Military Monday: Fit For Service

 

Welcome to another Military Monday! Upon marrying a military man I learned that there is a LOT to know about life as a military spouse. Mondays are my day to talk about the things I am learning, the new language, military news and current events. Sometimes I post encouraging videos, stories, and cartoons as well. Today I want to talk about being fit to serve. 

In the military community a huge emphasis is placed on the physical fitness of our servicemen and women. Here at Fort Bragg, soldiers have to be able to run well, carry a massive ruck, absorb the physical shock of an airborne mission... and then be able to actually do their job. The Army (and other branches of the military) carefully plan and execute training opportunities to help the soldiers to be as ready as possible for the tasks to which they are assigned. Accountability is available for soldiers that struggle with the discipline of physical fitness. All of this is put in place to keep our service members fit for service. 

 But what about the families?

This is usually the point where I lose people.

The soldier is in the service and should be fit to serve.

Why does the spouse need to be?

 Can I let you in on a little secret?

Service members have to be gone often. Whether it is TDYs, deployments, or just being in the field our soldiers are often gone more than they are home.

So what does that have to do with fitness? 

When your spouse is gone over Christmas, can you get the decorations down from the attic? If you have to PCS while your soldier is en route to a training or coming home from a deployment, can you lift your furniture? When your three year old wants to play airplane like Daddy does, do you have the arm strength (let alone the midline stability) to do it? How about your overall general health? Are you having to go to the doctor over and over again for colds, aches, and pains? 

Military spouses absolutely serve their country, there is no doubt about it. Sacrificing holidays, first steps, last days of school so that your spouse can serve our country isn't easy. But it is a whole lot harder when you physically can't take care of yourself.

The word "resiliency" is thrown around a lot in our world.

We are told often to bounce rather than break.

I think the first step towards this goal is teaching military spouses how to take care of themselves through fitness and nutrition. Only when these spouses have the tools and understanding to achieve true health and fitness will our whole military family truly be fit to serve.