DVIDS – News – Langley Eustis Joint Base hosts a comprehensive health and fitness day and exhibition to focus on soldier readiness through technology, science, and research

JOINT BASE LANGLEY-EUSTIS, Va. (April 29, 2022) – The U.S. Army’s Initial Military Training Center hosted the Holistic Health and Fitness Industry Day and Exposition April 26-27 at Joint Base Langley-Eustis.

The two-day fair featured nearly 60 industry and academia vendors, more than 600 attendees, and presentations from Army leaders and subject matter experts on the Army’s efforts to improve soldier performance within the H2F system.

“Being a soldier is a full contact sport,” said General Paul Funk II, the commander in chief of US Army Training and Doctrine Command. “By investing in our soldiers, we ensure that an asymmetric advantage is maintained.”

H2F is a cultural shift in the way the military trains, develops and cares for soldiers, with a holistic approach that considers the physical and non-material areas of readiness.

In his keynote, Sgt. Army Major Michael Greenstone said that while the military has historically focused on the physical realm, we need to look at things holistically in the longer term in the form of prevention.

“When we look at people from a holistic perspective, we become a much more lethal force,” Greenstone said. “Domains of fitness are not only pleasant, they are the foundation of everything we do. Neglecting these areas has an effect.”

The Army has promoted the H2F system as a primary investment in soldier readiness, optimal physical and non-physical performance, reduced injury rates, improved rehabilitation after injury, and increased overall military effectiveness.

“H2F is the perfect example of how the military puts people first,” the brigadier general said. General John Klein, Commander of the Initial Military Training Center. “It is the largest human performance improvement initiative at the Department of Defense…but we know this effort cannot be accomplished alone. Fortunately, we have the innovative minds of those of you who joined us today, and we need your expertise and innovative ideas to help us move toward our shared goal of making The best is even better.”

While the H2F system is a full Army program, the National Guard and Army Reserve face additional challenges in implementing H2F, particularly their geographic spread and limited points of contact with their soldiers.

Part of the exhibition was helping to build potential solutions to those challenges.

“Dedicated full-time National Guard staff and 67 field project officers are implementing H2F across 50 states, 3 territories, and the District of Columbia through a combination of state initiatives, regional resource networks and partnerships,” said Maj. Gen. John Andoni, Deputy Director of the Army National Guard. “Partnerships help us leverage additional expertise and deliver capabilities that address soldiers’ concerns at critical points of need.”

Brigadier General. They face similar challenges to the National Guard, General Robert Crum, commanding general of the Army’s 81st Reserve Readiness Division.

“In terms of how to manage the challenge of organizing all those myriad programs, it’s not so much an orchestra as it is improving jazz,” Crum said. “We are looking for parts of programs that might work and are running a two-year pilot program with nearly 4,000 Army reservists testing these ideas to see if they work. These lessons—the successes and failures—will teach USAR leadership what an H2F program should look like. During its implementation across the entire army reserve.”

Despite the challenges, Krum said the potential of H2F could have a long-lasting impact.

“If we can make it work, we have positively impacted a soldier in the direction of a positive lifestyle change that can outlast soldiers’ time not only in their current units, but even after they leave the service,” Crum added.

Keynote speakers at the H2F Industry Show and the day of the show included: General Paul E. Funk, Commander in Chief, U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command, Brigadier General. General John D. Klein, Commanding General, U.S. Army Initial Military Training Center, Sgt. Army Major Michael Greenstone, Army 16th Sergeant Major, Colonel Kevin Bigelman, Director of H2F, Major General John Andoni, Deputy Director of the Army National Guard, Colonel Nick Guest, Director of Physical Education, Maj. Alison Prager, Director of Human Performance, U.S. Army Fitness Team, Brig. Gen. Robert Crum, Deputy Commanding General for Operations, 81st Readiness Division, Dr. Jane Schumacher, Assistant Director, USMA Performance Psychology Program, Lt. Col. Nick Baringer, Director of the Graduate Program in Nutrition at Baylor University, Thomas Constable, Department of Defense Total Force Fitness and Principal Deputy to H2F, Assistant Secretary of Defense, Chaplain (Maj.) Thomas Solhjem, Chief Chaplain of the U.S. Army, Colonel Jonathan Harvey, Commander, 18th Field Artillery Brigade, Fort Bragg, NC, Hunter Treuchet, Director of H2F Performance Team, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, NC