Bliss FMWR Group Fitness gets students to the ‘Next Level’

Photo By David Poe | An FMWR group fitness class student at work at the Sgt. Joshua W. Soto Physical Fitness Center at Fort Bliss, Texas, Dec. 3, 2019. (U.S. Army photo by David Poe)  

FORT BLISS, TX, UNITED STATES

12.03.2019

Story by David Poe  

Fort Bliss Public Affairs Office

“When I get high, I get high on speed
Top fuel funny car's a drug for me
My heart, my heart
Kickstart my heart”

A guitar-heavy, 1990s rock track swallows the family fitness room at the Sgt. Joshua W. Soto Physical Fitness Center at Fort Bliss, Texas, Dec. 3, 2019.

Group fitness students climb stairs while toting heavy bags, push gliding pads in grueling 50-yard lengths and lift barbells with squared-off weights on the ends that make the exercise tools look more like daunting machine parts than fitness tools.

This sweat factory is the weekly Next Level fitness class offered by FMWR Group Fitness.

Instructor Chris Najera teaches the hard-edged cross-training class Tuesdays at Soto from 11:15 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.

Well north of six feet tall with a barrel chest and arms, Najera could double as motorcycle club muscle, but at Soto, his MC is about motivation and his affable demeanor makes him an ally for students. Quick to deliver a high-five, Najera also seems relatable to the students because he goes through the exercises during Next Level right alongside them, taking him back to his days working in commercial gyms when he decided to take his first group fitness class and he became hooked.

“Whether it’s the lifts -- the squats -- it was good to know that it wasn’t just me,” he said of the group fitness dynamic. “It’s never really a solo thing -- we’re all doing this together -- we’re all in the same boat. Let’s keep trucking.”

Although Next Level is full of individual challenges, an observer can quickly see that it indeed takes the group to see the individuals through.

Friendships made amongst the toil lead to encouragement to push through the hard edges of the class; the running with sandbags, the push-ups with legs propped up on the window sills lining the room. Najera said one of his hopes about teaching Next Level is that the students take a little bit of it into their afternoons.

“Whether my classes are teambuilding and they can bring a bit of what they did back to their unit -- not only in terms of exercise, but just being together as a group -- it’s great to hear that,” said Najera, who has been teaching at Bliss for a year. He added that he hopes Next Level encourages students to positively push themselves in other areas too, such as good nutrition and doing the best they can in terms of diet throughout their days.

Despite the feats, the class isn’t made up of special operations commandos or ultra-fitness junkies. The students seem to cover a lot of fitness levels and Najera said even with their inclinations to support one another to conquer the hour, there’s also healthy competitiveness among them.

“With this class, we’re pretty comfortable with each other,” he said. “It’s almost at a competition point. I’ll post the workout [and we’ll look at each other] and say ‘okay, I have you for the first few rounds, but I know you’ll catch up with me in the last couple of rounds.’ At this point, we know each other so well. To do stuff like that you have to have a spirit for not only fitness, but taking it to the next step -- pushing it a little further every single time.”

As the hour comes to a close, the exuberance and high-fives have dwindled into fulfilled quiet as the students cross their own finish lines of accomplishment. Najera said the group didn’t reach their fitness goals overnight and there’s definitely a place for the newbie at Next Level because, at one time, everyone was at a previous level.

“For the new person, I’m always going to be right there with them, step-by-step,” he said. “It’s not always fun to be on your eightieth deadlift and crack a smile -- it’s tough -- but we’re all in the same boat and no one finishes alone. We’re always a team.”

For more information about FMWR Group Fitness classes at Bliss, visit www.https://bliss.armymwr.com/programs/group-fitness.

• Date Taken: 12.03.2019
• Date Posted: 12.16.2019 16:37
• Story ID: 355897
• Location: FORT BLISS, TX, US
• Hometown: EL PASO, TX, US
• Hometown: LAS CRUCES, NM, US