Yesterday, the new film Hitman's Bodyguard smashed onto cinema screens everywhere.
The
film features a stellar (albeit very male) cast including Ryan
Reynolds, Samuel L. Jackson and Gary Oldman and follows the story of the
world's best bodyguard who gets a new client – a hit man who must
testify at the International Court of Justice.
We
all love a good action-packed Hollywood blockbuster (especially when
Reynolds is involved), but while actors enact car chases and shoot outs,
real-life security operatives go about their daily lives.
So who are they? And what do they get up? And what we really want to know is, how do these superhuman beings work out?
Polly Wilton, a 35-year-old mother-of-one, is one such operative working for Intelligent Protection bodyguard service.
A
living embodiment of Sandra Bullock in Miss Congeniality (in our
hyper-imaginative minds) this amazing woman has looked after high
profile individuals from the Middle East to the Bahamas. We spoke to
Wilton to find out what a real-life female bodyguard does in a day and
exactly what it takes for her to keep in shape.
Polly enjoys various types of exercise, from running, yoga, weight
training, Pilates, skipping, cycling, hill walking and even paddle board
yoga
She always tries to start the day with some High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) training before breakfast
My second Close Protection tour I did with
the Army, I deployed to Kabul, Afghanistan. Again, I was part of a six
man team (the only female). We were protecting the NATO Ambassador for
Afghanistan, he was the highest ranking NATO civilian in Afghanistan.
Close
Protection in 'civilian life' is very different to working in hostile
environments. Civilian jobs I have done have been mainly for High Net
Worth Individuals and Company Executives
Q. How is it being a woman in a job that we typically think of as being male dominated?
Sometimes
you do feel like you have to prove yourself, as some male CPOs (Close
Protection Operators) may not rate female CPOs. With any job though, it
comes down to your experience, skills, attitude and for this role – your
fitness. Fortunately, the training I received for this role within the
military was second to none and so I am quietly confident in my ability
as an operator. However, being a female in this industry can have its
advantages. There aren't many female operators within the industry and
well-trained female operators can become quite niche and sought after,
some clients stipulate that they only want a female operator.
Q. What is the best thing about your job?
The
best aspects of the job are the experiences that come with them. I've
flown in private jets and helicopters in Afghanistan, seeing parts of
the country that are never seen through the lens of the media and yet
they could rival the Grand Canyon in scenery. I've recently completed a
task doing protective surveillance for Intelligent Protection in the
Bahamas and there I experienced things that I would never have had the
opportunity to do without this job.
For her weekly run, she likes to do at least 10k; she needs to feel like it's been beneficial
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