Firefighter Fitness Exercise Upgrade- DB Chest Press

Fire Rescue Athletes as asked to work in various unstable environments.  Firefighters, Paramedics and EMTs are often times lifting and moving heavy loads in very awkward positions.  In order to prepare for these scenarios fire rescue athletes must focus their workouts on training not only on and in stable positions but unstable as well.  Here is a great exercise upgrade to engage more stabilizing and core muscles.

Please note that this exercise requires a lot of core strength and shoulder stability, lower your weights until you feel comfortable with the exercise. 

Please check out www.FireRescueFitness.com for more firefighter fitness exercise upgrades.

Firefighter Fitness-- Is CrossFit it?

I've worked in the fitness industry for over 20 years and have seen a lot of "fads" come and go.  Not to age myself but when I started in the industry step classes, leotards and zubaz where still popular.  Back in the day every health club focused on having the most updated machinery possible, today you see more minimalistic gyms pop up all the time.  Along with these fads have come the "next" best workout program.  I remember the day when everyone was "Jazzersizing" or "Sweating to the Oldies" or following the "Body for Life," program.  There were also the days of "Tae-bo", "Spinning" and who could forget "Fitness made simple"?   Some of these fitness fads have come and gone while others are still around.

Today I wanted to talk about another fitness "fad" that has seemed to catch the attention of the firefighting and tactical communities.  Yep, you guessed it....CrossFit.  This will be the first of two blog posts that gives my thoughts on the pros and cons of CrossFit. The purpose of these blogs is not to judge whether or not CrossFit is right for firefighters (although the title leads you to believe that) but to list the pros and cons of CrossFit to help you decide for yourself.  (On a side note, in the following weeks I will be discussing my personal views on this topic, so stay tuned).  

Defining CrossFit

According to CrossFit’s Foundations page, their program is designed to “optimize physical competence in each of ten recognized fitness domains,” which are: cardiovascular and respiratory endurance, stamina, strength, flexibility, power, speed, coordination, agility, balance, and accuracy.   The CrossFit program is designed for universal scalability making it the perfect application for any committed individual regardless of experience. They claim to use the same routines for elderly individuals with heart disease and cage fighters one month out from televised bouts. They scale the load and intensity, not change the programs. CrossFit specializes in not specializing.

The Pros of CrossFit.

High Intensity- More and more research studies are showing that short bursts of high intensity exercise is better for you than the typical hour or more long workouts at moderate intensity. CrossFit is all about this.

Muscle Confusion- The fact that the workouts vary so greatly from day to day means the body is always guessing and never has the chance to settle into that "workout groove" where it knows what's coming.  CrossFit focuses on maximal strength, muscular endurance, and cardiovascular efficiency all very important components to firefighters.


Timed, Efficient Workouts- Most CrossFit workouts are timed, which usually makes the exerciser push themselves harder, hopefully resulting in faster and better results. Plus, moving quickly in between sets keeps the heart rate elevated, burns more calories and helps improve recovery time.


Workouts Focus on Compound Movements and Olympic Style Lifting - This is great because it's how people get the most bang for their buck with their exercise. The more major muscles you use in a given movement, the calories you'll burn. Period.


Embrace Competition - This may be a "con" for some but the ideas here is that you should compete with yourself to constantly improve.   I also believe that the competitive environment of CrossFit may bring out greater performances in people.


Comradery-  This may also be a con for some.  If you are working out at a CrossFit gym you will be paired up with people during some exercises. You are in a class environment, which leaves plenty of room to meet and interact with new people that share a similar interest and goal.


I know that this is not a complete list of pros for CrossFit, please comment below and let me know what I've missed.  Stay tuned, the next blog will be listing the  cons of CrossFit.
Stay safe and remember to train like a life depends on it.

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Core Training for Firefighters, EMTs and Paramedics

          FireRescue athletes are at a very high risk of back injury as a matter of fact almost 50% of all firefighters will experience some type of back injury during their career.  Effective core training brings about a proactive approach to protecting your body and joints (especially your back) from injury. Core strength consists of hip, shoulder, and trunk stability. It is the foundation of efficient movement and vital to optimizing performance and your career as a FireRescue athlete.

          When should we work our "core" and how often.   In my FREE 28-day Quickstart program I recommend performing your core  routine after an active warm-up.  This should occur towards the beginning of the workout...Why?  Because its easier to skip if you leave it to the end of the workout.  I know, I've been there, you do your strength training, maybe a little cardio then 'promise" that you would do some core exercises at home (or the next day).  

The Video below demonstrates 4 basic core movements that all Firefighters, EMTs and Paramedics should be able to do (or incorporate) into their workout.  Give them a try.