BARKSDALE AIR FORCE BASE, La. -- As Airmen, fitness is a way of life. In Basic Military Training, physical training is a constant tool used to turn civilians into battle-ready Airmen.

After BMT and technical school, every Airman is responsible for their own fitness.

Dining facilities and restaurants offer tantalizing menu items, but for Airmen struggling with low PT assessment scores, there's a program available to give Airmen the healthy boost they need.

Amanda Bowman, Health and Wellness Center health promotion dietician here helps lead the Better Body, Better Life fitness program to assist both service members and civilians who want to make better fitness choices.

"The program stresses the importance of taking baby steps and celebrating success," she said. "The program is adaptable so we could bring it into a squadron PT program if they wanted us to."

BBBL features a wide variety of health and nutrition related topics such as meal planning, portion sizes and grocery shopping. Each class focuses on behavioral changes to help participants deal with factors that affect their lifestyle such as stress, hunger and sleep.

The final part of class focuses on workouts for strength training, interval and intensity training among other factors.

"The five-week program is better than a seminar because we cover nutrition and behavioral management," said Bowman. "The class is a lecture and hands-on style. We use the last 45 minutes working out and using what we learned."

Bowman is enthusiastic about the program, but knows the first step is the decision to make positive choices.

"There's no magic pill," she said. "It's all hard work and making consistent good decisions."

After registering, the class takes place at the Chapel 2 Annex from 2 - 4 p.m. every Tuesday.

By making positive lifestyle choices daily, Airmen will maintain good health habits and accomplish the Barksdale mission of protecting our nation and its global interests.