I would use the current unit METL and the commander's intent to develop a physical training program. Toughening would be the first focus. I would start with ruck marching with increasing distances every week. Once the distance goal is made, I would then increase the ruck load and start at the original distance. A large focus would be placed on upper and lower body MSE incorporated with cardio-respiratory activities. I believe that doing interval runs and sprints for the same amount of time that you would do a distance run places a higher demand on a Soldier's cardiovascular and respiratory systems. This is a much better approach to preparing a unit for sustained combat operations. At this point, the training plan transitions into a conditioning phase where battle focus is key. Soldiers would wear their PPE while conducting physical training to introduce them to the additional strain and burden that their equipment provides. Finally, the sustainment phase is reached, where the overall focus will be on maintaining the fitness level achieved.

I have also encountered the "muscular" Soldier program. Some Soldiers begin a heavy weight lifting routine during deployments and continue to do so once redeployed. It is important to ensure Soldiers understand the Total Soldier Concept as it applies to physical fitness. I notice that Soldiers who focus a lot on muscular strength are very competitive. I believe you could use this to your advantage with exercises that require both cardio endurance as well as the muscular strength. Burpies are a good place to start, as well as interval sprinting with MSE exercises during the interval. This process worked for me. I had a musclehead who could knock out pushups and pullups like crazy, but couldn't sprint for a long distance. I pitted him against a more well rounded Soldier and after a little friendly joking by his squadmates, the Soldier realized he had to start working on his cardio also.