Brothers in arms: for these military men, physical fitness isn't just a vanity vehicle—it's a means of survival. Read on for their profiles in courage

Men's Fitness, August, 2004 by John Hanc

Mess Tent: Edwards diet is primarily carb-based (but for a weekly high-protein meal). He usually eats a bagel and cereal for breakfast, a sandwich for lunch, and pasta for dinner.

ELI MAYERS, 26

Rank: Chief Warrant Officer 2

Service: U.S. Army

Height/Weight: 5'11"/192 lbs

Hometown: Taylor, Texas

War is hell--on your body, soul, even your training regimen. For his first three months in Iraq, helicopter pilot Eli Mayers could do little more than pushups and situps to maintain his conditioning. It didn't help that his unit--the 4th Infantry Division's 1st Squadron, 10th Cavalry--moved eight times. "We were in every hot spot you've heard of," he recalls. "We spent time in the Sunni Triangle, Baghdad, Tikrit--you name it." This impermanence not only hampered Mayers' training, it did a real number on his taste buds. For four months, he, like all his fighting colleagues, downed nothing but MREs (Meals Ready to Eat), the modern-Army field rations.

He arrived in-country in April 2003, just as the war ended and the insurgency began. Piloting a two-man Kiowa Warrior helicopter, Mayers performed reconnaissance and security missions, and assisted in humanitarian efforts. "The kind of stuff that doesn't always make the news," he says.

Finally, he was at least able to find comfort in routine. Last June, billeted in an old abandoned Iraqi military building, he and a couple of buddies transformed the basement into a weight room. A discarded footlocker became their bench, on which they pressed an old manhole cover. Two columns of concrete blocks piled atop each other, attached by a pipe, became their squat machine. "It wasn't Gold Gym," laughs Mayers, " but for the middle of the Iraqi desert it wasn't bad."

What drove him to go to all this trouble? "I did it to stay healthy" he answers. "I want to be in good shape when I'm 50."

Marching Orders: Now back home at Fort Hood, Texas, Mayers does an hour of PT every morning, shooting for 200 pushups and 20 situps, capped by a two-mile run. Tuesday and Thursday afternoons he swims an hour. Monday and Friday he does four sets each of dumbbell bench presses (chest), machine shoulder presses (shoulders), rope press-downs (triceps), and barbell curls (biceps). Wednesday he does three sets of squats, leg extensions, standing and lying hamstring curls, and seated and standing calf raises. He trains his abs twice daily. "I know it's overkill," he admits, "but I like it."

Mess Tent: Mayers' breakfast is eggs, oatmeal or cereal, toast with peanut butter, orange juice, and fat-free milk. Lunch and dinner usually consists of chicken or steak with a potato or whole-wheat pasta and green beans. Protein shakes fill in the gaps.

AHMADOU FISHER, 28

Rank: Staff Sergeant

Service: U.S. Air Force

Height/Weight: 5'11"/205 lbs

Hometown: Bronx, N.Y.

Ahmadou Fisher pumps iron and has nerves of steel--a asset when you're gassing up planes 30,000 feet over Baghdad. That is the job of an in-flight refueler. Fisher--a member of the 305th Air Mobility Wing--extends a 50-foot-long boom from the rear of us KC-10 tanker plane (a modified DC-10) to the jet or bomber he's refueling. Then he pumps in up to 8,000 lbs of Saudi Soda per minute.