Fire fighter fitness training focuses on a mix of strength and endurance.
The physical fitness you maintain as a fire fighter serves not just to help with the job, but to protect your life and the lives of those around you. With the mix of weight-bearing and cardiovascular stress experienced during the fighting of fires on a daily basis, you will require a unique mix of high level fitness training.
Health Considerations
Before taking on new physical training, it is a good idea to consult your doctor. With the awkward and jarring nature of fire fighting efforts, and the intense stress they place on the cardiovascular system, fire fighter training is a strenuous task for even the most fit. A doctor's evaluation is a mandate of formal fire fighter training, and should be considered a requirement for recreational training as well.
Basic Levels of Fitness
The chopping, hoisting and dragging activities of fire fighting are very taxing on the body. As such, before starting any type of fire fighter training routine, it is important to have a strong level of strength and endurance fitness. A balanced routine of running and weightlifting maintained for at least a month or two prior to the specialized training will help prepare the body for the more strenuous activities to come. Try jogging every other day, building up a little every week, and participating in some weightlifting on those days when you don't jog. When weight training, work the entire body with an emphasis on strengthening your legs, back and shoulders, as they will be used the most in your fire fighter training.
Getting Started
When you start learning fire fighter training exercises, build up slowly. Because so many of the hoisting, chopping and dragging movements of fire fighting have negative impacts on the body, trying to do too much too fast will cause a bodily injury. A good way to ward of injury is to find exercises that offer the same motion dynamics while lessening the impact. For instance, chopping at buildings with an ax is a common necessity in firefighting, but training by chopping at wood can wear down the shoulder and elbows, and cause life-long problems. Instead, find a large tractor tire and strike it with a long-handled sledgehammer. This motion incorporates all of the same muscle groups and the weight of the ax without the jarring impact.
Movement Training
As mentioned previously, ax work is an important movement in firefighting, but hoisting, dragging and carrying are also vital. To prepare for such activities, you must practice them. Beginning in segments, practice one movement a day, eventually adding additional movements over weeks and months. As your strength and endurance improve, start doing multiple movements each day until you are able to run through a circuit of all necessary exercises in full fire fighter protective gear.
Get Plenty of Sleep
Fire fighter training is very hard on the body. The constant injuries that can result from physical labor can, over time, weaken the body and cause sickness and injury. To keep from experiencing symptoms of over-training, it is important to get plenty of sleep. Rest in general is good, but nothing helps the body repair more than sleep. Listen to your body and plan on getting at least nine hours of uninterrupted sleep on the nights following difficult sessions.
Take Breaks
As with any high intensity training, it is necessary to take days and weeks off on occasion. While extra rest and sleep can help, it is necessary to give your body time to repair and rest. The never-ending grind of fire fighter training can also be difficult mentally. Taking periodic breaks can help recharge your mental resources and help you maintain a fitness level that saves lives.
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