Want to lose weight and improve your park run time like Adam?

Adam has progressed through the ‘ranks’ of British Military Fitness (BMF), becoming a keen advocate for the sessions he enjoys at Southampton park. Here, he tells us why he decided to join, and how BMF has helped him lose weight, gain agility, improve his fitness levels and build a fantastic network of friends.

What made you sign up to BMF?

Before joining British Military Fitness, I had no consistent training programme. I hit parkrun most weeks, running it in around 25-27 mins, and occasionally did some of the 10km road races around the city, at best running them in 53.30 mins. I occasionally went to one of the local gyms but could never really work it into my routine, always putting off going.

I started to increase my training – conscious I was overweight at around 19.5 stone. An old school friend who I ran parkrun with joined me, doing some body weight exercises after running a 5km each week in training for our weekly parkrun. So, essentially, we enjoyed training outside – we arranged a time to meet up, and you had to go to so as not let each other down, and it was enjoyable.

One day when we were out running we saw BMF Southampton training in the park and literally stopped mid-run to watch... I signed up the week after, and my friend a month or two later.

What kept you coming back to BMF classes?

The range of exercises was a phenomenal eye-opener: So many variations of an exercise and different types of circuits got me hooked straight away. I remember on the original health form I filled out, you had to gauge your current fitness level and I wrote that I was quite fit. But I could barely walk the day after my first BMF session!

Having sessions at a set time on a set day enabled me to commit to consistent training. As I started to make friends at BMF, I really tried not to miss a session, as I knew there would be people wondering where I was.

I absolutely love training outside, in all weathers and seasons, and I think this is key to what makes BMF special to me. Whether it's a sunny evening on a freshly cut cricket pitch or with a pitch black 'named-storm' sweeping through the session with sideways rain and gales, I love the variety.

What has your progress been like since signing up?

I stayed a blue bib (beginner level) for about a year, shedding a couple of stone and really benefitting from the warm downs after. My flexibility was absolutely terrible when I joined BMF, and the stretches after each class really had a massive impact on improving my quality of life.

In the New Year I put on a red bib (intermediate level) and tried to attend 4 sessions a week throughout the year. Half way through the year I put on a green bib (advanced level) and continued with my 4 sessions a week, hitting 140 or so in the year.

I was one of those rarer BMF-ers that was strong and really enjoyed running but was much weaker, comparatively, at the body weight exercises. Joining the greens was something that really propelled my fitness forwards. There is such a close competitive group of people within the greens, and the instructors really push you hard.

What changes have you noticed since joining BMF?

I have seen so many changes – I lost over three stone and improved my parkrun time by 6-7 minutes. I've had the confidence to sign up to a few obstacle course races and haven’t really been concerned that there will be anything I won’t be able to do. My flexibility has improved so much – don't get me wrong, it's still rubbish compared to most BMF-ers, but compared to where I was when I joined it is immeasurably better!

The strength and conditioning work we do at BMF has really helped me stay injury free. I run around 30 miles each week, entering a couple of races a month and regularly racing half marathons, ten milers and 10kms. I even ran a marathon earlier this year, which I never would have thought of being able to do only a couple of years ago.

What are you favourite things about the people at BMF?

The best thing about BMF is the network of friendships you make across all levels, immersing yourself with other active, positive people, sharing ideas of events to enter, and going to BMF socials. Quite a few of my friends have now joined BMF as they have seen the positive effect it has had on my life. 

The instructors, who are out there creating new and challenging sessions whilst keeping them fun and the mood positive in all weathers, really makes BMF for me. The group sizes are small enough that the instructors get to know you really well, and know when you are working hard or mincing. I really enjoy run clubs that are organised as an extra weekend session throughout the year, where an instructor has created a route.

What would you say to anyone considering signing up to BMF?

As I've said to many people who have gone on to join BMF (and I would say to anybody at all thinking about it): Go for a trial session, put on a bib and train for an hour and see what you think. Every single session is different and yet tailored to your ability whilst still challenging you. Training is dynamic, exploring different places to train around a whole park. Other members will be chasing similar goals to you and you can really help each other to achieve them more quickly by training together at BMF.

The pull factor – to get down to the park and train with everybody, to see which instructor is there, to see whereabouts in the park you end up, and what exercises are going to be the focus – is massive. Before you know it, you've factored 3 to 5 sessions into your week and the leap in your fitness maintaining this schedule across just six months is massive.

Adam’s instructor Andy comments: ‘Adam has been with BMF for some years and is the biggest advocate for the park. A keen runner, he has worked through the ranks and is in the green group, and has competed in many half marathons and smaller runs. He regularly attends park run, always advertising BMF and encouraging people to give us a try. Adam has also completed many OCR challenges, and gives 110% every session. Through BMF and the endurance sessions we provide in the green group, Adam has gained a lot of strength and speed and has beaten personal bests left right and center.’ Go Adam!