TEXAS, USA — Texas state troopers can loosen their belts just a tad after new physical fitness standards were approved last week.
An oversight board approved changes to the standards for Texas Department of Public Safety troopers after a controversial policy targeted more than 200 of them back in April.
Troopers were told men with waist sizes over 40 inches and women with waist sizes over 35 inches would have to track and share their weight loss efforts.
According to the new policy first reported by the Dallas Morning News, those measurements have increased to 41 and 36 inches, respectively. The consequences for stretching those measurements are also gone, but the waistline requirements are necessary.
“DPS is obviously a premier law enforcement organization and will continue to be so,” Commissioner Dale Wainwright told the Dallas Morning News. “For that to happen, we have to have commissioned officers who can do their job physically as well as mentally at an excellent level.”
Troopers most recently took their physical fitness tests in the spring and nearly every trooper passed, but fewer troopers met the waistline requirement.
Troopers who don't meet their waistlines still have to enroll in a "fitness improvement plan" where exercise goals and nutrition diaries that prove they're taking their fitness seriously are still required.
After 224 state troopers were told they needed to slim down last year, that number dropped to 175 during spring's testing.