The Relationships Between Army Combat Fitness Test Performance and Functional Motor Competence in Army Reserve...

Mach, MS, Cho, CC, Ericksen, HM, ACT, Slavens, BA, Earl-Boehm, JE, and FNATA, ATC. The relationships between army combat fitness test performance and functional motor competence in army reserve officer training corps cadets. J Strength Cond Res XX(X): 000-000, 2026-Decreases in youth physical activity and motor competence may be a threat to Army physical military readiness (PMR) which was assessed from 2019 to 2025 by the Army combat fitness test (ACFT). Functional motor competence (FMC), developed through youth physical activity, may play a crucial role in PMR. However, limited research exists on the relationship between FMC and ACFT performance. The purposes of this study were to (a) identify the relationships among the individual events of the ACFT and FMC composite score and (b) determine the relationship between FMC composite score and ACFT total score. A total of 70 healthy reserve officers training corps cadets (female n = 21; male n = 49; age: 20.2 ± 1.5 years) completed an FMC test battery consisting of a long jump, ball throw and kick, and vertical jump. Best attempts were standardized and summed to calculate FMC composite scores. Linear regressions assessed the relationship between FMC and ACFT performance. Alpha was set at 0.05. FMC significantly predicted ACFT total score and each of the individual event scores accounting for 28.2% of the variance in ACFT total score and between 6.7 and 22.6% for each ACFT event. In conclusion, FMC may be an underappreciated factor in PMR and could be easily assessed earlier in a cadet's career to inform cadre about potential ACFT performance. The practical applications of this study include potentially being able to use FMC screening to identify cadets with low FMC. Low FMC can be improved using neuromuscular training; therefore, cadets with low FMC could be provided additional training to improve PMR.