Written by Staff Sgt. Sierra Fown
2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (AA) Public Affairs
Fort Campbell, KY – The 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) held a “spark your inner fire” workshop, September 30th, at the Family Resource Center here.
The event aimed to educate Strike Family Members on the Performance Triad, an Army-wide initiative to ensure Soldiers and their families are provided tools and information to lead a healthier lifestyle.
Started in 2013 by the U.S. Army Medical Command, the performance triad aims to optimize performance by emphasizing the importance of three components – sleep, activity and nutrition.
The components of the triad have a significant impact on the readiness and resiliency of the Army’s work force.The Performance Triad refers to the family unit as the “total army family,” which applies to Soldiers, retirees, Department of the Army civilian employees, and their Family Members.
According to the P3 workbook, members of the total army family are dynamic individuals who support and serve alongside their service members, and are powerful tools to ensure optimal health and well-being for our force.
Kathleen Whittle, the performance triad team lead, Falls Church, Virginia, hopes the workshop inspired, educated, and excited the Family Members about making small changes in their daily habits that will lead to big changes in their physical, emotional, and cognitive performance.
“The performance triad is designed to encourage small changes that add up to a big difference,” said Whittle. “The simple act of being more self-aware of the choices we make each day encourages one to make healthier choices.”
The P3 team visited Strike this past August, providing training to 2nd BCT Soldiers with the intent that they begin to implement the lifestyle into their units. Whittle and her team hope the spark your inner fire workshop has the same ripple effect on the home front.
“We really want the spouses, family readiness group leaders, informal leaders, and others who participated in the event to take this information and share it with those they lead and those they care about,” said Whittle.
In attendance was Lori Sylvia, wife of Col. Brett G. Sylvia, commander of Strike. Lori Sylvia was the forefront of spreading the word of the event to Family Members. The simplistic nature and easy implementation of the program intrigued her to begin to apply the tools to her family’s everyday lives.
“The coordination of these three elements is the key,” said Lori Sylvia. “Losing weight without proper nutrition will not be effective. Optimal performance at work cannot be achieved without adequate sleep. Feeling healthy in your own skin cannot happen without appropriate activity in your daily routine.”
Sylvia is using the modules taught during the training to begin making small changes in the Sylvia household, which she believes will amount to big differences.
During the training, Whittle encouraged the spouses to do just as Sylvia did; start with small changes for a week, and gage mood and performance afterward.
“P3 is a tool designed to work for everyone regardless of where they are in their health journey,” said Whittle. “Everyone has something they can work on to improve. I would recommend starting out with something you have been wanting to change for a while. Some examples would be going to bed just 30 minutes earlier each night, eating a few more servings of fruit or vegetables each day, or taking a group fitness class at the gym on post.”
For more information on the performance triad can be found on the Office of the Surgeon General website: www.armymedicine.mil/pages/performance-triad.aspx. P3 also has experts embedded here at Fort Campbell, and can be found at Blanchfield Army Medical Center.