FORT IRWIN, CALIF. ---Walk into Fort Irwin's recently made-over fitness center and you see clues about what it used to be --a gym with hardwood floors and basketball backboards.
The fitness center not only has a new name-- Resiliency Center, it's also where you'll find a display counter and refrigeration cases with sandwiches, fresh fruits, and salads from Fit Foods. Turn the corner, and you see that three sides of the building are now laid out with gymnastic rings, exercise mats, spinning machines, and a rock climbing wall at the far end. What was once mostly a basketball arena is now The Box.
"We got our name from what Soldiers call 'The Box' --NTC's training ranges-- but The Box here is for a different reason. It's to train Soldiers in overall readiness and fitness," said Gemma Day, facility manager for The Box.
There's another reason for the name. Day pointed to the several wooden boxes of different sizes placed around the open area.
"The boxes are for drills. People can jump on them as one of their fitness exercises," said Day. "Those less fit can step up on smaller boxes. They can modify their training, based on their individual needs and goals."
CIVILIANS ALSO WELCOME
Day said she and her staff of three, all certified fitness trainers, will help all members of the Fort Irwin military community, including family members of Soldiers, DOD civilian employees, and military retirees.
"Not only Soldiers, but civilians, too," said Day. "Not only people who are already fit, but civilians who sit at desks, sit in their cars, going off post and on post. We want them to be able to come in here and feel that we can help them reach their fitness goals."
Day said she and her fitness trainers will help users of The Box develop fitness for functional movements, not isolated repetitive movements to just develop certain muscle groups.
"You'll be using most of your body to do functional movements--things that you do every day," Day said. "When you stand up and then sit down, basically, what you are doing is a squat. So we're going to strengthen your squat. Because that's a functional movement."
Day said she has several fitness certifications, including a personal trainer certification from the National Strength and Conditioning Association. Others on her staff are CrossFit Level 1 certified coaches. They will be working with master resilience fitness trainers from NTC squadrons and battalions, to work on establishing physical fitness baseline for Soldiers, and creating fitness plans and goals to enhance their readiness. "When Soldiers come in to work out, we can identify people who don't have good form and help them out," Day said.
Day and the other fitness trainers will also be holding group sessions and classes. Day plans to also teach Olympic weightlifting, while another MRW staff member, Catherine Cook, will be leading yoga classes.
FIT FOODS FOR FITNESS
Getting fit also means eating the right foods. Jennifer Isbill, of Five Star Catering at the Fort Irwin Events Center, is working with the Resiliency Center to provide Fit Food menu choices for better nutrition. Day said Isbill is working with Weed Army Community Hospital dietitian, Cpt. Megan Thurman, to create healthy menu choices.
"Depending on your goals in fitness, you can pick what you want for each meal," Day said. "It's basically a meal plan. You can count calories. If you want a certain amount of protein or if you're on a certain diet--Adkins, Paleo-- you can select what you want Fit Foods to make for you, five days a week. If you're a civilian, you can order just lunches. If you're working out at 5 am, you can pick up your breakfast after your workout and go."
Thurman will also be offering nutrition classes. "Classes will help those who want to know what to eat, how to lose weight, or how to develop muscles. It's about educating the community," Day said.
Fort Irwin Weed Army Community Hospital's physical therapist, Cpt. Tiffany Root, is also working with The Box trainers. "She can teach us how to identify if those working out have mobility problems, have any pain, and how to correct problems. We don't want anyone injured doing workouts," said Day.
A ONE-STOP SHOP
The Box is just the beginning, said Dana Spalding, chief of sports fitness and aquatics for Fort Irwin's Family, Morale, Welfare and Recreation Directorate. Over the next few month, other areas of the building are being renovated to open up a chiropractic treatment room, a hydrotherapy room for hot and ice baths, a sauna, and a massage room.
More than a facility, Fort Irwin's Resiliency Center is designed to be a one-stop shop, tying together under one roof, FMWR recreation specialists with Army Medical Department specialists in nutrition, physical therapy and fitness assessments.
"We spent so many years focusing on war and defending our nation. Now it's time to focus on being resilient, on healing and training the force to be better athletes," Spalding said.
National Training Center health promotion officer Joseph Byrne said that plans are in place for an Army Wellness Center to open at the back of the Resiliency Center. State of the art equipment will be used to assess flexibility, muscular strength, cardio-respiratory fitness levels, and body composition. In conjunction with fitness testing, patients receive a comprehensive report that shows current fitness levels and education, and individualized exercise counseling on how to meet their specific goals.
"The Army Wellness Center will and make recommendations for future plans, how they can improve their fitness levels and their overall health," Byrne said. The primary goal of the AWC program is to enhance the self-efficacy of individuals to maintain lifelong healthy behaviors.
READY AND RESILIENT
Byrne said that the Army Wellness Center, Fort Irwin's Resiliency Center, are all part of the Army's Ready and Resilient Campaign (R2C) begun Army-wide in 2013. "It's a holistic view of fitness, the wide scope that affects your personal health, the environment, as well as the social and cultural aspects."
In his remarks during the ribbon cutting ceremony for the Resiliency Center on June 15, garrison commander Col. Jon Braga shared his vision for the center. "Gemma [Day] knows that if you have people walking into these doors five months from now, mostly with zero percent body fat, and others who are super, super fit, then we've kind of failed," Braga said.
"Help get the word out," Braga continued. "We want everyone to come over here and get a little bit better quality of life. There are so many things to make that happen."
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