Husband and wife balance military fitness Published Oct. 28, 2008 By Airman 1st Class Robby Hedrick 75 Air Base Wing Public Affairs HILL AIR FORCE, Ut -- Every Tuesday and Thursday, a group of people gather in a small workout room tucked beneath the staircase at the Hill Air Force Base Warrior Fitness Center, bending, stretching and contorting their bodies in unusual ways in an effort to calm their mind and body. They are led by a husband and wife duo that have been practicing yoga, a Hindu discipline aimed to promote control of the mind and body, for many years and have been teaching the past three. Leslie Koch, who began studying yoga almost 30 years ago during college, found it a way to clear his mind and a simple way to relax. "I first tried yoga in college when I needed a break from my studies," said Mr. Koch. "Yoga was perfect because I could take a break from a challenging calculus problem, do a few yoga moves and get out of the brain fog. I would feel refreshed and ready to hit the books again." His wife Laura began practicing nine years ago to round out her fitness abilities. "I was already swimming, lifting weights and doing cardio exercises," she said. "I had strength and endurance and but I wasn't necessarily flexible and therefore not totally fit." After years of study and serious training with various masters across the United States who regularly travel back and forth to India, they decided to begin teaching others. So they began their studies to become instructors by studying anatomy, movement, kinesiology, and yoga history and practices. Teaching here allows them a chance to improve themselves as well as the active duty, civilian, dependent and retiree personnel on base. They both believe that teaching allows them to learn about themselves as well as those around them while improving the minds and bodies of others. The physical benefits of yoga provide people with improved balance, flexibility, increased range of motion and increased strength, but it doesn't end there. Practicing yoga is believed to help improve performance in other activities by increasing body awareness and mental relaxation. "Immediate benefits are obvious in the feeling of well being after class," said Mr. Koch. "Although it continues through the body as one's flexibility and strength increases, benefits in other activities can be seen as well due to increased body awareness." Mr. Koch, a retired lieutenant colonel, knows how these benefits can help an Airman with the 'Fit to Fight' motto and in everyday life. "From personal experience, I'd say practicing yoga reduces stress and helps keep the entire body in shape," he says. "Also, many of the series we do in class work and tone the abs and upper body, so the sit-up and pushup portion of the Air Force Fitness test can be much easier." However, everyone can benefit from yoga training by using it to warm-up or cool-down after exercise and stretch tense muscles, such as the hamstrings and lower back. "When we lift weights we cause tears in the muscle fibers. When we stretch out and extend those muscles, it allows more blood to flow to those areas and aids in recovery," Mrs. Koch said. The class is for people of all skill levels and abilities, where the focus is on what the practitioner is doing and feeling and not what his neighbor is doing, the couple says. While the physical and mental benefits are numerous, the class also offers the opportunity to meet new acquaintances and cultivate established friendships as a group of people bending and twisting their way to a better life. To get more information about the classes, contact the Koch's at yogafitness1@yahoo.com.