This article relies largely or entirely on a single source .(April 2016) |
The position of at attention, or standing at attention, is a military posture which involves the following general postures: [1]
The above stance position is common in most military organizations throughout the world. It may also be adopted by paramilitary organizations, law enforcement, and other organizations requiring a loosely military structure such as Scouts, cadet programs, or police units, or even the Salvation Army.
It is also used in common in civilian marching bands, fife and drum corps and drum and bugle corps. To stand at attention is also a means of saluting when a junior rank meets an officer or superior but he (the junior) is not wearing a cover.
In the United Kingdom, New Zealand Defence Force and Australian Defence Force, feet are at a 45-degree angle with heels together. In the Canadian forces, feet are at a 30-degree angle with heels together. Standing at attention is also a critical component of any audience when the Canadian national anthem (O Canada) is being played. It is considered very disrespectful to not stand at attention while O Canada is being played.
In Russia and countries of Soviet influence, on the command of attention (Russian : Смирно; Smer-nah), the soldiers of any sized unit snap their heads to the front, with their chin up and looking straight ahead. [2]
In the three armies of Spain this order must be given after the aling up. When the drill gives the order, the soldiers, who must be in the aling up posture, snap their heads to the left and, after the executive order «¡Mar!» or «¡Ar!» they lower the arm that would have been extended to keep the distance with the soldier in front, keeping both arms at sides of the torso. When soldiers are in uniform, the fists must be clenched, covering the gap between the index finger with the thumbs, keeping the knuckles against the legs. If the soldiers are in civilian or sports clothing, the arms are held the same, but the hands are held open and must slap the leg when the executive order is given.
In the United States military, the feet are at a 45-degree angle with heels together and the fingers are curled in a loose fist. Contrary to the norm of the chin being up, the chin is instead down and the neck vertical. [3]
A salute is usually a formal hand gesture or other action used to display respect in military situations. Salutes are primarily associated with the military and law enforcement, but many civilian organizations, such as Girl Guides, Boy Scouts and the Salvation Army use formal salutes. Ordinary civilians also salute informally to greet or acknowledge the presence of another person, such as a tip of the hat or a hand wave to a friend or neighbor.
A marching band is a group of instrumental musicians who play while marching. Historically they were used in armed forces and many marching bands remain military bands. Others are still associated with military units or emulate a military style, with elements such as uniforms, flags and batons and occasionally rifles or sabers. Instrumentation typically includes brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments.
Calisthenics or callisthenics is a form of strength training that utilizes an individual's body weight as resistance to perform multi-joint, compound movements with little or no equipment.
Backstroke or back crawl is one of the four swimming styles used in competitive events regulated by FINA, and the only one of these styles swum on the back. This swimming style has the advantage of easy breathing, but the disadvantage of swimmers not being able to see where they are going. It also has a different start from the other three competition swimming styles. The swimming style is similar to an upside down front crawl or freestyle. Both backstroke and front crawl are long-axis strokes. In individual medley backstroke is the second style swum; in the medley relay it is the first style swum.
A mudra is a symbolic or ritual gesture or pose in Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism. While some mudras involve the entire body, most are performed with the hands and fingers.
Drill commands are generally used with a group that is marching, most often in military foot drills or in a marching band. Drill commands are usually heard in major events involving service personnel, reservists and veterans of a country's armed forces, and by extension, public security services and youth uniformed organizations.
A strike is a directed, forceful physical attack with either a part of the human body or with a handheld object, intended to cause blunt or penetrating trauma upon an opponent.
The push-up is a common calisthenics exercise beginning from the prone position. By raising and lowering the body using the arms, push-ups exercise the pectoral muscles, triceps, and anterior deltoids, with ancillary benefits to the rest of the deltoids, serratus anterior, coracobrachialis and the midsection as a whole. Push-ups are a basic exercise used in civilian athletic training or physical education and commonly in military physical training. They are also a common form of punishment used in the military, school sport, and some martial arts disciplines. Variations of push-ups, such as wide-arm push-ups, diamond push-ups target specific muscle groups and provide further challenges.
Strikes can be offensive moves in professional wrestling, that can sometimes be used to set up an opponent for a hold or for a throw. There are a wide variety of strikes in pro wrestling, and many are known by several different names. Professional wrestlers frequently give their finishers new names. Occasionally, these names become popular and are used regardless of the wrestler performing the technique.
Dance position is the position of a dancer or the mutual position of a dance couple assumed during a dance. Describing and mastering proper dance positions is an important part of dance technique.
Glide step is a form of movement used by marching bands to minimize upper body movement, enabling musicians to play their instruments and march without air-stream interruptions. Standardizing the style of marching also serves to add to the visual effect of a marching band. Sometimes special shoes are worn with a curved heel that facilitates rolling the foot. Glide stepping is used by many high school and college marching bands, and by many drum corps. Glide stepping is sometimes also known as "roll stepping".
Motion, the process of movement, is described using specific anatomical terms. Motion includes movement of organs, joints, limbs, and specific sections of the body. The terminology used describes this motion according to its direction relative to the anatomical position of the body parts involved. Anatomists and others use a unified set of terms to describe most of the movements, although other, more specialized terms are necessary for describing unique movements such as those of the hands, feet, and eyes.
The Army Physical Fitness Test (APFT) was a test designed to measure the muscular strength, endurance, and cardiovascular respiratory fitness of soldiers in the United States Army. The test contained three events: push-ups, sit-ups, and a two-mile run with a soldier scoring from 0 to 100 points in each event based on performance. A minimum score of 60 in each event was required to pass the test.
Present arms is a two-part drill command used by many militaries and public safety professionals in the world as a sign of respect. It comes from the old British command "Arms to the present!"
A GALS screen is an examination used by doctors and other healthcare professionals to detect locomotor abnormalities and functional disability relating to gait, arms, legs and the spine.
Reverse arms and the related rest on arms reversed are military drill commands used as a mark of respect at funerals and on occasions of mourning, especially in the armed forces of Commonwealth nations. When marching in reverse arms the soldier's weapon is held pointing behind them and grasped behind their back. When resting on reversed arms the weapon points towards the ground and the eyes are lowered.