Navy SEAL Foundation's Warrior Fitness Program is 'more than just a gym'
Navy SEALs are being given a chance at living fuller, heathier lives after their service.
The Navy SEAL Foundation’s Warrior Fitness Program offers physical and mental coaching for those in need of extra support.
Former Navy SEAL Chris Irwin shared his experience with the program in an interview, telling Fox News Digital he approached the program as a "warrior rehab kind of concept — like a full reset."
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Irwin currently lives in Whitefish, Montana, and spent 14 years in active duty, checking into SEAL Team 5 in 1999.
After six years in the reserves, Irwin went on to pursue multiple careers in health and fitness before joining the Navy SEAL Foundation in 2018, where he currently works as communications director.
The Navy SEAL Foundation’s Warrior Fitness Program offers physical and mental coaching for SEALs who are in need of extra support. Inset: Chris Irwin, Navy SEAL Foundation communications director and retired Navy SEAL (Navy SEAL Foundation)
That same year, Irwin enrolled in the foundation’s four- to six-week Warrior Fitness Program at its East Coast facility in Virginia Beach.
The former SEAL initially joined the program to address a variety of chronic issues related to mental and physical health, he said.
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Navy SEAL Foundation CEO Robin King, based in California, told Fox News Digital in a separate interview how the program works, noting that it's "more than just a gym."
She said, "The Warrior Fitness program is a transformative initiative that the foundation created in combination with Virginia High Performance."
Robin King, CEO of the Navy SEAL Foundation, emphasized that both Warrior Fitness Program facilities are "more than just a gym." (Navy SEAL Foundation)
"It is an intensive program designed to allow our Navy SEAL warriors a space to rejuvenate their bodies, reset their minds and nurture their spirits."
King added, "It is a place where resilience is forged and recovery takes place. It focuses on biomechanics, strength, pain management, memory, cognition, nutrition, education, recovery and community connection."
The program gives Navy SEAL warriors "a space to rejuvenate their bodies, reset their minds and nurture their spirits."
Lodging, travel, meals and other amenities are fully covered.
Participants have considered the program to be "nothing short of life-changing, and sometimes life-saving," said King.
The program resulted from the foundation’s recognition that SEALs needed assistance after active duty, King said.
"After more than 20 years — with the war on terror and what is currently going on in the world and the activity of the SEAL community — we are seeing a lot of traumatic brain injury and the effects of that," she said.
"Throughout their careers, they deal with a lot of blast exposure — and those are often labeled the ‘invisible wounds of war.’"
The foundation's CEO, Robin King, wants other Navy SEALs to know that "we've got room for everybody" in the Warrior Fitness program. (Navy SEAL Foundation)
The program is available for veterans as well as active-duty SEALs who are injured or who are transitioning back into civilian life.
"As they're transitioning out, they're looking at life in a different way," King said. "And so, they're provided all of this education to ensure that they're thinking about their bodies in a different way."
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Irwin said the program takes SEALs through "multiple workouts a day," including a lot of recovery-focused activities.
Participants have the opportunity to use flow tanks for meditation, get massages and receive chiropractic care if needed. They can also consult with a nutritionist on dietary guidance and a cognitive speech pathologist to help with mental functioning, he said.
Participants have the opportunity to use flow tanks, receive massages and obtain chiropractic care if needed, a former Navy SEAL said. (Navy SEAL Foundation)
"It's close to a full-time job for those four weeks," Irwin added.
The program has grown a great deal since Irwin completed it six years ago, he noted.
This includes the 2023 opening of the Warrior Fitness Program’s multimillion-dollar West Coast facility in San Diego, California.
"[It’s] cutting edge, state-of-the-art, top to bottom," Irwin said. "We really wanted to make this as available as we could for guys on both coasts."
"The Warrior Fitness program is a transformative initiative that the foundation created in combination with Virginia High Performance," said the Navy Seal Foundation's CEO. (Navy SEAL Foundation)
While Navy SEALs are known for enduring extremely difficult training regimens, some of them have reported learning new practices and effective workouts through the program.
SEALs "who have been there for 20 or 30 years say things like, ‘I thought I understood working out. I thought I knew about strength training, but what I learned here is just so different,’" King said.
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"If you can learn as much as you possibly can about each little muscle group and … how to open up your spine and your neck, you can relieve a lot of that pain, and that makes a big difference in people's lives."
Irwin agreed that no matter how much training a SEAL has had, those transitioning out can always benefit from new modalities.
Chris Irwin, Navy SEAL Foundation communications director and retired Navy SEAL, said that no matter how much training SEALs have had, they can always benefit from new modalities. (Navy SEAL Foundation)
For other SEALs interested in enrolling in the program, Irwin encouraged them to embrace the "whole body and mind approach."
He advised, "Go in with the mindset of, ‘I'm going to do exactly what they tell me and try to be the best student I can possibly be, and that’s the way I'm going to get the results I'm hoping for.'"
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He added, "I think every single [SEAL] should go through the program at some point in their career."
King emphasized that the foundation is doing its best to ensure that community members and families know that help is available.
"We're always going to be available for anybody who says, ‘I really need a reset on this. I really need to talk to somebody. I really need to go over this particular pain issue I have,’" the foundation's CEO said. (Navy SEAL Foundation)
"The Navy SEAL Foundation is actively pursuing research into any information and treatments that we can bring forward to help this community and guide them through challenging injuries," King said.
Founded in 2000, the Navy SEAL Foundation is a national nonprofit.
Its "mission [is] to provide critical support for the warriors, veterans and families of Naval Special Warfare and our Gold Star and surviving families," according to the CEO.
The foundation has developed over 30 programs to support the needs of Navy SEALs in all stages of service.
For more information on the foundation, anyone can visit navysealfoundation.org.
For more Lifestyle articles, visit www.foxnews.com.com/lifestyle.
Angelica Stabile is a lifestyle writer for Fox News Digital.
