Hey y'all!
Long-time lurker, first-time poster.
DD is a rising senior two-sport varsity athlete. I want to say her sports don't match up well with CFA but that would just be a pathetic excuse. This summer, instead of training for those sports, she is thinking of quitting those sports and seriously spend time to improve her CFA performance. (I doubt she will be recruited for any sports in SAs... perhaps a walk-on for something.) Does not continuing her sports in the senior year look bad on her application?
Thanks in advance, y'all!
The well-rounded candidate can do it all - academics, organized sports, leadership activities, pass medical, pass the CFA.
Recommend against quitting sports teams. Her competition won’t. That aspect of a candidate’s application is valued not just for proven athleticism, but desirable future junior officer traits: ability to work well as a team member and as a peer leader, time management, critical thinking, decision-making in the moment, situational awareness, operating under stress, strategic planning and tactical execution, ability to work through physical exhaustion and many others. It would be very hard to explain at nom interviews and to BGOs, especially an athlete used to practice, quickly learning new skills and self-discipline.
If her sports are finished for this school year, she can roll right into practicing for the CFA RIGHT NOW, with a goal of taking it this summer, maybe July, and getting it done. It will be an immense relief to get it behind her, as she will be very busy with senior year, SA and nom applications, alternate plan college applications, standardized tests, etc.
Things she can do right now:
- Get familiar with every aspect of the individual events and how the test is administered by studying the CFA guidance.
- Identify a venue. Think about who meets the criteria to administer the test. Bribe a sibling to chase after basketballs for basketball throw.
- Research Stew Smith’s website and YouTube channel for practice tips on success techniques for CFA events. Stew is a USNA grad, former SEAL and USNA staff officer, now a fitness professional.
- Research USMA West Point’s excellent videos on event form and the administration of the test. Form is critical.
- Go buy a pull-up bar for a doorway this week. Practice pull-ups, with attention to form, every time she goes by. For women, being able to do a few pull-ups is worth significantly more, points-wee, than a flexed arm hang. Being able to bang out pull-ups is a huge confidence-builder anyway.
- Start practicing the events individually, again with focus on form from the get-go. Assess weak spots.
- Do an inventory CFA, executing the test and timing with an administrator just as an actual test would go. The CFAl is designed to lprigressivelt exhaust muscle groups to test overall stamina, so don’t expect the same times/reps as when practicing individual events. Aim to score abive the average. Periodically conduct practice CFAs to assess improvement.
- Keep a log of practices, stats, performance notes, interim goals.
- Consult school coaches or local gym athletic trainers if progress isn’t being made.
- Git ‘er done early.