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June 25, 1999 Section: CALIENTE Page: 6E Pre-dawn patrol is on a mission Military-style exercise Ed Severson Slim down, tone up.

Oh yes, and beat the heat. Join a happy-face army. ``Nice easy day in the park, lying around doing nothing,'' observed drill instructor Lorenzo Garza, a former U.S. Army drill sergeant. At a little after 5 o'clock one cool morning last week, Garza was stretched out on the tennis court of a northside park. He held his feet rigidly poised some 6 inches off the cement. Eleven troops, all but one of them women, gamely mirrored his hurts-to-look-at-it pose. ``Get 'em up, get em' up,'' Garza ordered, as several pairs of legs trembled. Welcome to S.W.A.T. - Strength Wellness Athletic Training. A personal fitness company owned by retired master sergeant Ron Holland, S.W.A.T. is offered at Desert Fitness West, 4160 W. Ina Road. It's one Tucson effort to feed the current national appetite for quasi-military, user-friendly, boot-camp-type training. ``This is not about individual exercising,'' Holland said. ``This is group exercise.'' The $125 three-week program, which meets 5-6 a.m. weekdays, is open to both members and non-members of Desert Fitness West. Groups range in age from 16 to 50-plus. ``People get to know each other,'' Holland said. ``Everyone helps each other from the beginning.'' Each session starts with a half-mile run in formation from Desert Fitness to the park. Participants then line up for a series of sprints, stretches and basic exercises such as push-ups, pull-ups and crunches. Plus a few surprises. ``We try to shock the system, so the body won't get used to one thing,'' Garza said. All this is followed by another brisk jog in the early morning air back to the gym. As the one-hour-a-day soldiers trot down the street, Garza calls cadence military style - minus, of course, the lustily off-color stanzas beloved by actual soldiers in days gone by. ``We preach team concepts,'' Garza said.``We only go as fast as the slowest participant.'' ``It helps doing it with everybody,'' said Sharon Pascoe, 45. ``I like the camaraderie and motivation.'' ``It's a neat experience, because we cheer each other on,'' said Lupe Wilkinson, 35. ``If you want to get into training, and you really don't know what it's all about, this is a great starter.'' ``I need the training to go into the Air Force,'' said Wilkinson's daughter, Katie, 15, a Canyon Del Oro High School student. Out on the tennis court, Garza had the group on all fours crab-walking across the cement. In a peculiar way, they all seemed happy. The whole session was liberally seasoned with push-ups, push- ups, push-ups. ``Through this program, I've seen them (participants) advance from barely being able to do a push-up to doing 10 push-ups at a time,'' said Wilkinson, who has exercised for several years. ``I've noticed more change in my body in the last six weeks than I noticed in the last six months.'' ``You get tired of the old aerobics and cycling classes,'' said Julie Dimmick, 41. ``I wanted something different.'' She found it in the army. Clip 'n' Sweat S.W.A.T. boot-camp-style training When: Next group begins Aug. 2. Where: Desert Fitness West, 4160 W. Ina Road. Cost: $125. Three-week program is open to members and non-members of Desert Fitness West. Information: Ron Holland, 744-6340. Tucson Parks & Recreation Fall Basic Training When: 10-week, twice-weekly program begins Sept. 7. Where: Udall Park, 7200 E. Tanque Verde Road. Cost: $18 for 10 classes Information: Julia St. Lawrence, 791-4931. Modified military training classes When: 6-7:30 p.m. Monday and Wednesday. Where: La Mariposa Fitness, 1501 N. Houghton Road. Cost: Classes are open to members; one-month trial membership costs $69. Information: Heidi Kruse, 749-1099. Photos by A.E. Araiza, The Arizona Daily Star: It's crunch time for Tracy Carlin as she does sit-ups along with other members of the S.W.A.T. team. S.W.A.T., or Strength Wellness Athletic Training, is a program at Desert Fitness West. Desert Fitness West instructor Lorenzo Garza, far left, with wife Mary alongside, runs with ``boot camp'' participants.