The Army is not buying a new PT uniform, but it will offer soldiers a wider selection of optional PT gear items, a spokesman for the service’s top enlisted leader said.
“The Army will continue to issue the current Army Physical Fitness Uniform,” Master Sgt. Dan Carter told Task & Purpose. “We are developing options for soldiers to supplement their issued uniforms, upgraded shorts, shirts for instance.”
These options are intended to be more comfortable and help with soldiers’ performance needs “while still maintaining a uniformed appearance,” Carter said.
“A good way to look at this is what the Army does with boots,” Carter said. “While we provide issue boots, a soldier can purchase other boots as long as they meet specific standards.”
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Carter’s comments come after Sgt. Maj. of the Army Michael R. Weimer announced on Tuesday that the Army was in the process of redesigning its current PT gear, which he said does “not represent who we are as warfighters.”
“In ‘25, you’re going to see a new PT [uniform] — I like to call it kit, because we fight in kit — it’s going to be rolled out,” Weimer said at the Association of the U.S. Army’s annual conference in Washington, D.C. “We’re going to beta test a bunch of it. You may have seen us wearing some of it already before. You will definitely hear about that. It’s coming, because if we’re going to be fit, we’re also going to look good at the same time and rep the Army brand.”
The last time the Army changed its PT gear was in 2017, when it replaced its gray and black uniforms with the current black and gold design.
While Weimer’s announcement was met with applause in the auditorium at AUSA, a function largely attended by mid-to-senior-level personnel, in online spaces where current and former soldiers gather, there were questions about why the service would announce a PT uniform change over addressing other pressing issues.
Some turned to the popular unofficial Army subreddit to vent their frustration that Army leaders rolled out several changes to uniforms and awards, while topics like dining facilities or barracks conditions appeared to get less attention. Others posted memes on popular social media channels like U.S. Army WTF Moments to lampoon the fact that the Army was redesigning its PT gear so soon after the last change.
But it’s now clear the Army’s current PT uniform is not going anywhere. The service will be developing additional optional items in 2025, Carter said. The service is still determining when this gear will be available.