thedrifter
01-02-07, 08:12 AM
Marines Strengthen Mind, Body and Soul With Combat Gymnasium
by Cpl. Ray Lewis
Marines here have found a new way to strengthen mind, body and soul.
Marines of I Company, 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment use a makeshift gymnasium here to workout after conducting combat operations in a nearby city.
"It's a good gym," said Pfc. Jason A. Gaioni, a mortarman assigned to I Company.
"If you know how to use the gym, you can get stronger; you just need the motivation to get in there."
The combat gymnasium contains free weights, suspension systems and a bench press machine.
Marines think the gym is a great place to free their mind, said Gaioni, a 19-year-old rifleman from Fredericksburg, Va.
"It's a good escape from stress," Gaioni said. "All you do here is go on post, patrol and sleep, so you need to exercise and work out."
Gaioni has a fiery passion to get bigger, so he just goes into the gym and "burns out."
"After the workout, I feel loosened up and 'chill,'" Gaioni said.
The gym is just plain fun for some, but for others it's a must stop.
Marines have to build their body, said Lance Cpl. Daniel A. Ponce, a squad automatic weapon gunner assigned to I Company.
"You need to be strong because on patrols you carry a lot," said Ponce who carries a M-249 SAW, a 17-pound weapon, on top of his other 50 pounds of gear.
So Ponce and other Marines also do a lot of calisthenics and push-ups within the confines of their combat outpost, said Ponce, a 19-year-old rifleman from Brooklyn N.Y.
Ingenuity is what Ponce and others know.
Prior to the combat gym, Marines worked out on almost anything.
Some used a pull-up bar made from a hard plastic bar and green synthetic "550" cord, said Lance Cpl. Joshua T. Potts, a mortarman from I Company.
"Before we had the weight set, we had the pull-up bar," said Potts, a 31-year-old rifleman from Boca Raton, Fla. "The pull up bar moves when you grip it but it"s good for your wrists. You got to grip it a little harder than a normal bar."
Potts wants to get used to doing pull-ups. The Marine Physical Fitness Test includes 20 pull-ups along with a 100 sit-ups and a three-mile run.
"We have to do a PFT when we get back," Potts said. "Plus, I'm going to mortarman leadership course a month after we get back. It's a lot of PT; I might as well be ready. Plus, I'm a Marine, right?"
Ellie
by Cpl. Ray Lewis
Marines here have found a new way to strengthen mind, body and soul.
Marines of I Company, 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment use a makeshift gymnasium here to workout after conducting combat operations in a nearby city.
"It's a good gym," said Pfc. Jason A. Gaioni, a mortarman assigned to I Company.
"If you know how to use the gym, you can get stronger; you just need the motivation to get in there."
The combat gymnasium contains free weights, suspension systems and a bench press machine.
Marines think the gym is a great place to free their mind, said Gaioni, a 19-year-old rifleman from Fredericksburg, Va.
"It's a good escape from stress," Gaioni said. "All you do here is go on post, patrol and sleep, so you need to exercise and work out."
Gaioni has a fiery passion to get bigger, so he just goes into the gym and "burns out."
"After the workout, I feel loosened up and 'chill,'" Gaioni said.
The gym is just plain fun for some, but for others it's a must stop.
Marines have to build their body, said Lance Cpl. Daniel A. Ponce, a squad automatic weapon gunner assigned to I Company.
"You need to be strong because on patrols you carry a lot," said Ponce who carries a M-249 SAW, a 17-pound weapon, on top of his other 50 pounds of gear.
So Ponce and other Marines also do a lot of calisthenics and push-ups within the confines of their combat outpost, said Ponce, a 19-year-old rifleman from Brooklyn N.Y.
Ingenuity is what Ponce and others know.
Prior to the combat gym, Marines worked out on almost anything.
Some used a pull-up bar made from a hard plastic bar and green synthetic "550" cord, said Lance Cpl. Joshua T. Potts, a mortarman from I Company.
"Before we had the weight set, we had the pull-up bar," said Potts, a 31-year-old rifleman from Boca Raton, Fla. "The pull up bar moves when you grip it but it"s good for your wrists. You got to grip it a little harder than a normal bar."
Potts wants to get used to doing pull-ups. The Marine Physical Fitness Test includes 20 pull-ups along with a 100 sit-ups and a three-mile run.
"We have to do a PFT when we get back," Potts said. "Plus, I'm going to mortarman leadership course a month after we get back. It's a lot of PT; I might as well be ready. Plus, I'm a Marine, right?"
Ellie