Holly McClung

Ms. Holly McClung is a Nutritional Physiologist in the Military Performance Division at the U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine (USARIEM). She was trained as a Nutritional Biochemist and Registered Dietitian with degrees from University of New Hampshire and Cornell University and practical experience at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation. Ms. McClung is duel-trained in nutrition and exercise physiology, holding certifications as a Certified Specialist in Sports Dietetics (Commission on Dietetic Registration) and Certified Exercise Physiologist (American College of Sports Medicine).

Currently, Ms. McClung functions as a lead investigator focused on human physiology and nutritional research to support modern Warfighters, with a focus on female Warfighters. She has published more than 50 peer-reviewed publications and holds two patents on a novel metabolic sensor system intended for use in individualizing Soldier’s nutritional needs during military operations. Her current focus has been on characterizing the physiological, metabolic, and cognitive profile of elite female Warfighters, as well as assessing the association between body composition and physical performance for the modern Army population. Ms. McClung’s body composition research (completed in 2022) has attracted Army Senior Leader attention, as it is the largest and most diverse demographic representation of the total Army collected to date. Her body composition research has provided the scientific basis to recent Army policy updates focused on the link between physical performance and Army body fat standards.

Recently, Ms. McClung’s work with elite female Warfighters has generated much national and international interest, to include highly cited publications in well-respected scientific journals; speaking invitations at international conferences; an invitation to sit on the first NATO panel focused on the female Warfighter; an invitation to host a nationally broadcast webinar on women Warfighters; and collaborative working engagements across academia and international military groups.