188th Infantry Brigade holds Soldier Fitness Day

By Capt. Kurt Van Slooten, 188th Infantry Brigade Public AffairsMay 6, 2010

188th Infantry Brigade holds Soldier Fitness Day
(Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

FORT STEWART, Ga. - The 188th Infantry Brigade held a mandatory Comprehensive Soldier Fitness Day to promote the long-term health and resilience of Soldiers in the brigade, April 27.

The day began at 6:30 a.m. with a spiritual fitness run, followed by classroom training on the topics of stress and anger management, provided at Moon Theater for all brigade personnel.

The Army CSF program is "a structured, long-term assessment and development program to build the resilience and enhance the performance of every Soldier, Family Member and Army Civilian," according to Gen. George W. Casey, Jr., Chief of Staff of the Army.

Sherry Page, a Family advocacy specialist from Army Community Services, addressed the brigade on the topic of stress management. She described the types of stress - acute, episodic, and chronic - along with some of the causes of stress. Page said learning to cope is assisted by participating in a regular exercise program, having a healthy diet and by making time to spend with Family and friends. Classes were also offered from ACS on stress and anger management for the Soldiers and Family Members.

"Anger is created through your perception of a situation," said Patricia Ayala, also a Family advocacy specialist from ACS, when discussing anger management. Ayala went on to talk about the causes of anger and strategies for coping with the causes of anger to help keep anger at bay.

"You have to learn to pay attention, to keep yourself from becoming angry, especially if you know you already have a problem with anger," she said.

The components that the CSF program supports are the five dimensions of strength: physical, emotional, social, Family and spiritual. Combining these aspects develops the "whole person," and represents the Army's investment in the readiness of the force and the quality of life for the Soldiers, their Families and Army Civilians.

The Army is currently in phase two of the program, and is implementing CSF throughout the entire force. Phase three comprises program sustainment. CSF training will be provided to the battalions located at Fort Gillem on video to be presented during their next battle assembly weekend.

Colonel Robert A. Warburg, 188th Infantry Brigade commander, added that safeguarding the health of our troops is a mission critical task, and to do that, Soldiers need to continue to take care of their fellow Soldiers and themselves.

The 188th Infantry Brigade, along with the other training support brigades in First Army Division East, provides and facilitates theater-focused training for deploying National Guard and Reserve formations. Based out of Fort Stewart, the 188th has been training deploying National Guard and Reserve units for Iraq deployments continuously since 2003.