Page 46 - Mind, Body & Spirit Number 104 2020/21

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4Scots were due to deploy on ‘Op Toral 10’ on the 1st April 2020, however with the COVID-19 isolation period it was delayed for 2 weeks isolation on Warcop camp; a truly
amazing start to the tour. Nevertheless, with individual training programs available and 2 weeks of isolating this created lots of time for soldiers to start yoga and mindfulness sessions; this set the tone of what was to come...... isolation periods!
As the THOR Forward ERI the unit and myself had discussed that it would be most beneficial deploying the ERI as both the mainstream and ERI role. This proved vital through injury prevention sessions and it was apparent an RAPTCI presence had been missing with the main battle group for a while.
With the restrictions COVID-19 put upon the tour, there were many soldiers sent to Isolation, where space and equipment was very limited. Many had to endure 4-week stints in isolation, which was fantastic for weight loss, but did put a strain on morale; by adapting training sessions this enabled the force to stay relatively sane! As with many previous tours ‘Op Massive’ was in full effect and extremely popular. Although equipment was very restricted, and social distancing firmly in place, sensible and controlled
hypertrophy programs were set out to enable novice lifters to progress safely; with the introduction of Ronnie Coleman as motivation, many screams of “Light Weight Baby” were heard before a PB roared.
Throughout the tour I was able to work with coalition forces from the physios and doctors in the Danish and American Army and also rehabilitate soldiers in the Estonian and Australian Army. I found them very keen to learn and develop, taking in a lot of the injury prevention sessions; with a bit of help from the linguist they even managed to understand my dulcet brummie accent. Over the course of the deployment, MSKI’s were virtually non-existent (except a few sprained ankles). This was due to the correct training methodology and sound education, which meant soldiers were developing into all round warriors; this was truly amazing to see!
It proved a challenge on Op Toral 10 to keep morale high whilst soldiers were restricted to minimal taskings. Many of the soldiers carried out a variety of charity events, and with Padre Ivan Linton completing the simulated climb of Afghanistan’s highest mountain wearing body armour, it was great to see the support of the whole battlegroup encouraging him to complete this arduous challenge.
4 SCOTS, FORWARD ERI, OP TORAL 10
Sgt (SI) J Hull RAPTC