Advertisement
Published: September 14th 2009
Edit Blog Post
I thought maybe today would be a good day to start my army physical fitness training. The sun was shining brightly, a slight dew on the grass and an air of excitement amongst my new army buddies. They said it would just be a simple run around the block, so I thought, what the heck. It's all about comraderee and they say if you have a healthy body it leads to a healthy mind.
As we lined up on the road they made the announcement, "faster runners up front." I immediately got in front of the pack becaused I for sure am faster than Davina, in fact, I would classify her in the group that runs for a mile, walks the next 1/2 mile and then loses focus when she passes any kind of roadside kool-aid stand. It's not about the running that intrigues her, it's about the people she meets along the road.
You could feel the energy of the group as everyone anticipated the firing of the starter pistol. I turned to the soldier next to me, "Hey, where you from and what's your..." BANG! The fire flew from the barrel of the gun and then all
Let the run begin
photo courtesy KFOR 12 PAO of a sudden all I could feel was the rush of big legs brushing against me. Next thing I felt was someone stepping on the back of my shoe, I tried to help myself from the impending actions about to happen. But to no avail, my forward momentum got the best of me and the next step I took my foot became seperated from my shoe and I started to tumble and suddenly I was entangled in many feet in a rapid bouncing motion. The cement grabbed ahold of my knee and claimed a chunk of my skin as a trophy, my little hand attracted gravel that quickly embedded itself into the calloused part of my palm.
Within seconds a soldier grabbed me and smiled while telling me, "Let's do this run together, you won't get left behind little buddy." So together we restarted the run. One foot in front of the other. Left-right, left-right. Breathe in through your nose, out through your mouth. Establish a constant beat in your head. Think about something else, don't focus on the screaming pain your muscles are feeling. Enjoy the breeze against your face. Wave to the soldiers along the route. My
Quick! Get out of the way!
photo courtesy KFOR 12 PAO mind was engaged with the reality that army training is not just a simple run every once in a while. It is a holistic commitment that requires the basics of fitness of course, but I might even entertain a change in diet. No more twinkies, no more sunflower seeds, no more double stuffed oreo's. WAIT!... I must be delusional. This running may be all about the right things, but it's most definately not as fun as it looks.
As me and my new running buddy crossed the end point, he gave me a high five and said he'd see me later at taser training. Yup, these soldiers are just the best!
As I put a bandaid on my knee and cleaned up my little boo-boos, I couldn't get my mind off how truly bad I wanted to be a real soldier. I know I'd do a great job at this peacekeeping stuff. Maybe if I keep training real hard my wish will come true. I have nothing to lose. After all, I believe in myself, I believe in the mission in Kosovo and I believe I am going to travel with the best National Guard soldiers in the country.
Gotta go, lots more training going on today...
Advertisement
Tot: 0.129s; Tpl: 0.013s; cc: 9; qc: 61; dbt: 0.0987s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb