With the introduction of the Army Combat Fitness Test (ACFT), tracking the performance of our soldiers has become even more important in tailoring our unit physical training plans. With proper analysis we will be able to identify weak spots in our PT plans and strengthen them. Although this was possible with the APFT, with only three events, it was harder to identify trends.
As a new commander, I remember watching my NCOs manually calculating each soldier’s APFT score and entering it into an Excel spreadsheet so that we could do analysis on the scores. Using some knowledge from my college major, I developed an APFT calculator and tracker that saved my soldiers a lot of time. This tool allowed this system to run more efficiently in my Troop. I recently developed an improved calculator and tracker for the ACFT. The intent of this tool is to make it easier for units to analyze and report their ACFT results. This will hopefully help units create more effective physical training, further helping soldiers improve their readiness for combat.
Instructions
The first tab of the spreadsheet, “Instructions”, provides instructions to anyone using the calculator. Feel free to reach out with any questions you have regarding the calculator. This tab is permanently protected to ensure instructions are never accidentally deleted.
Individual Calculator
The next tab, “Individual Calculator”, is an individual calculator that individuals can use to quickly calculate their ACFT score and determine if they will need to be taped or not (in accordance with AR 600-9). This tab is also permanently protected in order to ensure the calculator is not changed accidentally.
Unit Calculator
The third tab, “Unit Calculator”, provides a calculator for your entire unit. After entering all your soldiers’ basic information, you can then input the raw scores for each of the ACFT events. The events scores and total score will automatically calculate for you for each soldier. It will also automatically tell you if any soldier has failed the ACFT. The table on this tab automatically updates information throughout the workbook. If you need to add a row for more soldiers, please use the “Add Row” button at the top right of the table. This tab also provides the raw data that is used in the next two tabs (“Unit Report” and “Charts”). This tab is password protected to prevent accidental changes to formulas. The password to unlock this tab, if necessary, is provided on the “Instructions” tab.
Unit Report
The fourth tab, “Unit Report”, provides a brief summary of the scores of your entire company and the subordinate units. This helps you to gain a quick glance of the data for each of your units in the company and identify any trends. You can also easily copy these to report your scores to your higher headquarters. The table on this tab automatically updates information throughout the workbook. If you need to add a row for more soldiers, please use the “Add Row” button at the top right of the table. We password protected this tab to prevent accidental changes to formulas. The password to unlock this tab, if necessary, is provided on the “Instructions” tab.
Charts
The fifth tab, “Charts”, provides some graphical representations of your company’s scores. These graphs should allow you to quickly analyze and share the results of your formation. Unfortunately, a quirk of Excel requires that you save your calculator and reopen it in order for the charts to update after entering new information. This is a small price to pay for automated graphing of your unit’s data. This is an easy plug-and-play way to both visualize the readiness of your unit in the fitness domain. It also allows you to quickly communicate that picture to your higher headquarters whether in a SITREP or a Quarterly Training Brief. We recommend using these graphs to track metrics and visualize improvements from one period (month or quarter perhaps) to the next.
Tables
You can use the last two tabs, “Score Tables” and “HT-WT Tables”, as a reference guide. We password protected these two tabs to prevent accidental changes to data. The password to unlock these tabs, if necessary, is provided on the “Instructions” tab.
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Hopefully this tool proves useful to you and your organization. Feel free to contact the creator of this calculator with any questions or concerns (the contact information is on the “Instructions” tab).
ACCESS YOUR FREE COPY OF THE ACFT CALCULATOR HERE.
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