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Five Seasons Sports Club helps 55-year-old member

prepare for duty in Iraq

If you are a 55-year-old grandfather who gets the call from Uncle Sam to serve your country in Iraq, what's your next step?

In the case of banker Rick Rodrigues, you say "yes" and then embark on a regular fitness-training regimen at Five Season Sports Club in Burr Ridge.

Rodrigues and his wife, Lisa, reside in Willow Springs and were already members of the club, which Rodrigues described as a "wonderful resource." But starting in mid-December, about a month after military officials asked him to return to active duty, Rodrigues intensified his focus to prepare for the war-zone rigors he will begin encountering in May as an Army lieutenant colonel.

He is training under the guidance of Five Seasons fitness trainer Mike Padua Jr.

"Mike's young but he knows his stuff," said Rodrigues. "He explains why we're doing what we're doing. I really look forward to my workouts. They've really just made it a lot easier for me to stay on track with my goals."

Rodrigues' focus has been on strength training. He set a goal of doing 50 push-ups and 50 sit-ups in one sitting, up from about 30 for each of those exercises. He said he is "already there" in attaining his push-up goal, and is working toward the sit-up goal.

"Rick is very athletic and began training with a great foundation of strength," said Padua. "He's one of the most determined individuals I've ever met, and it's an honor to help prepare him for his tour of duty."

Much of Rodrigues' training is occurring in the club's newly updated and expanded fitness center. In January, Five Seasons unveiled the $1 million upgrade with a Grand Re-Opening. The club, one of seven Five Seasons sites across the Midwest, first opened in 2001.

Rodrigues reports for duty on April 22, at which point he will undergo three weeks of training at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri and Fort Bliss, Texas. Then he is slated to head to Baghdad. There, he will serve as an operations battle officer, for the Current Operations Section of the Multi-National Force-Iraq (MNF-I) headquarters.

Rodrigues said that while in Iraq, he plans to continue his physical training with a program that Padua lays out for him.

After graduating from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in 1973, Rodrigues served as an Infantry officer for 20 1/2 years and left active service in late 1993.

And when the military in November asked him to increase his service, he didn't need long to consult with Lisa, a fellow California native whom he married in 1973.

"I felt an obligation to step up and assist when the call came," said Rodrigues. "Doing one's duty isn't always about doing what's easy and convenient."

Rodrigues is a senior vice president at First National Bank of Brookfield. The bank's president, Jan Schultz, is also a West Point graduate and has been very supportive of Rodrigues during this transition. On his last day at work, March 20, the bank gave a farewell party to Rodrigues. His deployment will be for 12 months, at which point he plans to return to work at the bank.