Each soldier has his or her own way to relax in between drilling and other duties. Some may chat with friends, while others play video games to unwind after a long day. However, a large majority of soldiers supplement these relaxation activities with tobacco use.

According to statistics from the American Lung Association, 30 percent of members of the Armed Forces smoke, with 9.5 percent of those qualified as "heavy smokers." In the Navy, the overall rate for smokers is 31.2 percent. Due to these high numbers, Navy officials are now considering a branch-wide ban on tobacco use while on bases or ships, the Navy Times reported. Though no official policies have been made public yet, a prohibition on cigarettes and chew would be the latest move by the Navy to cut down on tobacco use by its sailors.

Orders from on high
According to the Navy Times, Lt. Cmdr. Sarah Flaherty indicated that high-level discussions had taken place regarding top officials' opinions on ways to combat high rates of tobacco use among sailors in the Navy. Cmdr. Tamara Lawrence, a spokeswoman for Navy Secretary Ray Mabus, said that the potential drawback on the prevalence of smoking and smokeless tobacco would be the latest in a long line of initiatives aimed at improving the physical fitness of sailors.

"Tobacco use is the most avoidable public health hazard in the Navy and Marine Corps," Mabus wrote in a statement to the Navy following the revocation of subsidies for tobacco products on base commissaries in 2012. 

While the Marine Corps is not expected to be affected by any subsequent decision on tobacco products, neither Mabus nor his spokeswoman would confirm their exemption.

Fighting against tobacco use
Stars and Stripes outlined the vast number of steps the Navy has taken over the years to discourage the use of tobacco by sailors. In the 1990s, smoking breaks were eliminated for troops and separate areas were established apart from non-smoking sailors on ships and submarines. Smoking in the latter was abolished outright in 2010.

The Navy has also fought a back-and-forth battle with Congress over the sale of tobacco on its ships and bases. After Capt. Stanley W. Bryant of the USS Theodore Roosevelt banned all tobacco sales on his ship, a group of Congressmen legally required the commissaries restocked with products and moved the authority on smoking to the Morale, Welfare and Recreation department.

Mabus' most recent efforts may see similar pushback from Congress and the tobacco lobby.

Serving in the military is often a full-time job for servicemembers and their families. Between daily training for the soldier and caring for children for the spouse, there may be so many things to take care of for parents in a military family that all they can do to make it through the day is keep their heads down and soldier on.

However, when the time comes for a spouse in the military to transition to life after service, that routine can be turned on its head. Roles that each parent has grown comfortable in will no longer work in civilian life, and the sometimes troubling question of employment now looms large in both adults' minds. Millions of families have made the switch to life after the military, though, so keeping calm and thinking over options is often the best way to approach one of the biggest transitions of a military family's time together.

Thinking about relocation
When a spouse is active duty, military families are normally used to moving around. Children adapt to making friends in new cities and spouses find ways to connect with each initially unfamiliar community they find themselves members of. When the time comes to leave the a military installation, however, most families fail to think about life after service outside of the Armed Forces bubble, according to Military.com.

"We weren't going to move back to the middle of Iowa, so we just stayed [in North Carolina]," Melanie, the wife of a soldier stationed at Camp Lejeune, told Military.com.

Melanie believed that her family would only be compensated to move back to her hometown where her husband was initially recruited. When she and her husband compared employment opportunities between North Carolina and Iowa, the former seemed like an easy choice for them.

But with so many other military families choosing the same path, Melanie's family found the job market around Camp Lejeune clogged with job seekers with the same skills as her husband. Moreover, local businesses only seemed interested in hiring people from the area.

Rather than stay attached to the network of bases, Military.com recommended taking advantage of the service's willingness to pay a fraction of a family's relocation costs. A common misconception is that the military will only pay to move a family back to where the servicemember was originally recruited, but anyone interested in moving to a different locale – one where their job skills are in high demand – can have the mileage from their current location to their hometown applied to a different location instead. Families merely have to pay the remainder of travel expenses.

While that balance may still be a hefty sum, the overall economic benefit for a family may be a net positive if the move brings them to a city rife with job opportunities.

Networking with military skills
Even if a family moves to a new city for life after service, simply hoping for employment often is not enough. Military OneSource recommended working on networking skills through transition assistance programs. Talking to other recently transitioned families can lead to job opportunities that are not advertised through normal means, and putting a face to a name usually results in job placement at a higher rate than sending out resumes over the Internet.

However, it can be easy for a former military spouse to grow discouraged when he or she finds out that skills gained in the military are not as highly valued in the private sector as they were in the Armed Forces. On the contrary, companies prize leadership and teamwork skills just as much as technical ones, and former military members have those traits in spades.

Many soldiers enlist in the Armed Forces with the expressed knowledge that they would receive a certain veterans benefits package for life after service. Some soldiers seek pension payments to sustain their quality of life once they leave active duty, while others seek financial help from the military for other endeavors.

One of those endeavors is tuition assistance for continuing education credits. According to Stars and Stripes, despite discussions to reduce or even eliminate the Navy's budget to provide financial assistance to soldiers who are interested in furthering their education, a top official announced that the Navy would not be cutting the level of support from its current 100 percent mark.

Cutting back on budget cuts
The announcement that the Navy would not be scaling back it's tuition assistance program came March 18 at a forum in Mayport, Fla., that was broadcasted to sailors across the globe via the Internet. Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Jonathan Greenert told soldiers that while the possibility of a shared assistance program that would split costs 75-25 may be implemented someday, the Navy would continue to provide full coverage for the time being.

"I want educated sailors; I want you to leave with all the certifications you can so that you can get a job immediately," Greenert told the assembled soldiers, according to Stars and Stripes.

The Navy last operated their tuition assistance program at a 75-25 split in 2002, when officials decided to increase financial support to a full 100 percent. Critics speculated that the discussions surrounding the cuts may be related to the budget reduction mandated by the Pentagon and Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel in recent months.

Paying for a Naval education
For any sailor interested in taking advantage of the Navy's full tuition assistance program before any future drawbacks are instituted, Military.com outlined the financial and eligibility details of the program. Sailors on active duty and reservists ordered to 120 days active service or reservist officers to 2 or more years of service are immediately eligible for tuition assistance.

For financial support, the Navy pays a maximum of $250 per credit hour or $166 per quarter hour, depending on the academic system employed by the chosen institution. No program is to exceed 16 semester hours, 24 quarter hours or 240 clock hours over the course of a fiscal year.

Sailors interested in taking advantage of these military benefits should contact their nearest Navy College Office.

The Armed Forces are made up of individual soldiers, but their ability to work together as a unit contributes to the military's overall effectiveness. Part of that ability includes looking like a cohesive group as well.

To maintain that image of a disciplined and coordinated group of servicemembers, the Army will be publishing a new set of uniform guidelines that will govern how soldiers are expected to groom and present themselves while on active duty, Military.com reported. The updated regulations are expected to be return the Army's uniform policies back to stricter pre-2006 levels.

Policing military fashion
Military.com explained that the upcoming Army Regulation 670-1 will compile new grooming policies for soldiers that have previously been released in individual messages. The new stance is expected to take a much stricter approach on certain embellishments popular with troops in recent years, such as tattoos. 

Army Secretary John McHugh told the website that troops can expect the new regulations to take effect within the next few weeks. 

Though tattoos are no longer expected to be allowed below the elbow or knee, soldiers with preexisting ink will not be penalized, according to the Army Times. With only a few weeks remaining to take advantage of the grandfathering process, troops may be scrambling to get or finish designs for their life after service before the new policies kick in.

Providing comprehensive information
The Army is compiling all relevant information for soldiers into an easily digestible pamphlet format, as opposed to the more than 50 individual communications sent out over the last several years.

"We are dedicated to ensuring soldiers and leaders have easy access to policies to ensure our Army maintains a professional, neat, and Soldierly appearance, which is the foundation of our profession," the Army said in a statement to the Army Times.

Military officials also indicated that the new policies are aimed at preserving "a conservative military image" that has proved pivotal for for troops effectiveness, self-discipline and sense of identity as a servicemember of the U.S. Military.

The Army Times speculated that the policy change may be related to recent sequestration cuts that will reduce troop strength to around 420,000. The regulations were loosened in 2006 to help recruiting efforts, but with the expected drop in numbers, the Army Times explained that officials may feel more confident in enforcing stricter uniform and grooming regulations without regard to larger questions of military effectiveness.

The military may be all about uniformity, but some soldiers desire a little individuality every now and then.

That was exactly the case for the Marines' preference for rolled sleeves on its uniforms – up until 2011, when a direct order mandated long sleeves even in desert climates. After years of complaints from servicemembers, however, Gen. James F. Amos, Commandant of the Marine Corps, has relented and re-authorized the iconic rolled-up-sleeves look of certain Marines around the world.

On a roll
Amos wrote in a statement on the Marine Corps' website that he understands how important identity and individuality are to soldiers who become Marines. As rolled sleeves were one of the only ways that the Corps could differentiate the look of its uniforms from those of the other branches up until 2011, Amos believed that a return to this look would raise troops' morale across the globe.

"I've thought a lot about this over the past 2 .5 years; I realize that it's important to you," Amos wrote in the statement. "Sleeves up clearly and visually sets us apart."

The change signals a shift in strict uniform policies that have prohibited soldiers from keeping their hands in their pockets for an extended period of time. While the ability to roll their sleeves may be a welcome transition for many servicemembers, only those stationed outside of combat zones and wearing summer clothing will be permitted to cuff their sleeves when the new policy goes into effect March 9.

Shifting uniformity
While the sleeve roll may have been made famous by Marines in movies and TV shows, the style has a long history within the service. The Wall Street Journal reported that the informal look of the rolled sleeve was actually a highly ritualized part of the soldier's routine in preparing his or her uniform.

In addition to polished boots and pressed shirts, rolled sleeves had their own regulations – rolled from the inside out, three inches wide and resting two inches above the elbow. There were slight variations such as the less neat "Gunny Rolls," or sleeves cuffed by battle-hardened gunnery sergeants less concerned with appearance than combat effectiveness.

Recent changes to Marines' uniforms such as wrinkle-free fabric and suede combat boots removed much of the daily work Marines had to put into their appearance. However, Amos' announcement received more than 30,000 Facebook likes in one day, according to The Wall Street Journal, indicating that some soldiers might enjoy a return to the days of rolled sleeves and spit-shined shoes.

The most elite and selective fighting force in the U.S. has been used extensively throughout the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Special operations forces have been at the forefront of several major missions in the Middle East since the military's first engagement in the region in 2001, but according to a ranking officer within Special Operations Command, these forces have become overextended and have gone beyond their operational parameters. In order to be the most effective soldiers they can be, special operations forces may have to recommit to their original purpose.

Unseen missions to frontline warriors
Special operations forces have long been deployed on missions of unparalleled importance that never see the light of day in the press. In the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, however, the same soldiers have been placed on a more regular duty, rooting out insurgents and tracking down the heads of militant bands. Military.com reported that according to Air Force Lt. Gen. Bradley Heithold, vice commander of SOCOM, this is not how special operations forces can best protect the country.

"You've read about the U.S. forces either kill or capture missions and the like against the senior leaders of Al Qaeda – sometimes referred to as a decapitation strategy," Heithold said during a discussion at the National Defense Industry Association. "Is that going to work? No."

Heithold explained how in a meeting with the Joint Chiefs of Staff, he recommended a drawdown of resources allocated to SOCOM. In 2001, Heithold counted 21 extremist groups the U.S. kept tabs on, but despite the increased presence of special operations forces, that number had ballooned to 57. Rather than sending his highly trained soldiers on assassination missions, Heithold would rather they be sent on "indirect missions" like training foreign military groups that take longer to produce results, but are more effective on a larger scale.

Back to basics
SOCOM itself urged that a smaller footprint for its soldiers does not necessarily mean a smaller impact through its missions. The force's website enumerated several key concepts – humans over hardware, strength over size – that prize a small, specialized group of soldiers who are able to carry out high-intensity missions over a large battalion of troops whose training may vary. SOF cannot accomplish its missions alone, however, and depends on the rest of the Armed Forces to accomplish large scale goals. Its this symbiosis that Heithold would like to return to, with SOCOM carrying out niche missions around the globe.

Most men struggle to come up with date ideas for Valentine's Day, but many of them have the convenience of cities and flower delivery services to save them in the eleventh hour from sleeping on the couch. It would be near impossible for Sgt. Andrew Johnson, currently deployed in Afghanistan at Camp Leatherneck, to plan a date night with his wife – if Sgt. Frances Johnson wasn't deployed at the same base, too.

Married to the military
Stars and Stripes reported on the Johnsons' improbable journey to serving together in southeastern Afghanistan that started in southern California. Frances had been put in charge of training Marine Recruit Depot San Diego's newest puppy, but when the soldier originally assigned to assist her was busy, Andrew stepped in. Fast forward four years and the two are serving together at Camp Leatherneck. Frances is the media chief for the Marine unit stationed there, and Andrew is the program manager for the collection of IED detector dogs.

The couple described the first few years of serving together as difficult. They were treated like the rest of the soldiers and were not permitted any more time alone than the non-married Marines. However, the Johnsons have just been granted approval by military officials to live together.

A reminder of the normal
The Johnsons are not the first couple to serve together at the same base – in fact, they are not even the first to do so at Camp Leatherneck. In 2012, the Department of Defense reported on Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Luke Billingsley and his wife, Marine Corps Sgt. Nancy Billingsley, as they both completed a seven-month deployment. 

The Billingsleys noted that even though everything around them may feel foreign, having their significant other alongside them reminds them of the comforts of home.

"The main benefit of being deployed with my wife is the peace of mind I have," Luke told the DOD. ""I don't have worry about my wife needing anything, because I can see her here. I see her every day."

Nancy agreed that although it still feels like she is away from home, it would be much worse without her husband.

"Having my husband out here makes it really easy for me to do my job," Nancy said. "That homesickness part of the deployment doesn't really exist. I mean, we miss our kids, but ultimately, that home sickness doesn't set in like everybody else's."

Some NFL coaches choose to relax at home during the offseason, while others may hit the books to prepare for the annual Combine and Draft. Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh chose a different way to spend his downtime.

The Army reported that Harbaugh joined Chief of Staff Gen. Ray Odierno on a tour of military bases in Afghanistan. The bench boss spent two weeks traveling to visit troops stationed at Kandahar and Bagram Air Field. He signed autographs, posed for pictures and spoke with the soldiers.

"The biggest message that I would like to leave on behalf of the National Football League players and coaches, for all the deployed service men and women out there, is 'thank you,'" Harbaugh told troops at Kandahar Air Field. "Thank you for doing all the things necessary to allow us to all live our lives the way we want to, in freedom."

The time spent with Harbaugh allowed some soldiers to forget about the constant pressures of military life. Some went right back to being football fans.

"You have so many questions, and what better way than to ask the coach directly," Staff Sgt. Bryant Brown told the DOD. Brown met Harbaugh during his stop at Bagram where he got a picture with the Super Bowl champion coach and even got the hold his ring. 

The body armor and protection soldiers take into battle is constantly under scrutiny from research and development programs, and though it may seem like it is coming straight out of science fiction, the prototype of a powered exoskeleton soldiers may one day wear on the battlefield will begin preliminary testing this summer. While the futuristic armor has been compared to that worn by the superhero Iron Man, military officials are not ready to say it is capable of feats as fantastic as flight, but the technology may prompt a revolutionary change in infantry-based combat.

Suit up, soldier
DefenseTech.org reported on the announcement of the suit's planned testing program at the Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict conference in Washington, D.C. Navy Adm. William McRaven, the ranking officer of U.S. Special Operations Command, told the assembled media that if everything goes according to plan, the suit could be on testing grounds by June and in the hands of soldiers by August of this year.

"That suit, if done correctly, will yield a revolutionary improvement in survivability and capability for special operators," McRaven said. By combining integrated weapons systems and health monitoring capabilities, McRaven believes the powered exoskeleton will give the U.S. a "huge comparative advantage over our enemies and give our warriors the protection they need."

Technology and operability
The incredible functionality of the suit – dubbed the Tactical Assault Light Operator Suit, or TALOS – could promise a much greater degree of protection for soldiers from seen and unseen threats than current options. The Department of Defense reported that while the full extent of the suit's capabilities remains to be seen, integration of several defense and information systems could create the soldier of the future.

While body armor has been getting lighter and lighter, that progression can mean a sacrifice of strength. With the TALOS suit, soldiers can wear the heaviest, most protective armor available without worrying about fatigue – actuators in the suit would carry the weight instead of the soldier. An array of sensors and computers will collect data and information from the battlefield and present any relevant pieces to the wearer via a heads up display on the helmet's visor.

"The intent is to have this fully integrated system so you can provide the most capability at the lowest impact to the soldier," Michael Fieldson, SOCOM's TALOS project manager told the DOD. "We are really looking at stretching the bounds of science and technology."

A major component of the Army-wide drawdown of U.S. troops from Afghanistan and Iraq is the ongoing training of the Afghan army. The goal is to produce a self-sustaining defensive force native to the country that can defend itself from the domestic threat of militants. While a recent groundswell of Afghan support for the U.S. force may prompt a further look at the withdrawal, the U.S.'s top Navy SEAL assured troops that Afghan security forces continue to improve.

Working toward military autonomy
U.S. soldiers have been engaged in Afghanistan for more than a decade. With President Barack Obama's proposal to withdraw all but a small contingent of the Kabul embassy's security force from the country by 2017, a growing objective for soldiers in the area is not combat, but training the Afghan army to be a self-sufficient and resilient force. Military.com reported that Adm. William McRaven, the commander of U.S. Special Operations Command and the Navy's top-ranking SEAL, told the press at the 25th annual Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict conference Feb. 11 that he has confidence that the training is progressing.

"I'm pleased to say that each time I return, I see more and more progress," McRaven said. "Afghan security forces are good and thanks to our [special operations forces] investment, they are getting better."

McRaven's comments come at a crucial time when the U.S. and Afghanistan are attempting to broker a security pact for a longer American military presence in the country. Several critics have called attention to a perceived lack of readiness among Afghan troops, and a recent report from the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction found that the measurements military officials are using to gauge Afghanistan's readiness for military self-governance may not be as trustworthy as first thought.

All of this has called into question the appropriateness of a U.S. withdrawal.

"No longer are the Afghanistan people relying on coalition forces to play the leading role in providing security," McRaven told the conference. "No matter the size of our presence there next year, our future military-to-military engagements with the Afghans will remain vital in the region."

Working on a security pact
While McRaven believes that Afghan forces will be ready to defend their country after 2014, many others do not share his confidence. The Washington Post spoke to several Afghan officers about the stalled negotiations between the two countries on a security pact that would keep U.S. troops stationed on bases past 2012, and their responses were less than hopeful.

"If the international community leaves, there is no question that we will lose ground to the Taliban," Col. Mohammad Dost told the Post. "It's the biggest worry for every soldier now."

There has been a groundswell of support for the pact which President Hamid Karzai has refused to sign. Military officials in the country have taken to the newspapers, radio and television to voice their concerns. These moves of public dissidence have led to at least one Afghan general being informally removed from his post.

But as the Post spoke to soldiers, the threat of facing militants without U.S. support far outweighed backlash from the government.

"If the Americans leave, Afghanistan will be a lone sheep, left in the desert for the wolves to eat," Capt. Abdul Zahir told the paper.

Beyond troop strength, the Afghan army also relies on funding from U.S. sources. Numbering about 350,000 men, Afghanistan requires about $4 billion annually to operate its defensive forces but only grosses $1.7 billion in revenue. Among other countries, the U.S. is the primary contributor. While funding-only aid is possible, critics say ensuring that money goes to the right places within the Afghan government without boots on the ground would be difficult.