FORT SILL, Okla.--Who keeps the already in shape, in shape'
It\'s no secret the Army is known for its grueling fitness regiment but even Soldiers need more of a physical challenge from time to time. That's where Claudia Mejia comes in. She works at Goldner Fitness Center as one of Fort Sill's personal trainers, and her reputation definitely precedes her.
"They're like who are you going to see' Miss Claudia! She's going to kill you, she's going to hurt you," said Mejia, Goldner manager. "I'm not here to kill anybody, and I'm not going to hurt anybody. I'm here to help people reach their goals."
How she helps them may seem like torture but afterward she said they are always grateful.
"They're exhausted you know and they're telling me how much I hurt them but then again they're thanking me. They're like I don't know if I like you or I hate you but it was a good workout," said Mejia.
Mejia trains Soldiers as well as their families and civilians working on post, but she has recently started training units.
"Really I love to work with all of them but the most I love to work with are the units when it's a big group and we're really getting into it."
Take the workout for 571st Forward Support Company for example. It was intense.
Mejia started them out with a series of lunges and other exercises to warm up. Then the Soldiers went through an obstacle course six times that included running suicides, high jumps, flipping massive tires from a five-ton track vehicle and ladder drills. And, as if that weren't enough, they finished off with an abdominal workout.
Mejia carefully picked out every exercise the Soldiers performed. She focused on functional training which is not your typical weightlifting and cardio. Functional training is exercise that involves activities performed in daily life.
Even though many who participate may groan about calisthenics like running with kettle bells, Mejia believes it will give the Soldiers an advantage on the battlefield.
"If you have to run away from somewhere and you have some kind of weight on top of you - that's functional training because this is day-to-day movement and it can help them too when they are really in war and they have to do it," she said.
Besides doing one-on-one training, she also teaches fitness classes and said they really fill up this time of year. Whether it's because New Year's resolutions are right around the corner or because the weather outside is frightful, Mejia has some tips for those who have been out of the gym for a while:
A'a,!A ' If you start an exercise program you have to be realistic. If you have not exercised in a while, you may not be able to do things the same way or the same things that you did five years ago.
A'a,!A ' If you have gained weight, that makes you slower and you're going to have a harder time.
A'a,!A ' And, if you did gain weight, it wasn't overnight so you're not going to lose the weight overnight. You have to be patient.
Mejia started out as an insurance broker and then decided to make the drastic career change into fitness while living in Germany. She has no regrets.
"What I love about this job is that I'm able to motivate people to become physically fit or physically active and to really help people achieve those goals."
Social Sharing