NEWSPete Hegseth Looked 'Weak and Unfit' as He Struggled During Guantanamo Bay Workout, Fitness Experts Claim: 'True Inexperience'
Pete Hegseth has place emphasis on U.S. soldiers' physical fitness.
June 17 2026, Published 2:28 p.m. ET
Pete Hegseth is continuing to get trolled over his viral workouts at Guantanamo Bay.
The politician was mocked over the recent footage, as he appeared to struggled while lifting weights and doing bench presses at the site earlier this month. Fitness experts are now weighing in, with one Nike trainer declaring Hegseth's "general movement quality sucks a--."
Pete Hegseth was mocked on social media as videos of him struggling to work out went viral.
Pete Hegseth Showed His 'Inexperience'
A Nike trainer called out the politician's experience.
"Typically, I would never shame a human for their lack of mobility or moving their body. However, Hegseth loves to make a sticking point about LGBTQIA+ people being ‘unfit’ for the military…. Look inward, mama," Cole Francum quipped to Out.
Francum also poked fun at how one of Hegseth's legs flailed while doing the bench press, which signals "true inexperience."
The Politician Was Criticized for His Bad Form
Pete Hegseth's leg flailed when he was doing a bench press.
"Don’t even get me started on his s----- kettlebell swing. Any coach with eyes can see his arms are clearly in a different world from his hips…which is unfortunate for his wife," he added.
The fitness guru then took a dig at Hegseth's job, saying, "It’s all very synonymous with his haphazard and unconcerned attitude to protecting American citizens."
- 'He Must Have a Humiliation Kink': 'Weak' Pete Hegseth Trolled for Struggling to Lift Weights at Guantanamo Bay — Watch
- 'The View' Costars Tear Apart Pete Hegseth's 'Knockoff Ted Talk' to the Military: 'It Was Really a Bizarre Thing'
- Pete Hegseth Mocked for 'Beyond Pathetic' Workout Video With U.S. Troops: 'This Is So Lame'
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Someone joked on X, 'Pete Hegseth must have a humiliation kink.'
"Talk, screaming, name-calling to redirect attention away from himself with absolutely no substance to back it up besides a washed-up Fox News career. Performance art has a new level, and it’s unfortunate the brave soldiers were just background actors when they’re the ones doing the actual work," he said. "Hopefully, he’ll get some higher standards in his workout to match those of our troops.”
Joe Ghafari, the cofounder of LGBTQ+ fitness retreat Visiting Wrld, noted Hegseth's "weak" wrist and forearm strength.
Pete Hegseth Was Likely Focused on His Ego
Another fitness guru accused the politician of 'cheating' on his dumbbell reps.
The BodyMind Coach CEO Marwa Ahmed said that while the father-of-seven showed some strength, he seemed to be more focused on impressing others instead of maintaining proper form.
"There's a difference between lifting weights for the sake of ego — which usually looks like high reps with compromised form, like in the video — and weightlifting for the sake of moving better and getting stronger," she explained.
She also claimed he "cheated" doing the dumbbells reps, as the weights appeared to be resting on his chest.
"Fast, bounced reps may look impressive in rep count but they're not the same as controlled reps because the muscle isn't doing the actual work," said Ahmed. "It’s just mainly the bar bouncing and momentum that’s driving the movement."
Hegseth ignored the critiques when he posted about his visit on Instagram .
"America can rest assured knowing our troops are standing watch. It was an honor to return to @uscentcom and Cuba to spend time with our warfighters carrying out critical missions," he wrote on June 10.
