The U.S. Army has become much more picky about the fitness of its soldiers as it shrinks in size and this year has kicked out 15 times more for them being unfit than 1997, the Washington Post reports. 

Some 1,625 soliders were ejected through October, the Post said.

“Obesity is now the leading cause of ineligibility for people who want to join the Army, according to military officials, who see expanding waistlines in the warrior corps as a national security concern.

“Between 1998 and 2010, the number of active-duty military personnel deemed overweight or obese more than tripled. In 2010, 86,186 troops, or 5.3 percent of the force, received at least one clinical diagnosis as overweight or obese, according to theArmed Forces Health Surveillance Center.”

A similar forced exodus happened after the end of Desert Storm in 1991. 

“During a war period, when we were ramping up, the physical standards didn’t have a lot of teeth because we needed bodies to go overseas, to fill platoons and brigades,” said Stew Smith, a former Navy SEAL and fitness expert who has designed workout routines for service members and law enforcement personnel struggling to meet workplace fitness standards. “During a period of drawdown, everything starts getting teeth, and that’s kind of where we are again.”

Washington Post graphic