Marching to fitness in Bradford parks (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

T&A reporter Hannah Baker gets in shape

8:14am Tuesday 23rd August 2011 in Health Features By Hannah Baker

Running up hills backwards, churning out press-ups in a muddy bog or squatting until your thighs start to burn may not sound like much fun after a day at work – but thousands of people are turning out in parks across the country to experience the tough but rewarding regime that is British Military Fitness.

It didn’t take me long to become addicted after the company started sessions in Bradford’s Peel Park just over a year ago.

Led by former or serving members of the armed forces, the classes are a continuous hour-long work-out combining cardiovascular and strengthening exercises that use almost every part of the body.

Participants wear different coloured bibs depending on their fitness level: blue for beginners, red for the moderately fit and green for the super-athletic.

I was pretty nervous before my first session, thinking it would be some sort of military boot camp and I would be yelled at if I couldn’t keep up.

But while some instructors do take themselves very seriously indeed (I’m thinking of a former Royal Marine here) their role is to motivate rather than humiliate, and people of all abilities are welcomed and catered for.

Every class is different, but all start with a ten-minute warm-up, which can involve running in circles punching the air, repeatedly lying on the ground and standing up, swinging your arms around, passing an imaginary rugby ball from side-to-side or kicking your legs up as high as you can.

After that, we are usually sent sprinting around a goalpost or a group of trees before the class jogs off, in two ranks of course, to another part of the park for the hard work to begin.

Many of the strengthening exercises involve pairing up with a partner of similar ability. One person kneels down while the other stands behind, providing resistance as their partner tries to push up with their hands, or one person pushes their fists against the other’s palms while standing face-to-face to each other.

We’ve also lowered ourselves into the squat position while standing back-to-back with a partner and then shuffled around in a circle and arm-wrestled while lying on the ground.

Another favourite is simply trying to pull your partner towards you while they attempt to pull you in the other direction.

Most sessions include circuit exercises – press-ups, short sprints, star jumps, sit-ups and dreaded burpees (crouch, push out with the legs and jump up). But classes are also a sort of fun, adult playtime.

I’ve crawled between people’s legs, leapfrogged over their backs, ‘monkey’ run across a football pitch and jumped over feet. We’ve also played tig, cat-and-mouse and competed in teams to see which can be the first to create different letters of the alphabet by lying on the floor.

Once a week, a running club for people wanting to improve their cardiovascular fitness is held in addition to the normal session. The emphasis is on improving speed, so rather than a continuous run around the park for an hour, the class usually involves lots of short bursts of sprinting interspersed with slow jogs and medium-paced running.

Being held outside, BMF can be challenging, particularly during the winter. I’ve come home covered in mud after doing sit-ups in the dark or with wet clothes if there’s been snow on the ground.

But after spending most of the day in an office, I enjoy the chance to do something out in the open, even if it is pouring down with rain and I can barely see a few feet in front of me.

BMF was founded in 1999 by a retired Army major, and there are now around 20,000 people taking part in classes in 110 parks.

Around 60 participants, aged from late-teens to late-50s, come from across the district to the Bradford sessions, held on Mondays, Wednesday and Saturdays. One of the reasons for its popularity is undoubtedly the fact that it works.

I opted for a blue bib at my first class, but moved up to red within a few weeks. In the nine months I’ve been going I’ve become fitter and stronger and my breathing (I have asthma) is much improved. I can now run for a bus without having to worry about needing to take my inhaler.

“It’s fun and it’s achievable,” says BMF Bradford park manager Mark Simmons, a personal trainer who served in the Army for 20 years.

“You always get a good work-out whether you are a beginner blue or an advanced green or in between. There’s something for everyone here. The instructors motivate you. If you go to the gym you do what you want, not what you need.”

* For more information, go to britmilfit.com.