The SHAPE of things to come

  • Published
  • By Nick Stubbs
  • 6th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
MACDILL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --  Failing to meet Air Force fitness standards will get Airmen a lot of attention starting April 1. Not to worry, though, as that attention will be positive, personal and will demonstrate the kind of caring that can turn one's life around.

Superior Health Assessment Program Enterprise is a new system of education, monitoring and scientific methodology that will be employed as part of the new Fitness Improvement Program spearheaded by Col. Lenny Richoux, 6th Air Mobility Wing commander.

Any Airman who fails any portion of their fitness test will be automatically enrolled in SHAPE, which is operated by the MacDill Health and Wellness Center. Unlike the approach in the past in which those who failed fitness tests were briefed in a group, classroom setting, SHAPE will take on each Airman in need as an individual client, with each getting personal attention in private 30-minute sessions with a fitness or diet expert at the HAWC.

"This is a commitment to caring from the HAWC and Colonel Richoux," said Joan Craft, HAWC director. "This kind of personal attention to the idividual and their problems is where caring starts."

It also is how real success is achieved, she said.

The personal approach ensures each individual's needs are assessed and addressed. There are three "tracks" in the program, track 1 dedicated to diet to tackle oversized waistlines. Track 2 deals with running and endurance, and track 3 addresses the pushup and crunch requirements of the fitness test. An Airman may participate in one or more tracks through SHAPE, depending on how they did on their fitness test.

Track 1 will be the most intense, said Ms. Craft. Participants are first tested to determine their metabolic rate, followed by body fat analysis. Based upon the results, a diet plan is adopted and monitored weekly. As with all SHAPE tracks, or any combination of simultaneous tracks, the program involves just one 30-minute session a week. Airman stay on the program until they can pass their fitness test, but the goal is to be enrolled in SHAPE for no more than three months, said Ms. Craft.

Most of the weekly sessions involve monitoring and assessment, with adjustments to the individual's needs. While the program has yet to prove itself, it is based on sound science and psychology, and is a vast improvement over classroom sessions, said Ms. Craft.

"Fitness and weight problems are very personal and people are reluctant to talk about them in groups," she said. "With (SHAPE) coaches assigned to individuals, there is a high level of personal attention and communication."

Ms. Craft went on to say that she is confident Col. Richoux's wing fitness goal of "100 percent test; 100 percent current; and 100 percent pass will be achieved with SHAPE.
The HAWC will continue its Monday "Be Well" fitness recovery/improvement program for other service branches, as SHAPE will apply only to 6th Air Mobility Wing Airmen.