Some people would say that the officers of the military (whether they be commissioned or non-commissioned) are the finest people in a society. After all, they have taken an oath that they will do whatever it takes to defend the world in which we live (our country, our culture and our very way of life), up to and including giving their very lives for the purpose of something which is greater than themselves. That is a pretty good argument for the notion that military folks are a special breed. And the fact that they keep themselves in good shape and are constantly striving to improve how well they can do their jobs (through acquiring new training, pushing themselves in their workouts and studying both the history or warfare and the tactics which win battles), they make their own argument for being pretty awesome on a daily basis.
The average military person gets up at roughly five in the morning, almost every day. At that point, they go through a good waking up workout, which is often followed by putting in some time on the rifle range, going through an obstacle course, and doing some boxing or wrestling with one of their buddies. If not for the fact that these people might get called up to go give their lives at any given moment, it would almost sound like being a professional athlete.
But it goes deeper than that. While the individual soldier is just another person who pushes him or herself beyond the normal level, the military itself (which is composed of millions of such individuals) is a human wall in our society. Their purpose is to keep people who would harm society out of it, and keep enemies who would like to come and hurt us occupied in the cause of defending themselves in a far off place. That is an interesting relationship to have with the rest of society, and it works well.