President Trump's Critics Freak Out Over Simple Fitness Challenge

NEW YORK, NY - Trump Derangement Syndrome has reached epic proportions for The New York Times, with a columnist, Calum Marsh, taking the position that too much exercise is bad for you. 

The Times, which would criticize members of the Trump administration if they cured cancer for putting Big Pharma out of business, had an issue with the “Pete and Bobby Challenge” whereby Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Health and Human Services Secretary Bobby Kennedy Jr. engaged in the fitness test, consisting of 50 pull-ups and 100 pushups in 10 minutes or less. 

That triggered The New York Times to run out and find “experts” who claimed that such high-volume exercise sets “may not be for everyone.” Ah yes, “experts.” 

“Fitness experts caution against jumping into a difficult routine suggested by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Pete Hegseth.” 

The challenge was widely circulated in videos posted to social media channels by Hegseth and RFK Jr., as well as the official account of the Department of Health and Human Services. 

What was ironic about The New York Times' sudden concern with “too much” of a good thing stood in sharp contrast to their take in 2014, when the outlet advised to “push yourself when you work out.” 

In the article titled “For Fitness, Push Yourself,” The Times said it was important to push oneself when working out to make better progress. The study cited concluded that, “Intense exercise changes the body and muscles at a molecular level in ways that milder physical activity doesn’t match.” Of course, Obama was president at the time, and Trump is the president now. Obama was too busy practicing how to throw a baseball without looking like a girlie man. It didn’t work. 

Marsh compared the workout to the Physical Screening Test for Navy Special Operations (PST), which requires exercises such as sit-ups, running, swimming, pull-ups, and push-ups. That test is the first step to becoming a Navy SEAL. A version of it is called “The Murph” in honor of Lt. Michael Murphy, a Navy SEAL who was killed in Afghanistan in 2005. 

CrossFit, Marsh writes, has adopted a combination of large amounts of pull-ups, push-ups, and squats; however, he warns that “even for advanced athletes, these types of high-intensity combos–a test of cardiovascular capacity, strength and endurance–can be a grind.” 

Since becoming HHS Secretary, RFK Jr. has pushed for Americans to become healthier and has been advocating for more nutritious foods in the American diet and strongly advising them to remove artificial ingredients, including high-fructose corn syrup and artificial dyes, from their products.

The “Pete and Bobby Challenge” was part of that effort, encouraging Americans to get more exercise to improve their health. 

Marsh, however, warns us that when athletes complete The Murph, “pull-ups are rarely done ‘strict’--a term indicating full control and slow, steady form.” Instead, he admonishes, participants use either kip or butterfly variations believed to be easier on shoulders and arms but difficult to master.” 

Coach and owner of the Progrm, a training app for athletes, John Singleton said variations on pull-ups are due to “ultimately athletes needed to do more reps in less time.” 

Another expert, Dallin Pepper, a member of the World Fitness Project and a former competitor in the CrossFit Games, warned that anyone wishing to participate in such a challenge should do so gradually. 

“For the average person, I would definitely recommend building volume in these movements over three to four weeks before giving it a go,” Pepper said. 

Understand that neither Kennedy nor Hegseth are fitness trainers and never indicated that they were. They were simply using the challenge to publicize the need for Americans to engage in some form of strength training along with aerobic exercise.

However, Marsh took the opportunity to criticize the two for allegedly displaying incorrect form. 

“Fitness experts said Mr. Kennedy and Mr. Hegseth were trying to do standard pull-ups, rather than employing ‘kips’ or the ‘butterfly’ movement. But their shortened range of motion–neither reaching above the bar with the chin, nor fully extending the arms on the descent–falls short of both CrossFit and military standards.” 

Thank you, Captain Obvious. Then never said they did. 

Marsh found a former sergeant in the Danish military to make his case. 

“This is not how you do a qualified, correct pull-up in the military,” said Jess Hviid Skov, who owns a gym. 

Then came the hit on RFK Jr. 

“Despite that, Mr. Kennedy, who has routinely talked about the benefits of fitness, seemed to invite average Americans to challenge themselves physically in the same way he and Mr. Hegseth had, with a post on X that read: ‘100 push-ups, 50 pull-ups–Who’s up for the challenge?’”

Again, neither RFK nor Hegseth implied they were doing the exercise in a manner that the public should follow. In his post, the secretary was challenging Americans to do 100 push-ups and 50 pull-ups. No time limit. That didn’t stop Marsh from finding more “experts.” 

“Most people can’t even perform five strict push-ups with proper form, or a single pull-up without compensating,” said Chris Smits, another source Marsh found outside the US, this time in Toronto. “Pushing for such high numbers without the necessary strength foundation can quickly lead to poor form, overcompensation, and a high risk of injury, including serious muscle strains or tears.” 

Perhaps Mr. Marsh could strain a vagina muscle. 

Smits continued that it “isn’t about hitting an arbitrary number on Day 1,” and it should be built up gradually. Neither RFK nor Hegseth suggested otherwise. 

In a 2015 puff piece on Michelle Obama’s initiative called “#Gimme Five” on healthy living, The Times gushed about Barack Obama’s “good-natured challenge to his wife,” whose workout routine posted in the piece consisted of jump rope, medicine ball crunches, jump squats, boxing, and dumbbell incline press.” The article didn’t confirm if the dumbbell was, in fact, Joe Biden. 

Finally, Marsh found another expert, Ben Bergeron, founder of the global training company CompTrain, who said the “simplicity” of push-ups and pull-ups could appear deceiving for novices. 

“High-volume weight workouts are deceptively tough,” Bergeron said. “The movements themselves are simple, but when performed in the 50 to 100 rep range or more, most people aren’t prepared for it.” 

The New York Times and its writer Calum Marsh evidently prefer America to be fat, dumb, and happy. Their side of that equation already is.