A Navy officer has recently undergone a liposuction procedure, despite being physically fit, in order to meet the Navy’s strict body fat percentage requirements.
Mick Kruger is 38 years old and in great shape. He is a master-at-arms first class officer and has never failed a physical readiness test. He stands at 6 feet 4 inches tall and weighs about 240 pounds. He has often been praised for having a “superb military appearance.”
Unfortunately for Kruger, this isn’t enough. According to Navy standards, he is too fat.
Kruger’s measurements were taken last October. His nick measured 16 inches and his abdomen 40.5. The Navy uses a system for determining body fat where the neck measurements are subtracted from the abdomen measurements to obtain a “circumference value.” This total is then compared to a chart that is based on the sailor’s height in order to obtain body-fat percentage.
Kruger was determined to have 25 percent body fat. Sounds normal enough and only slightly higher than the limit of 22 percent for men under 39 years of age. But unfortunately, he didn’t pass the evaluation. What was Kruger’s problem? His neck was too small compared to his abdomen.
The Defense Defense Department allows officers to have up to 26 percent body fat, which Kruger has never gone over, but the Navy is slightly stricter.
While Kruger has earned numerous merits, the body fat percentage is all that matters in the end.
The physical fitness assessment (PFA) has two parts, the physical readiness test and the body fat measurement. If you fail either one then you fail the entire PFA.
After failing the body fat test three times in four years, Kruger opted to get liposuction done, which cost him over $4,500. He also spent $2,000 on the Nutrisystem diet and $3,200 on a Bowflex TreadClimber to get the fat percentage down and be allowed to stay in the program. But the problem kept coming back. It’s not his weight, but his body type that keeps affecting him.
"It is extremely frustrating because I look professional in uniform," said an exasperated Kruger. "I can beat a lot of 18- to 24-year-olds running, and anyone who looks at me says, 'There is no way you are out of standards.' "
Kruger’s wife battled with breast cancer for three years before passing away in 2009. Kruger admitted to putting on a few pounds while taking care of her, but nothing drastic. He slowed down on his exercise regime but still tried to remain active. It was his wife that suggested he try liposuction to get rid of the extra fat.
On Jan. 14, Kruger learned that a board voted to have him removed from service because of the body fat percentage. He and his two children, ages six and four, were only initially given 10 working days to leave the base but that deadline was extended to Feb. 4.
