Team Building, Seal Style

Corporate team-building activities usually involve bowling or “catch-me-while-I-fall-backwards” exercises, but what about training like the team that took out Osama bin Laden? For five hours, Navy SEAL Experience drives teams of eight or more to do pushups, sit-ups, log lifting, bear crawls, and other strenuous exercises through surf and sand at Kahana Bay.

“If a group of individuals like a small business or a sales team came out and did that together, it would create this intense bonding situation where they would have to rely on each other and they’d motivate each other,” says Matt Strong, owner of Navy SEAL Experience and a SEAL from 1992 to 2003.
Strong says he started his company in September 2010 to bring the toughest workout to regular people. Current workout obsessions like CrossFit and P90X keep you confined in a gym, Strong says, but he takes you outdoors, where there are no soft mats, air conditioning or TVs.

Unlike military drill sergeants, Strong and his team won’t belittle you like a recruit. “The purpose is to build you up, to help you find those breaking points and help you push past them, motivate you to do things you wouldn’t normally do. It’s a very positive experience.”