Starfleet may be an exploratory organisation but in many elements it is run with military-originating
inspirations. Starfleet does have minimum health requirements for its serving officers
and routine fitness checks. This is for practicality’s sake, for example exploring the barren surface
of a rocky planet is going to require some hiking and of course there’s always the
unfortunate threat of an alien skirmish. Hi, Ric here and today I’m looking into
the physical conditioning that Starfleet cadets and even crews have to go through as far as
we know. This video was inspired by the “Kirk Fu Manual” that is being published by Insight
Editions and written by Dayton Ward who has written a long list of other Star Trek works.
I was sent a copy to examine and it’s a quite light-hearted read and I’ll touch
on it later. So, we know for a fact that there are Starfleet
minimum health requirements that need to be cleared in order to serve within the organisation
especially when you wish to serve aboard a Federation Starship. Those aboard and interstellar
vessel are more likely to encounter various environments and hazards than someone who
simply wishes to operate in a research lab on a core world. They no doubt also have different
bars for different species to meet. Your standard Vulcan for example is going to be able run
a mile in a faster time than your average Tellarite. And you wouldn’t ask a Elaysian
to deadlift much weight at in Earth gravity. These requirements seem to be far more lax
than a military organisations which vary from country to country but often require a lengthy
timed jog and several minutes of continuous exercise such as sit-ups and push-ups and
this makes sense for a combat orientated role such as security, but is it really wise to
expect the same qualifications from someone who is going to just be a data analyst?
Well, let’s look at what we know is included in training at Starfleet Academy. There is
a physical training centre based in Marseille, France on Earth and likely many other such
dedicated locations throughout Starfleet training planets. Tom Paris mentions his training at
one of these. The curriculum at Starfleet Academy on any of its installations includes
numerous fitness courses and these are likely mandatory, probably again with variations
on species. We have seen courses labelled Field Training, Field Study and Self-Defence
showing that combat readiness and drills are indeed taught to all cadets to prepare them
for hostile situations and drill them to react accordingly.
But not just for combat readiness. We also see Survival Training, Survival Strategies
and even specifics such as Desert and Arctic Survival, Emergency Medical and Spelunking.
These are more environmental and situational skills than skirmish orientated but likewise
would require a certain level of physical readiness and health.
Some of these events included experiences such as being dropped off in a forest with
no warning and told to survive. Every cadet too needs to complete a six week spacewalk
course in their third year and undergo rigorous zero gravity training. There is also the infamous
10km challenge which involves crossing various terrains with a weighted pack... and then
going for a 10 kilometre run. In lieu of a training course, this could be conducted aboard
a Starship as former Instructor Lieutenant Tuvok demonstrated in the Delta Quadrant.
The purpose of such rigorous testing is to present the cadets with the knowledge that
they are more than likely to end up in a variety of situations as even habitable M class planets
can vary wildly in their temperature, atmospheric composition and gravity. So on top of this,
training was often completed in micro and increased gravity situations to expose trainees
to various climates. So it seems that there is a base level of
fitness and health required to enter Starfleet, then that is used to further temper the cadets
through general training so that when they graduate they are probably the healthies they’ve
ever been and have been briefed on how to respond to a variety of situations.
Like many courses at the Academy, there are many advanced classes that can be pursued
such as Advanced Self Defence, specific Hand-to-Hand Combat and extra-survival courses. These would
be selected courses that the cadet would choose based on their desired career path and be
presented alongside numerous other courses; scientific, medical, tactical, command, diplomatic,
cultural and so on. Alongside this, there were also numerous extracurricular
activities, many of which were sports and melee orientated, such as Human Boxing and
Wrestling or Vulcan Suus Mahna. While these sorts of hobbies were completely optional,
it was recommended and encouraged for a cadet to pursue some interests outside of vocational
related ones and I don’t need to explain why someone who may wish to serve in Starfleet
Security may want to study a few extra fighting styles although I imagine many of these would
be touched upon in courses such as Advanced Self Defence anyway. Although Benjamin Sisko
for example followed the engineer’s path but was also captain of the wrestling team
in 2351 while Chakotay was a promising Boxer before he graduated.
Upon graduation and assignment to a Starship, it seems things change somewhat. A ship’s
medical personnel are responsible for the welfare of the crew and part of that does
mean holding them to a physical standard. In the 23rd century, all Starfleet crewmembers
were expected to undergo a medical physical examination to ensure that their level of
health and fitness continued to remain above Starfleet minimums. By the 24th century however,
these were conducted annually. This may have had something to do with the increase in crew
compliments and civilian presence aboard the vessels and I’d even speculate the higher
level of comfort that the Federation found itself enjoying in this time.
If a person failed to meet the minimum they would be advised by the Medical staff on how
to improve, or have any condition treated and then a follow up examination established
to ascertain if they had achieved that goal. I suppose if they continued to fail, then
chances are they may be reassigned from interstellar duty to somewhere else that didn’t expect
as much action. On board a Starship, there were also gymnasium facilities and of course
the holodecks that would have been used by the crew to maintain their fitness and it
doesn’t seem uncommon to witness personnel out for a jog on deck.
Maintaining their level of health beyond the academy was seemingly completely on the shoulders
of the individual so long as they continued to pass the minimum Starfleet requirements.
Many ships ended up (and encouraged to) develop their own off-duty events and classes where
experienced individuals could share their knowledge. Such as Lieutenant Worf’s Mok’Bara
sessions where he taught beginners and advanced classes on the Klingon Tai Chi style combat.
Many crewmembers would take such classes, to stay fit, to socialise or to learn.
Of course all much of this training is centred not only around bettering yourself, but aiding
others too, the Starfleet mandate is to explore the unknown and protect the Federation which
means that one of the underlying reasons for your own physical and mental wellbeing is
not just for you, but so that others can rely on you too and you can support your crew when
needed. On a Starship it’s just you and your crew out in that black so it really is
just about teamwork. Overall, the level of physical readiness required
to serve on a Starfleet vessel seems to be based heavily around survival of different
climates and the imparting of some basic melee combat skills. If your chosen vocation increases
the likelihood of regular excursion then the bar to meet that physicality rises with the
more military aspects of Starfleet probably requiring the harshest standards.
Thant being said, sometimes you really do gotta punch an alien that’s trying to eat
you. Hence the more advanced classes that are optional, but highly recommended.
…And that is where the most omnipotent, fearsome and deadly form of martial arts come
in. Kirk Fu. I said I’d give a shoutout to this book as it’s was what inspired this
topic and it was a fun little read. It’s written from Kirk’s in-universe point of
view with excepts from his personal log about the numerous fisticuffs he finds himself engaged
in throughout the original series. I especially enjoy that added Starfleet analysis portions
that simply cannot comprehend how on Earth any of these techniques worked and the fact
that the final outcome for every technique appears to be a torn shirt.
So thanks for sending that my way and thank you for watching this video. I’m curious
then, what would you consider a Starfleet minimum requirement for entry and am I the
only one that want’s to try the 10km challenge? Even though I know I’d probably fail?
Thanks again for watching, and I’ll see you for the next lore, game or theory video
and until then, I’ve been Ric, goodbye!