Certified Fitness Instructor

Okay so I know that I've been MIA for quite some time and the truth is I've pushed it back further and further thinking about the amount I have to write (a bit overwhelming) but I decided its finally time to update you guys.

Last time I wrote I was in the first week of my course to train me to be a fitness instructor. I have now completed 15 weeks of hard discipline, moving my body more than I've ever had (or wanted to), going to bed at 8 pm every night, and taking orders from 19 year old girls aka my commanders. Before I go onto explain where I am now and how I got there I'll explain a bit how the course worked and what I experienced throughout the 15 weeks.

In relations to exercise, because the course was filled with girls at all different levels of fitness (for example- girls who grew up their whole lives intensely into sports and girls like me...who just learned how to do a proper push up), the course started from the bottom and worked itself up. Because this is the army they had to go by a very strict workout plan that was supposedly supposed to avoid injuries and little by little show improvement. Honestly there were some weeks when we did only 1 or 2 workouts and wondered why they called it a fitness course. A lot of the girls who were used to working out on a daily basis before enlisting actually complained about getting out of shape which was hard to believe. Usually though, we would wake up at 5:30 and have some sort of work out at 6:00 am usually being a run. We were split up into running groups according to our levels. I'm not ashamed to share that I was in the slowest group (slow and steady does win the race after all). We started with running 2km and by the end of the course we ran 6km as a group. For those of you who don't speak kilometers 1 mile-1.6km.

After running our 6km as a course

Because this course also had to train us how to be good instructors, we spent a lot of the course leading work outs to each other. Besides the running we learned different kind of workouts and then took turns leading them to our groups. In the first week of the course we learned 4 different workouts that were usually a mix of strength exercises and aerobic exercises (butt kicks or high knees for example) and then we were each assigned one of the 4 and one by one throughout the course led our workouts. It was really good practice for instruction and speaking in front of a group of people.

Another physical part of the course is something called the bochan maslul which is an army obstacle course that all of the combat soldiers are required to execute. As part of our job we needed to learn not only how to do the obstacles but more importantly how to teach people how to do them. A lot of the placements in the army would involve being the fitness instructor of combat soldiers who need to learn how to pass the obstacles. The importance of the obstacle course is for combat soldiers to be prepared for when they are in battle. A lot of the obstacles are things that could easily be found in natural places and could cause problems such as big ditches in the ground, ropes that need to be climbed, things that need to be jumped over etc. For this reason the soldiers learn how to pass the course so they can know how to deal with the obstacle in real life situations.

The bochan maslul consists of 15 obstacles including a 3.5 meter rope to climb (no knots), a wall taller than me to get over without steps or ledges (obviously never succeeded), monkey bars, a balance beam, and more. From the very first activity we had with the bochan maslul my hatred for it began. It is maybe the single most frustrating thing in the world. We started just learning how to do each obstacle but then we had to do the test twice which is completing the whole course plus a 500 meter run before and after all while being timed and needing to do it under 12:30 in order to pass...yes, it's death. I knew from the minute i saw this thing that they would nto send me to ab ase that requires me to be anywhere near the bochan maslul.

Other than the physical fitness part of the course, there was also a huge section of learning. We started learning anatomy, physiology, and how to be an instructor in the gym including how to build workouts and the different levels of trainees that we might come across and need to work with. In the beginning I majorly struggled with the learning and the tests- 1. I hate tests in general 2. learning science in a language you just started speaking (while never have learned it in English first) is far from easy. By the end of the course I got the hang of it and succeeded in the tests with fairly high grades. I actually really enjoyed learning this material because I see now how useful it can be as a fitness instructor and just in general to have basic knowledge of these subjects.

The days in the course were packed- I was always exhausted and counting down the days until the weekend but I can't deny that it was an experience of a lifetime. Everywhere I go, no matter who I talk to, everyone tells me that in the army the most important thing is the people, who you spend your days with. The course helped me realize how true that really is. I met some amazing people who made the experience that much more fun (and easier). Besides the fact that most of them are at least 3 years younger than me we still keep in touch and get together as much as possible. I was lucky enough to have a few closer to my age--with me in the course there were 7 other lone soldiers also from Garin Tzabar but from different kibbutzim. Although I didn't really know them before the army we instantly clicked as a group of 8 just because it was so easy to relate to each other and to vent to each other in English when we were sick of Hebrew or the Israelis (culture clash got in the way at times). As much as I loved most of the girls I was with having the 7 of them there really helped and they are still the best to vent to even while we are all in separate placements.

The 8 Americans

At the end of the 15 weeks we had a Tekkes Sium Course (ending course ceremony). I was lucky enough to have my parents and grandma fly in in order to celebrate with me. Army ceremonies are very official here and celebrate finishing a meaningful period of time in your service so it was really important and exciting to share the day with loved ones including my grandparents that live here, amazing cousins, and my bestie Marissa who I had the honor of seeing throughout the semester while she was here abroad.. After the ceremony we had what is called "breaking distance" with our commanders. Throughout the 3 months we have been in distance with our commanders meaning they don't laugh or smile in front of us and basically we have a strictly business relationship. We talk to them about things related to the course and that's about it. So after the ceremony they stopped playing the part and let loose so we can get to know the real them a little better. It was weird at first but fun to all be together as a group without all the bullshit.

Group 2 together after the ceremony

A few days later we received our placements. The placement process works in a way that our placement is supposed to reflect our performance in the course- both how we performed physically and as instructors. They try their best to match us with bases that fit how we are as fitness instructors best. For example, if there is an opening for someone to be an instructor in a super elite combat unit, they try to find a girl who is at a fitness level high enough in order to keep up with them and instruct them. When the placement process started I realized that I wanted to be placed in the Air Force. I learned that being a fitness instructor in the Air Force is much more similar to working at a gym or a fitness club and much less army-like. There is a lot more studio work and gym instruction than there is running with soldiers in the fields (no thanks). I luckily got placed in the Air Force and was very relieved and happy to have gotten what I wanted. Out of about 100 girls that took the course 32 got placed into Air Force. We then all got sent together to a two week training to learn specific things we needed to know in order to be fitness instructors in the Air Force. We got certified to be spinning instructors and had a brush up on how to be an instructor in the gym because most of the Air Force includes a lot of gym work. After the two weeks we went through another placement process and finally got our final placements and permanent bases for the rest of our service.

I got placed in a base called Nevatim in the south of Israel next to a city called Arad. It is not far from my Kibbutz which is great and not too far from the center of the country. It is a HUGE base that also has a section where young families live (they are the families of the pilots on the base). Most of the soldiers on the base are technicians that work with the planes but there are also a bunch of logistical workers and others. I spend my days at the Ulam Sport which is like a mini JCC complete with a gymnasium, a gym, and two studios (one filled with bikes for spinning). The Air Force is known for having a lot of money and that is clear by their facilities. It is a beautiful base and a beautiful place to spend the next year an a half. I work with 4 other fitness instructors and a officer who is in charge of us. They are all great and it is a really fun environment to work with. We each have specific groups of soldiers that we are responsible for- we are supposed to make sure that each group comes to do at least 1 work out every week. Sometimes that includes me leading a work out for them and sometimes they want to just come use the fields or the gymnasium to play a sport. Besides that, we also split sitting in the gym when it is open to make sure everyone is safely working out and to help if anyone has questions. At night the place is poppin because everyone has finished their work for the day and they have time to come work out or hang out. Besides the gym being open, we have 2 classes that we teach each night- Zumba, Kickbox, Spinning, Aerobic Dance, Strengething. We split teaching those and since I am still knew I am still learning how to teach some so I haven't started teaching too many of the classes but I am hoping to change that ASAP!So far, everything has been great and I am honestly really loving my new place in the army.

Besides the Army, life is great. I am loving living on the Kibbutz and enjoy being with family when I visit my grandparents. I had an amazing time with my parents and grandma being here and I cannot wait to see them next--when I visit the states in July! More to come soon!

Let the Workout Begin

 Two weeks ago I started my 3 and a half month long course to train to become a combat fitness instructor. Our base is placed in an institute for physical education and fitness located in Netanya about a half an hour north of Tel Aviv. It is a beautiful location with an amazing view of the beach and the base itself is full of amazing facilities. There are around 120 soldiers in the course- 20 boys and 100 girls. We are all split up in to tzvatim which includes around 20 people. When we started the course we met our tzevet and our mefakedet (commander).

                If you ask any former IDF soldier for a tip before enlisting in the army they would probably tell you to never ever ever volunteer. I was told this many times by many people and I still haven’t learned how to stop volunteering. The first second I met my tzevet our mefakedet asked for a volunteer before she even knew our names. After realizing that everyone shot their hands up the minute she asked I reluctantly and hesitantly put my hand up as well. She looked in the complete opposite direction and then out of nowhere pointed to me and asked for my name. She then said I need to change uniform and go do kitchen duty for the whole first day of the course. So…that was a bummer and I think I finally learned why one should never volunteer.

                The first week we had a physical test that is called the Bar Or. It includes 86 sit ups, 48 push ups, and 2k run that you have to do in a certain amount of time. All soldiers in the IDF do this test a couple times throughout their basic training or course in order to keep track of their physical shape and see if they are improving. I passed the test but definitely need to improve and attempt to get more points on my next Bar Or. We learned 4 different types of work outs so far the first week which include different types of push ups, sit ups, and leg exercises. Our mefakedet leads the exercise for us and then teaches us how we would go about teaching it. This week they assigned each soldier in the course one of the four workouts that we have to learn in order to teach to our tzevet next week. I was assigned what is called emun gmishut which is a stretching and flexibility workout. I was a bit disappointed and stressed when I found out because this is the only one of the four workouts that requires the leader to talk the whole time in order to explain how to do each stress and which muscles the stretches work out. For Israelis it might be simple but for me when I am still improving on my Hebrew, it’ll definitely be a challenge.    

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              

                This week we started learning the curriculum for the course starting with two lessons on Anatomy. Normally, the basics of anatomy wouldn’t be too difficult to understand and study, but again, in Hebrew it makes it more of a challenge. Once I get to know all of the words in Hebrew it’ll get easier but for now it is a bit of a struggle. On a positive note, the mefakedet was teaching us the words in Hebrew and also said the science words in English as well. One of the Israeli soldiers asked if we are going to have to know the English words for the test. Her answer was that the English words will be worth bonus points…that ensures me that if anything at least I’ll get the bonus points!

                So far I am really enjoying the course although I know it will probably be the hardest part of my service. I am looking forward to a challenge while learning and getting in shape…more to come soon!

You're in the Army Now

Sorry for the delay of a new post, but I figured it would be easier to wait until I was in the army for a sufficient amount of time in order to adequately express my experience so far. Since I finished basic training this past Tuesday, I figured it was a good time to attempt to share my experience of my first month in the IDF.

I’ll start with the day I enlisted…or actually, the day before my enlistment date. As most of you already know, I tend to be quite the worrier. I worry about everything there is to worry about and everything there is NOT to worry about. For some reason, I had this idea in my head that something would go wrong with my enlistment date, my job, or being in the army in general. I had a feeling that something would go wrong at some point and because of that I was in full panic mode for the two weeks I was in the country before enlisting. The day before my enlistment date I went into the nearest city closest to the kibbutz in order to take care of some last minute things. I was feeling so accomplished and independent when I had finished all I had to do and was back on a bus by 11 am thinking I had the whole day to pack and relax before heading to the army. Of course that didn’t happen, cause ya know things always go wrong at some point. On my bus ride back I got a call from the enlistment office in Beer Sheva (the closest major city to my kibbutz) saying that instead of showing up at the base where I was supposed to be enlisting from tomorrow I had to show up to the office because they are missing something from me. When I asked the man what it was I was missing he answered with “uhh…I don’t know a form maybe? Just bring whatever you have.” These are the experiences that remind me that the army is being run by 18 year olds. Naturally after calming down from panic mode, I made some calls and figured out that I had to go into Beer Sheva (about 45 minutes away from my kibbutz) that day in order to go have an interview that they forgot to give me for the past 2 months I was doing absolutely nothing in the country. I ended up going, doing what I needed to, and getting back to the Kibbutz at around 6pm…so much for having the whole day. Of course it ended up being okay and I enlisted on December 17^th, just as planned.

The day you enlist is by far the most exhausting and boring day one might experience. It consists of standing in millions of lines to do things that take 2 seconds including picture taking for your id, x-rays, finger prints, and the worst and most painful—3 shots and a DNA test. After a whole day of standing in lines we finally got our uniforms and got put on a bus to our base, of course having no idea where that might be. After an exhausting day I was just excited to get on a bus and take a little nap before entering  the army world…guess again…I had already entered without even realizing it. The minute we got on the bus I felt like my whole world changed. The first thing I heard was “phones off! Put the food away! Sit correctly—back straight and hands on your knees…mouths closed!” The 1 hour was spent learning and practicing how to count down correctly for when our commanders give us a certain time to do something. For example if they give us 2 minutes to get into two straight lines we would have start counting down by 10 at the 1 minute mark and do that until we get to 10 seconds. The first person on the right most line would have to “take in” the commander which is pretty much introducing the commander in a formal way. We would have to do that for EVERY thing we did no matter how long the time was. If we were given a 30 minute break we would have to get into position 5 minutes before the time in order to properly greet the commanders.

We learned from the first week of basic training that the next month might not be the most interesting or fun but would help get us used to the army. We woke up every day at 5 am, had to be downstairs ready to check and clean our guns at 5:30, and then had what is called misdar boker at 5:45. Misdar Boker is when the commanders would give you 2 minutes to pack up all of your stuff including your sheets and blankets and organize them in a very specific way. For example, your army bag had to first be against the wall on the bed, then followed by your citizen bag and whatever small bags you had would go on top. No straps from the bag were allowed to be seen and your mattress had to cover the silver edge of the bed frame. The commanders would come in and check that everything was in the perfect order including the towels we had hanging dry on the windows—they had to be in color order so it would look good to the eye, as the commanders would say. After cleaning the rooms and bathrooms and ate breakfast our day would actually start. We would have classes and lectures during the day on guns and other equipment that the army uses that is necessary for all soldiers to be familiar with, such as the walkie talkie radio system that is used to communicate with people while on guard duty.

                As I explained in one of my first blogs on the process of enlisting in the army, I learned very early on that the IDF includes a lot of waiting…that doesn’t change once you enlist. Throughout basic training which is four weeks long I think it’s safe to say that the amount of time we spent waiting is probably equivalent to about a week if all the hours were added up. To go into the dining room we would wait maybe an hour for each meal, to start a lecture we would wait a half hour, shooting at the shooting range would include waiting, as well as getting or returning our guns. Basically, if you’re thinking about joining the army, make sure you don’t mind waiting a bit.

 Although basic training sometimes seemed annoying and unnecessary such as organizing our towels by color, I learned why it’s so important to experience this step before going on with the rest of your army service. You learn all the general information that a soldier in the IDF should know and also how to act as a soldier in the IDF even though it might seem unnecessarily strict. Basic training is meant to shape the discipline of the soldiers in order to prepare them to act the way they should and represent the country the best way they can. Although we killed a lot of time by waiting or doing things I didn’t think were too important , I haven’t stopped feeling proud to be representing Israel from the minute I moved here and even more so from when I enlisted in the army.

After basic training ended we had a bit of a break before starting our course. I know have switched bases to start my 3 and a half month course to become a combat fitness instructor for soldiers in the army. More to come on that in the next post!