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Healthy Nutrition Tips for the Firehouse (or any house)…
Cooking in the firehouse for a bunch of hungry firefighters is not easy, trust me I know. In most cases we sacrifice health for taste to avoid complaints and heckling. But, in order to change the culture of the fire service (to a healthier one) cooks and food choices need to get better. Here are 3 easy and healthy tips that can help. 1. Assemble 5 simple and healthy recipes that can be easily tweaked to create different dishes.– Learning new recipes are fun but isn’t best done in a busy firehouse. We all know, the more times we make a recipe, the faster, easier and possibly healthier it gets–It becomes a routine, like putting on your gear. There are a lot of resources to find healthy recipes, pick some out and use them as your staples. Need some extra guidance on nutrition? Get into “Ultimate” shape with this program…Eating…
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5 Steps to Getting Fire Rescue Fit.
The FRF Fit for duty Challenge just wrapped up and the winners have been announced. You can find out and read their amazing fitness journeys by clicking here… This year there were over 100 submissions from firefighters, EMTs and medics from all over the world (the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand) that made some great fitness progress and helped change their lives with improved health and fitness. You can click here to read their stories. Reading all these stories is both humbling and motivating! My mission with Fire Rescue Fitness is to educate and motivate 100,000 firefighters, EMTs and medics to get “fit for duty.” Each year after the Challenge is completed I feel like I/ we (the FRF nation included), are getting there but there are still a lot more work to do. It prompts me to ask pondering questions… Why do many people that want to…
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Unilateral Training- One Great Way to Improve Firefighter Performance…
Unilateral training (one weight) is very beneficial for firefighters, EMTs and paramedics. The fire-ground can be very unstable– icing conditions, high steps, inclines, all create challenges for the fire rescue athlete. To combat these unstable conditions you should be using unilateral training exercises. While training with both sides can be better for the ego by lifting heavy weights, unilateral training will balance your muscles and help you perform better on the fire-ground. Here is a great video explaining how easy it is to incorporate unilateral training into your firefighter workout program. Take a look. A great way to incorporate a functional exercise is to use a foam bucket (filled with water) and carry it for a prescribed distance or up stairs. This unilateral carry with a full bucket really requires some great core stability and balance. Give unilateral training a try, substitute certain traditional exercises with their unilateral counter…
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5 Simple Stretches that Improve Fireground Performance
Stretching and flexibility are often taken for granted. The older I get (over 40) the more I realize how valuable the flexibility and mobility components of a workout are. Often skipped, I believe that a solid flexibility program (active warm-up, stretching and foam rolling) can greatly improve your performance on and off the fire ground. Today I wanted to give you a 5 Simple Exercises that can improve your performance. These exercises can be performed at the completion of a workout or a shift or even during your shift. You want to hold each stretch for at least 15 seconds if not 30 seconds. Repeat the circuit as many times as possible. Remember to breathe and maintain good posture throughout each stretch and don’t force the stretch. Ease into each position and if it hurts…stop. Here is a video overview of the stretches. Here are the individual Stretches. Downward…
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Firefighter Fitness- Do this to take your workout to the next level.
Now, as you probably know from reading my previous blog posts that I think that interval training is very applicable to what we do on the fire ground. A unique component that I’ve added to my workouts is a 10-minute Interval Overhaul. These interval Overhauls are a combination of exercises that challenges the total body, allows me to work on firefighter skills and simulates work on the fire ground. And they really “jack-up” my metabolism too! I challenge you to try one at the end of your next workout. Here is an example of an Overhaul I did after my strength workout the other day: I performed each exercise 3 times for 30 seconds with 30 seconds of rest. Then for the last minute I held a plank. The exercises I used were: -DB Crawling -Floor to ceiling press (try with about 25% of your bodyweight) -Medicine ball slams Then…
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Vote for the 2018 Fit for Duty Champion…
Congratulations to all the 2018 FRF Fit for Duty Challenge participants! This year over over 100 Firefighters, EMTs and Paramedics entered their results. There were many inspiring results and stories showing how the Fire Rescue Fitness Workouts have helped change lives and careers. Most importantly, our hope is that these results will help motivate more fire rescue athletes to join the FRF nation and change the fitness culture of the fire service. Please read and share these awesome transformation stories. And, please comment with your thoughts on the winner, 2 through 5 places who was the most inspiring. You can also vote by “liking” the athlete on our FRF Facebook Page (click here). Voting ends on May 5th (midnight-cst). Winners (final spots) will be announced May 7th. Here are the Top entries (listed in random order) in the 2018 FRF Fit for Duty Challenge. (Your comment, like and share counts as…
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Crew Workout Option for Firefighters, EMTs and Medics
Great Crew Total Body Challenge Workout for the Firehouse (or any gym). Here is a great assessment and/ or workout to challenge your entire body. The workout does not require a lot of equipment so you can do it at the firehouse (or your house). You can substitute these exercises if you want based on your available equipment. You must perform the active warm-up first. This warm-up will increase your core temperature, improve range of motion and get you ready for the workout. (Click here for a quick overview of the warm-up exercises). Perform 2 circuits of the following 5 exercises: 1. Chops (5-10 reps) 2. Knee Hugs (5-10 reps each) 3. Spidermans (5-10 reps each) 4. Knees side to side (5-10 reps each) 5. Quadraped Rotations (5-10 reps each) After completing the warm-up go right into the workout. The goal is to perform as many reps as possible of…
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Firefighter Flexibility Hacks to Improve Performance and Feel Better..
Attention firefighters, EMTs and medics. Stop neglecting your flexibility! I know its easy to skip your stretching and flexibility exercises. So, here are some easy “hacks” to help you incorporate more stretching into your workout and day. These will help you move better, perform better and ultimately could help you save a life! Click the video below and give these a try… Here is some more information about foam rolling. I think the foam roller is an essential tool for every fire rescue athlete (firefighter, EMT and medic). I use it everyday, I know it can improve your performance. Click the link below for more information on foam rolling positions and how to use them. Foam rolling for firefighters click here for the link And, give this 4-minute stretch routine a try before your next shift or after your next FRF Workout. This is a great way to help you…
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5 Fitness tools Every Firefighter Must Use.
Ladders, saws, fire hose, the irons, water can, spreaders, cutter, are all traditional tools that every firefighter needs and uses. We use these every day to help us perform forcible entry, fire attack, search, and rescue. Many feel that without these, we would not be able to function on the fire and rescue scene. I argue that we would, it would just make our jobs as firefighter, EMTs and medics a lot more difficult. One common trait about all these tools is that they all require a physically capable firefighter to operate them. The equipment is not light and in a lot of cases requires a lot of functional strength to use them to their full capacity. So, what tools do you use to keep your body physically ready to do the job? I’ve been very fortunate to work with thousands of firefighters over the past 10 years and…
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