Photo By Emily Klinkenborg | FORT CARSON, Colo. — Quintunya Hamilton, right, health educator, Army Wellness...... read more read more
FORT CARSON, Colo. — The Fort Carson Army Wellness Center (AWC) reopened its doors Aug. 10, 2020, to restore BOD POD services to active-duty service members amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.
The BOD POD, an egg-shaped chamber, is a body composition test that uses air displacement to calculate body-fat percentage. This test is the only in-person service the AWC has resumed since March 2020, after delaying appointments for safety concerns.
“We want to get these Soldiers in the best shape they can be,” said Glenus Williams, director, AWC. “We work with the Army Body Composition Program, which requires Soldiers to come to the AWC for counseling and testing, and we have a pretty good success rate of getting them back in the fight.”
Since adapting to virtual care delivery, the AWC staff offers teleconference health coaching and Facebook Live virtual wellness classes to continue services.
The mission of the AWC is to improve quality of life through health and wellness using the Army’s Performance Triad of sleep, activity and nutrition.
All five health educators on the AWC staff are certified personal trainers equipped with various degrees in the health science field. In addition, conducting assessments, health educators, like Quintunya Hamilton, meet with clients to strategize health and fitness goals.
“I love being able to help Soldiers and their Families — really affect their overall wellness,” said Hamilton. “I teach them every aspect that can improve their performance in the Army and at home.”
The continuation of the BOD POD supports unit readiness across the installation by allowing service members to monitor their progress every four to six weeks.
Clients are instructed to fast two hours before their scheduled test, wear skintight clothing and breathe normally while sitting inside the chamber. Clients must also wear a swim cap to capture a more accurate assessment.
The test lasts a total of two minutes. As the client sits inside the closed chamber, the BOD POD changes its air pressure to measure the density of the body to produce fat mass to fat-free mass ratio. The fat-free mass consists of bone, blood, water, organs and muscle.
“Some may say, ‘well, I have a high-speed scale at home’, but that scale is not going tell you how much fat-free mass you have, how much muscle mass and how much water is in your body,” said Williams. “With the BOD POD, we can actually break that down to show if you’re gaining fat, losing fat, gaining muscle or losing muscle.”
The AWC is practicing safeguard protocols to reduce the spread of COVID-19 and is awaiting further guidance from the installation to restore metabolic testing, VO2 testing and biofeedback therapy services. All clients must be enrolled in DEERS and at least 18 years old.
The Fort Carson AWC, located in building 1843, is open 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, but is closed for lunch from noon to 1 p.m. Contact the AWC at 526-3887 to schedule an appointment and follow the AWC on Facebook for more virtual classes.
| Date Taken: | 08.22.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 09.25.2020 15:07 |
| Story ID: | 378706 |
| Location: | FORT CARSON, COLORADO, US |
| Web Views: | 107 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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