
BMF: Kev's Story #BeBMF
September 21, 2016
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British Military Instructor Kev keeps himself in good shape to ensure he can provide the best BMF class to even to fittest of members. Find out how, and what makes him tick with our Q&A below:
BMF: What were you doing before you started working at British Military Fitness?
Working in a gym & doing Personal Training. Prior to that I was in 3rd Battalion The Parachute Regiment.
I had heard of it whilst serving in the Army and knew that classes took place in my local park in Guildford and thought it would be a great job to do alongside my PT.
BMF: What is it that’s kept you with BMF for so many years?
There are loads of reasons why I love working for BMF but in particular I enjoy training people and I love being outside. The fact that all the instructors are ex military is also a real bonus as we all have a similar sense of humour and can swap war stories all day long! This level of camaraderie shines through in the classes and in the professional manner in which we deliver those classes.
The main similarities from an instructors point of view are that we work in a structured hierarchy, wear matching uniforms and yet still get to have great banter with ourselves and the members.
One of the great things the military aspect brings to BMF members is the massive amount of variety that happens on a weekly basis - many aspects of which come about from military training i.e. log races, stretcher carries, fitness assessments and learning to work as a team.
The high level intensity classes are generally reserved for the red bibs (intermediate level) and green bibs (top fitness level). For the blue (beginner) classes we simply scale things back and ensure that members are able to progress their fitness levels in more controlled classes. The exercises still resemble the military style training that we have all done whilst serving in the forces though as this is the backbone of what BMF is - and it's great to be able to offer something for everyone, no matter what their background or fitness ability.
Working with great people, members, instructors and HQ staff. The social side of BMF is also awesome!
From the outside, a BMF class can seem like a daunting thing to go and join, as you have instructors in military uniform often speaking fairly loudly to a large group of people. However once you actually join in with a class you quickly realise that it’s not at all as bad as you imagined and that actually all of the instructors are very approachable, as are the members, probably because we are all very like-minded. The worst bit of anything is always the anticipation beforehand, i.e the fear of the unknown. This is very similar to military parachuting - whilst you are in the plane waiting to jump nerves will usually be running high, but once you’ve jumped, all those nerves disappear and then you can start to enjoy the experience. This is just the same concept as joining in with your first BMF class. Take the leap!
Like I said before, most people who join BMF have a similar sort of mindset to soldiers and many are keen to get involved with other events outside of BMF. Military style challenges, OCR’s and other races are very popular and it’s great to be able to get people involved with these events as it strengthens the bond between friends. The fact that most of these “extracurricular events” end with a good social and a few drinks is just another one of the brilliant parts of the job. The social aspect of BMF is second to none, we have lots of different aspects ranging from attending races as a group, going for coffee or heading into town for a big night out, there’s something about sharing the feeling of hard physical exercise that bonds people together.
It’s vitally important that I keep myself in good physical shape not only because I am still on the reserve list for the Army but also so that I can set a good example to the members. I train pretty much every day doing a wide variety of activities ranging from BMF classes to gym work and endurance training.
I have competed in many different disciplines such as rugby, running, swimming, CrossFit, Powerlifting, and military style races - some of which I still compete in now. In the Paras, being unfit is not an option! Keeping fit shows a good level of self discipline and I try to have that rub off on my members. The fact that I love training makes it easy to stay in good shape.
Too many to mention! Some that come to mind are when people join beacause they have signed up to do an OCR but have not done any exercise in years, then 6 months later they will have zipped around a race somewhere, covered in mud and sweat and absolutely loved it. They always say how they could not have imagined ever doing something like that previously.
Health & Fitness in a fun and enjoyable way
Occasionally you might think, "thank God that’s over!" (and a few hours later still feel buzzing about finishing a tough class!) But generally it will be a feeling of elation due to the endorphin release that is associated with hard exercise. You will also often feel a good bond towards those that you have trained with - the social part of training is something that really helps people come back week in, week out, no matter what the elements throw at us.
Just come and give it a go.
If you don’t like it, all you have lost is an hour, but if you do then it could change your life for the better forever.
Find your nearest class and sign up for a free trial at britishmilitaryfitness.com