Firefighters have (or should have) several fitness tools in common with professional athletes: strength, flexibility, diet and nutrition, cardiovascular endurance and mental agility, to name a few. Yet although we strive for the same positive physical outcomes through training, there’s one very important thing that we must always keep in mind: This is no game we’re playing. It’s no game when you’re working inside a superheated atmosphere with no visibility and no breathable air. It’s no game when the field is prone to collapse and/or subject to flashover and backdraft. It’s no game when you must wear cumbersome, heat-retaining protective gear while under the constant threat of a finite air supply. It’s no game when the possibility of disability or death is ever-present.
Fireground-Specific Training
My experience as a firefighter, fire chief and firefighter sports performance instructor has led me to the firm conclusion that all physical fitness training must prepare firefighters for the demands of the fireground. We’ve always been taught to train for the worst-case scenario on the fireground, and that concept should carry over to fitness training. But this is where the majority of fitness programs fail the firefighter. At crunch time, unless you’ve trained to perform at your best while wearing 50 lbs. of PPE and are ready to go deep into a burning structure without a map, you’re not as physically prepared as you need to be. Power, strength and endurance training must address these specific demands.
But that idea is nothing new. Athletic coaches know that for athletes to excel and continually improve at their sport, their training must be specific to that sport. It’s called specificity of training. In our case, I call it “fireground-specific” training. This doesn’t mean that you should stop all the fun stuff, like Frisbee football, but you should remember that even though Tiger Woods likes to play basketball, he didn’t learn his chip shot in the paint. The point: “Exercise hobbies” may help you physically on some level, but they won’t train you to be a prepared firefighter. There’s a big difference.
We must train functionally for firefighting by doing what we do. Ask yourself, “Is my physical training helping me gain the strength, power and endurance I need to execute my duties on the fireground while in my turnouts?” If the answer is no, your training isn’t functional sports performance training for firefighters. The most effective physical training we can and should perform must incorporate or mimic tasks we perform on the fireground while wearing our PPE.
The First-Alarm Hose Pull
One exercise that I’ve developed to help firefighters achieve optimum fitness is called the first-alarm hose pull. The great thing about this exercise is that you have everything you need to perform it right at your fire station, but you can vary it to fit your individual needs so that it becomes your own personal firefighting gym.
The only equipment you’ll need to perform the first-alarm hose pull is 150 feet of 2½” hose, your PPE and an SCBA. (You can use old hoseline because you won’t be pumping water through it.)
To set up the exercise, find a grassy area at a park or field that will accommodate you running out the full 150 feet of hose. Then connect the three lengths of hose together and flake them out in an accordion style. Next, don your PPE and SCBA, if you haven’t already. Tip: When first performing this exercise, I suggest wearing your PPE and SCBA only for the first pull, because it’s a very strenuous drill, much like a firefight. As your physical strength and endurance increase, you may wear your gear longer. If you have a 50-lb. weight vest, you may also substitute it for PPE while conditioning for the hose pull.
To begin the exercise, stand in front of the hose that you’ve flaked out. Then run the hose out the full 150 feet. Upon reaching the end, turn and face the direction you just came from. Then get into the bear crawl position and crawl to the first coupling you come to. Upon reaching the coupling, stand up and perform lunges to the next coupling. Upon reaching the third coupling, take two steps and perform a squat. Repeat the squats until reaching the end of the hose. Upon reaching the end of the hose, turn and face the hose once again. Finally, grab the hose and bring it in hand-over-hand until the full 150 feet is brought in.
Tip: If you’re by yourself when doing the hose pull, just take a large step each time a coupling comes in and you’ll have three piles of hose behind you, which will make deploying it easier during your next pull. If you’re with your crew, they can easily make accordion folds for you.
If you’d like to vary this exercise, try performing what I call the “Anaconda.” The Anaconda first-alarm hose pull utilizes 200 feet of 2½” hose rather than the 150 feet used in the original version. Note: The additional 50 feet make a world of difference, so attempt this exercise only when you’re physically ready. When performing, the exercises between couplings stay the same, but you walk in the last 50 feet.
Another simple variation of the first alarm is what I call “Squat Mania.” To perform this variation, do 10 squats and pull the hose out. Do 10 more squats and do your bear crawls. Do 10 more squats and begin your lunges, followed by 10 more squats and the step squat. When you reach the end of the hoseline, do 10 more squats and then repeat the process for a total of three pulls. Once again, you can see that you must be used to this type of training before attempting Squat Mania.
Conclusion
The first-alarm hose pull and the other suggested exercises put stress on the large, oxygen-sapping, lactic-acid-producing muscles of the body, as you’ll discover while performing them. But this kind of physical stress mimics the stress we experience on the fireground, which is precisely what we need to improve our fitness level and our performance on scene.
If your current workout or exercise routine isn’t positively affecting your job performance, you may want to reconsider how you spend your time in the gym. As I said before, firefighting is no game–therefore, our training shouldn’t be either.
Acknowledgement
On behalf of the entire fire service, I would like to thank Jeff and Martha Ellis for the superb job they have done over the past several years in writing the Survival of the Fittest column. They have set the bar high, and I hope to continue the tradition.
Tried & True Fireground-Specific Exercises
Battle hoses for upper body: Place one length of 1¾” hose around the base of a tree or other object. Grab each end of the hose with your hands and raise your arms above your head. This can be done in an alternating fashion or in tandem. This exercise is a great way to train the shoulders, back, arms and hands for pulling ceiling, carrying equipment, utilizing forcible entry equipment and raising ladders. As we all know, these activities require plenty of strength and endurance in our upper body and hands.
Overhead hose squat: Take a role of 2½” hose or larger and place it overhead with your arms extended. Keeping your head up, your eyes forward, your chest out and your back arched, squat down until your upper thighs are parallel with the ground. Repeat this 10 times for three to five sets.
Overhand rope pull: Place a hose roll at the end of a rope and haul it up the side of any building or stairwell that provides at least 25 to 30 feet of raising height. This height should allow for 8 to 10 reps per arm. This will once again build strength and endurance in the shoulders, arms, back and hands. This is an old standard that’s simple but effective.
Bent-over hose row: Put a hose roll on its end by your side and bend over, keeping your back straight, but slightly above parallel to the ground. Keep a slight bend in your knees. Grab the hose with your hand between the two first folds of the roll, and bring your elbow up. Repeat this 10 times. You can also do this with both arms at the same time.
High-rise hose pack stair climb: I know many of you have done this, but just as a reminder, locate any stairs in your area and hike up and down while wearing your high-rise pack. This is always a good exercise. You might even break out your high-rise SOPs and kill two birds with one stone.
