“Adapt, Improvise, and Overcome."
That simple phrase has been used the world over by the U.S. military for decades, and perfectly sums up local entrepreneur Lori Patterson, of St. Peters.
From Army veteran to Founder and CEO of her own company and board member of Lindenwood University’s Cheerleading program, it is more than a phrase—it’s a mantra for her business and her life.
Lori’s passion for health and wellness, which is the basis for her business, VicteliB, actually started before enlisting in the Army in 1985. Prior to that, she served as a salesperson at a women’s-only gym, and part of her shift consisted of teaching Group Exercise classes, which, she says, “was the favorite part of my day.”
So, when she was stationed in Germany and her commander asked her to teach group fitness to her battalion, she promptly replied, ‘Yes sir!’
"The troops begrudgingly did it, but then actually started to like it because they could to see results and they saw their Physical Training (PT) test scores go up,” she says.
Fast forward and the idea to combine the science of the fitness and wellness industry with what the U.S. Army taught her, was born.
Boot Camp Challenge® (BCC) is held at various locations throughout the country. "At first, I had my members run two miles for their assessment, because that’s what we had to do in the military. When not one person could complete it, I decided to change it to a one-mile run,” she laughs.
From a young age, Lori, self-admittedly has been an advocate for change—from writing a letter to the Pope of the Catholic Church inquiring why girls couldn’t serve as altar girls (she never did get a response) to questioning the Army about why she couldn’t fly helicopters or drive tanks, she's always been "that girl" that asks 'why not?'
“I always felt that if I couldn’t do something because of my sex, well, that was just wrong. I understand if there are physical limitations, but other than that, it didn’t make sense.”
In 2001, she started Boot Camp Challenge® locally and in 2006, her company, Victelib (named after her three children), took the program to a national level. For more than 36 years, health and wellness have been her passion and she feels blessed to impart it to others.
“I just feel great. Not just physically, but mentally and emotionally. Watching others experience change through moving, became a powerful motivator for me,” she says.
“…it’s what happens on the inside and seeing people feel confident and become stronger…that became one of the most powerful motivators.”
While Lori’s program was ahead of its time in the early 2000s, Boot Camp Challenge® still incorporates principles that differentiate the program from all other “boot camp” workouts;
• It is a whole wellness program that incorporates the physical, emotional, and mental aspects of health;
• The program has the added value of pre-/post-assessments, nutritional counseling and guidance and workouts created to generate true change;
• And the most powerful--the accountability and camaraderie between the participants, the trainers and the entire BCC fitfam.
“I love my campers. I love my trainers. I love running my business. I love being an entrepreneur. As long as I spend time daily on my physical and spiritual wellness and spend time with those important to me, I’m good to go.”
For more information, visit the website at Bootcamp-Challenge.com.