With functional fitness, you don’t just reach your goals. You break your own records.

When Sherita Baker, Air Force Outdoor Recreation (ODR) Manager at Yokota AB Japan, realized it was time to rediscover the fitness that she’d had earlier in her life, she needed a challenge. CrossFit classes were a good start. She found that it helped her challenge herself and create a fitness routine that didn’t just help her at the gym, it helped with her job and her entire life.

“Life,” she says, “Is just as much mental as it is physical. You have to problem-solve on the fly, you’ve gotta’ keep your body strong, and your mind sharp when you’re in those situations.”

If one part of the system falls out of synch, you find yourself less prepared than you may need to be.

Keep challenging yourself, it pays off

CrossFit gave her the push she needed to get started, and the push she needed to expand what she was doing. That’s where power lifting came in. It gave her another way to prepare for life and work.

When Baker had the opportunity to enter a power lifting competition, she decided to go for it. Going into the event her expectations were not high, but as the day progressed her confidence grew. Then came the final event, the deadlift. When they called Baker’s name as the event winner she recalled feeling surprise, satisfaction, and accomplishment. “I went up against myself and won,” said Baker.

As manager of the outdoor rec program, her goal is to help people not just discover fitness, but become lifelong recreators. “Having a middle-aged woman at the helm shows people that if I can do it, anyone can,” said Baker.

Sal Salinas, Air Force Services Center Outdoor Recreation Program Manager endorses Baker’s approach. “Fitness is a lifestyle and should never be a chore, or a burden. There are too many things to choose from when you take your workout outdoors. Find what moves you. This is where Air Force ODR professionals come in. They bring experience, training, and an introduction to a new way of amping up your workout with outdoor adventure and activities,” said Salinas, “our pros empower people to find their own path to recreation and fitness.”

It helps drive home the importance of things like functional fitness in people’s lives. For Baker, work isn’t just organizing events, it’s also organizing the facilities and spaces that her customers visit and team members work in and moving equipment around. Baker needs her body to be every day functional, rather than just specific activities at the gym.

That’s a core part of functional fitness. It’s not just about making sure that you’ve mastered the stair master, it’s about making sure that you’re ready for everything that life throws at you. “You have to support your body and do the things your body requires,” said Baker. “It’s how I get around, how I move equipment, and how I get groceries.” Without functional fitness, you can still do these things, but you hit a point where your body starts to tell you that it doesn’t like what you are doing or that it needs a break.

This is especially true whether you are active duty or a civilian in the AirForce, where the physical demands of the job change all the time. Your body needs to be ready.  And Baker’s job is to make sure that you’re ready.

As the manager of the ODR program on Yokota AB, she doesn’t just plan events. She gets out there with the work team and customers and is helping people challenge their bodies and redefine what fitness means.

Even seemingly chill activities, like paddle boarding require a surprising amount of effort. According to Baker, people are often surprised that they are going to be standing the whole time. “There are assumptions that paddle boarding is chill,” she said. “But it takes a lot of legs and core strength.”

Now is the time to get moving

Baker is busy preparing for activities, but also getting ready to open up new aspects of the ODR program in Yokota. She’s excited about everything that’s happening. Including the unveiling a BeaverFit box at the Natatorium. The BeaverFit is essentially a CrossFit and power lifting gym in a box. The fitness locker gives the community another fitness option for the base and helps promote functional exercising.

Along with all of that, the winter season is not that far away, and plans are already in place. Ski and snowboarding are coming up fast and this year, there is a push to introduce new folks to fun out on the slopes. “We’re going to take a step back and focus on newcomers and beginners to outdoor sports in the coming year,” said Baker, “We plan to get them hooked and keep them moving.”

The more people who embrace functional fitness as a part of their fitness routine, the more prepared they are for everything that life throws at them. Functional fitness, Baker says, helps people make better choices, keeps people safe, and helps them have fun.

“Outdoor fitness is a lifestyle, not just going to the gym,” said Baker. “And we’re here to keep it going.”