RFK Jr. and Hegseth Participate in Pentagon Fitness Event

A friendly but intense fitness showdown between two top Trump administration officials is drawing new attention to a growing national health campaign.

Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. visited the Department of Defense this week to take on Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth in a timed pullup and pushup challenge, part of a broader push to get Americans moving.

The two squared off in front of an audience of U.S. Navy and Marine service members for what’s now being called the “Pete and Bobby Challenge.” Their goal: 50 pullups and 100 pushups in under five minutes.

Video of the moment, shared first with Fox News Digital, shows the two men in gym gear—Kennedy, 71, wore his usual workout outfit of jeans and a T-shirt—cheering each other on as they powered through the challenge.

“We had our big Pete and Bobby challenge today—50 pullups, 100 pushups. Try to get under five minutes,” Kennedy explained in the clip.

The challenge is part of the larger “Make America Healthy Again” campaign, or MAHA, which Kennedy is leading. The movement encourages Americans to eat real, whole foods instead of processed meals, and to make regular physical activity a daily habit.

Hegseth, meanwhile, is putting a renewed focus on fitness within the military. He recently responded to a report that two-thirds of active service members are now classified as overweight.

“Completely unacceptable,” he wrote on social media. “This is what happens when standards are IGNORED—and this is what we are changing. REAL fitness & weight standards are here. We will be FIT, not FAT.”

During the workout, both men gave it their all. Hegseth came in just over the five-minute mark with a time of 5 minutes, 25 seconds. Kennedy finished shortly after.

“You were right behind me,” Hegseth said in the video, praising the 71-year-old for holding his own.