strength and power). Men had more fitness gains, with no differences by treatment group. Despite unique participant challenges of time-consuming War College academics, a concurrent focus on exercise training produced fitness benefits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite great strides in the development of contraceptive technologies, the United States has one of the highest teen pregnancy rates in the world. Religion and associated values may shape the sexual health behaviors of college students, as prior studies have aimed to determine how social factors may influence the use of contraception amongst college students. Thus, we sought to examine the differences in current contraceptive methods and the age of first contraceptive usage among sexually active female college students with different religious affiliations and strengths of religiosity. It was hypothesized that there would be no difference in current contraceptive methods among different religious affiliations and strengths of religions and that there would be a difference in the age of first contraceptive usage among different religious affiliations and strengths of religiosity. Two hundred and twenty-four college-aged females completed a 20-question survey about sexual health and religious practices. Chi-squared tests were implemented to determine the frequencies of responses across religious affiliations and strengths of religiosity. Significant differences in the frequency of responses for the age of first contraceptive usage were observed across different strengths of religiosity ( p = 0.016) and for the self-perceived impact of religion on sexual health across different religious affiliations ( p = 0.033) and strengths of religiosity ( p = 0.005). All other differences were found not to be statistically significant. It was determined that increased strengths of religiosity resulted in delayed onset of contraceptive usage and that both different religious affiliations and greater strengths of religiosity lead to different self-perceived impacts of religion on sexual health despite low levels of current practice.