BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan -- You better make sure you're physically fit - that is the bottom line from Brig. Gen. Steven Kwast, 455th Air Expeditionary Wing commander.
At a location where an enemy attack might happen, and the climate and terrain are demanding, physical fitness is a prerequisite. At a weekly combat orientation here, the general made this clear to several dozen newly arrived Airmen.
Dressed in their Air Force physical training uniforms, this group of Airmen were the first to have their physical fitness assessed as they arrived in the Area of Responsibility to be used as a baseline for progress.
This was not an official PT test but something the general wanted the Airmen to have so they could track their progress as they moved through their deployment.
"I'm challenging you to work out every single day; to make sure you're in shape for whatever comes your way," the general said.
The general equated getting physically stronger with being more mentally acute as well.
"The simple act of working out every single day not only proves and shapes self-discipline and self-control, it makes you a mentally stronger person. It makes you better able to push through mental and physical barriers," the general said.
"You'd better make sure you are physically fit," he finished and walked out of the assembly.
Believing in leading from the front, the general returned moments later, as the Airmen started to assemble for their baseline PT test, in his PT uniform to perform push-ups, sit-ups and run alongside his Wingmen.