Local Marine using boot camp training to change lives

CHICAGO (FOX 32 News) - Not many of us have what it takes to survive a military boot camp but that's not stopping many Chicagoans from trying.

That's because one former Marine is taking his boot camp experience and turning it into a gym that's changing lives.

For Chris Brown, being a Marine changed everything. It taught him some of life's most important lessons and gave him strength to succeed in this world.

Now, he's taking that strength and passing it on in his new gym on Chicago's South Side.

“Semper Fi.” Always faithful.

For Brown, that’s not just something he and his fellow Marines say – it’s a way of life.

Having served in the Marines from 1995 to 2003, Brown is now taking that “Semper Fi” lifestyle and applying it to his South Side gym, giving him the appropriate title “The Boot Camp Guy.”

From sprints to spin to kickboxing to even an actual obstacle course, this shade of military training is not your average gym on the corner.

It’s not about yelling, screaming and intimidation – it’s about taking the lessons Brown has learned in the Marines and applying them to civilians.

But that doesn’t mean he’s taking it easy on anyone. The group can only go as fast as the slowest person in the room.

Brown is on to something – he knows what it means to be a leader, to inspire and to drive people to places they never knew possible.

That, and complete and total honesty.

Oo-rah.

For more information, visit Brown’s website at TheBootcampGuy.com.