Cpl. Cheops “Juice” Dieujuste(cq), left, does leg lifts during auditions Saturday for “Get Fit at Home,” an exercise program produced by 18th Services. Dieujuste was one of five servicemembers selected to appear in a special segment featuring servicemembers from each branch of the military. (Natasha Lee / S&S)
Cpl. Cheops “Juice” Dieujuste(cq), left, does leg lifts during auditions Saturday for “Get Fit at Home,” an exercise program produced by 18th Services. Dieujuste was one of five servicemembers selected to appear in a special segment featuring servicemembers from each branch of the military. (Natasha Lee / S&S)
Monica Hurst, 43, of Kadena Air Base, Okinawa, throws an aerobic punch Saturday during a tryout for “Get Fit at Home,” a fitness program produced by 18th Services. The show is producing two segments to be filmed next Saturday(May 10) and featured on American Forces Network and the Pentagon Channel. (Natasha Lee / S&S)
“Get Fit at Home” instructor Missy Cornish leads contestants through a warm-up Saturday. Nearly 40 servicemembers and SOFA-status members turned out at Risner Fitness Center, Kadena Air Base, Okinawa, to tryout for spots in two segments. (Natasha Lee / S&S)
KADENA AIR BASE, Okinawa — Dozens of fitness buffs and enthusiasts came to Kadena’s Risner Fitness Center on Saturday to show off their best grapevines and jumping jacks for a chance to appear in segments of “Get Fit at Home” to air next month.
The casting call was to encourage viewer participation and to support May’s Fitness Month.
“If it wasn’t for them, we wouldn’t be here,” said “Get Fit” instructor Missy Cornish.
The exercise program is produced by Kadena’s 18th Services Squadron and has aired daily on the American Forces Network’s Channel 13 for almost a year.
Monica Hurst, 43, said she was auditioning mainly to get a good Saturday morning workout. “I’m not out here for the fame,” said Hurst, who lives on Kadena with her airmen husband. “OK, the inner actress in me is coming out. Once the camera’s on, I’m on.”
Judges were looking for coordination, energy, strength, stamina and — naturally — exercisers capable of sustaining big smiles throughout the 27-minute, intense, aerobic workout. It is TV after all, and for the first time, the program is scheduled to appear on the Pentagon Channel — which broadcasts military news and programming to more than 2.6 million servicemembers and their families at bases throughout the world.
“You’re nervous? There’s a trash can at the side of the room,” Cornish joked before a round of auditioning.
Nearly 40 contestants showed up, the majority of whom were women and avid participants in Cornish’s Turbo Kick classes at Risner. Participants vied for spots on two segments: one featuring SOFA-status members, and a second showcasing the physical training talents of five servicemembers representing each military branch.
Both segments are to be recorded at Risner on Saturday.
Catherine Smith, of Chiban, was coaxed by Cornish to try out after the instructor spotted her lifting weights in the gym.
Smith, who works out five days a week, watches the show but admitted she was nervous about being in front of the camera. “I look at it on TV, and I’m like, dang, they’re really good, and I’m nowhere close to that,” said Smith, whose husband is in the Air Force. “But all I can do is try.”
Despite being outnumbered, the handful of male contestants didn’t appear worried about their competition.
“I have the smile and the energy. We’ll see about the stamina,” said Tech Sgt. Rusty Chase, 33, of 18th Component Maintenance Squadron. “If they’re asking for 200 to 300 push-ups, then we got a problem.”
Push-ups were called for, but it was more like 10. As Cornish demonstrated and called out moves for eight contestants at a time, she and four judges critiqued.
“I was horrible,” said Smith after her tryout. “My legs started cramping, but it was fun. I feel good I did it.”
After a half-dozen rounds of auditions and two hours, the judges made their decisions. All 33 contestants will star in the SOFA-status segment. Only five of the 10 servicemembers who auditioned will be filmed for the military segment.
And there appeared to be no bruised egos. At least not for Airman 1st Class Heather McIntyre, of the 18th Aerospace Medicine Squadron.
“I know I’ll be on TV one day,” she said. “America’s Next Top Model, when I get out of the service.”
