- President Donald Trump reinstated the Presidential Fitness Test.
- The test was established in 1956 under President Dwight D. Eisenhower.
- The Obama administration phased out the program after the 2012-13 school year.
Hey, kids. And you adults, too. Start doing those push-ups and sit-ups. Take a jog around the block as well. The Presidential Fitness Test is back.
President Donald Trump reinstated what was a fixture in public schools for decades until the Obama administration discontinued the program in 2013.
“This is a wonderful tradition, and we’re bringing it back,” Trump said of the fitness test that began in 1956.
An executive order Trump signed Thursday says America’s declining health and physical fitness threatens the vitality and longevity of the country.
“For far too long, the physical and mental health of the American people has been neglected. Rates of obesity, chronic disease, inactivity and poor nutrition are at crisis levels, particularly among our children. These trends weaken our economy, military readiness, academic performance, and national morale.”
The order also revitalized the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness and Nutrition. Trump loaded the council with former and current athletes and other sport figures, including pro golfer Bryson DeChambeau, Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker and former New York Giants linebacker Lawrence Taylor, a registered sex offender, who joined the president and top administration officials at a signing ceremony.
“We have an opportunity in being (on) the 70th anniversary of the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness and Nutrition to literally change the fabric of kids’ lives,” DeChambeau said. “And our first initiative is to bring back and reignite the President’s Fitness Test.”
What exercises are in the Presidential Fitness Test?
Initiated by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1956, the test was traditionally administered to schoolchildren throughout the country.
The test, which was revised through the years, typically included exercises like a one-mile run, pull-ups or push-ups, sit-ups, a shuttle run and a sit-and-reach. Students who met or exceeded the 85th percentile on all the exercises were eligible for the Presidential Fitness Award.
“From the late 1950s until 2013, graduate scholars all across our country competed against each other in the presidential fitness test, and it was a big deal,” Trump said at the order signing.
The third iteration of the council under President Lyndon B. Johnson formalized the fitness test in 1966 and added the award element for top performers, per NPR.
The Obama administration replaced the fitness test with the Presidential Youth Fitness Program after the 2012-13 school year. The voluntary program provides resources to schools for assessing and recognizing youth fitness, focusing more on overall health than athleticism.
Joanna Faerber, a physical education teacher working with rural Louisiana schools on federal grants, says the announcement drew a divided response in her professional network.
“We all agree that childhood obesity and lack of physical activity and physical education in school is limited,” she told NPR. “I think measuring it is the question.”
While originally designed for children, the test has been adapted for adults to gauge their fitness as well.