Female army recruits have been told to start lifting weights and building muscle if they want to serve on the front lines.
A major new study by the Army’s fitness chiefs has found that women who want to serve in infantry units (also known as close combat roles) are “more likely to be injured than men” and are more prone to broken bones and hip injuries.
The Army’s research shows that men and women may need to follow different training regimens, with women needing additional strength training to reach the required level.
Since 2018, the military has allowed men and women to serve together in all roles, including infantry and SAS. At the time, then-Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson said the armed forces were “defined by ability alone, not by gender.”
Commanders have been reluctant to introduce different levels of training for men and women, arguing that standards for women serving in combat units should not be lowered.
Female army recruits have been told to exercise and build muscle mass if they want to serve on the front lines (archive photo)
Women hoping to serve in infantry units – known as close combat roles – ‘are more likely to sustain injuries than men’, a study has found (file image)
But a new report published in the journal Soldier finds that “fewer women than men can meet ground combat physical standards after three months of periodic strength and aerobic training, suggesting that different strategies are needed to maximize performance in both sexes.”
The study, which is based on 66 research projects from the past eight years, also found that female recruits suffer hip injuries when marching alongside men because “female soldiers tend to be smaller than men” and “take too long steps.”
Professor Julie Greeves, the army’s chief physiologist, said women needed extra training.
She said: ‘Women don’t just get stronger. They need more consistent training because they don’t have the same amount of testosterone, the stimulus for muscle growth.’
Figures from the Ministry of Defence show that nearly 50 per cent of female recruits who sign up in the hope of serving in one of the frontline units do not complete their training, often due to the physical demands of the training.
Currently, only about 100 female soldiers serve in the infantry. The troops are expected to carry heavy loads of over 23 kilograms and undertake long marches over difficult terrain.
In 2020, Captain Rosie Wild, 34, became the first woman to pass a gruelling entrance test to the Parachute Regiment since the regiment was formed in World War II.
She was described as a ‘trailblazer’ after passing the P Company course – which many men fail to complete. But the number of women serving in the infantry has remained very low.
Women are allowed to serve in all frontline units, even those with the most physically demanding selection courses, such as the Parachute Regiment, the Royal Marines and the Special Forces.
But they have to take the same tests as their male colleagues, even though many of them do not have the physical attributes, such as muscle mass, needed to meet the requirements.
Women are allowed to serve in any frontline unit of the military, but must pass the same tests as their male counterparts, even though many of them lack the physical attributes to meet the requirements (archive photo)
A new Army study, called Optimizing the Health and Performance of Women in Ground Close Combat Roles, finds that female recruits have the best chance of success if they build muscle through strength training with weights and then eat 30 grams of protein after each workout.
Professor Greeves said: ‘We took muscle samples and found that in the early stages of strength training, men get stronger by building more muscle, while women do this by using more of the muscle they already had.
‘It means that women need to train more consistently and for longer periods of time to gain and maintain muscle mass.
‘My main advice is that female personnel should do regular, progressive and heavy resistance training alongside their cardio training. Anyone who doesn’t do this will struggle to pass their fitness tests and may be more susceptible to injury.’
Charlotte Spence, a physical education instructor with the army, said: ‘Some women are worried that weight training will make them gain weight. That may be true, but it will make you slimmer.’
Last night, Colonel Philip Ingram, a former Army intelligence officer, said: ‘Military fitness training and testing is designed for men, by men. It does not take into account the physiological differences between men and women.
“All positions within the military are now open to women. It doesn’t surprise me that there needs to be additional fitness strategies specifically for women to prepare them for tests that are specifically designed for men.”