Get Moving Part Two

Strength is obviously a huge factor in successful fireground operations. Many firefighters have survived in the service just by being strong. And while strength is good it can only carry you so far; aerobic fitness carries you the rest of the way.

Last month we defined aerobic and anaerobic activities and discussed how to measure aerobic fitness. The question on everyone’s mind now: How do I make improvements in my aerobic capacity? Before we delve into the methods of developing your aerobic fitness let’s address why doing so is important.

 

Benefits of Aerobic Fitness

Aerobic fitness is critical when the situation calls for a sustained effort. The less aerobically capable run into trouble when they get too far into a structure and run out of gas become ineffective during a rescue operation or–the curse that haunts the fire service LODD statistics–suffer a heart attack. Although being aerobically fit is not a guarantee you won’t suffer a cardiac episode aerobic conditioning enhances your cardiac health therefore improving your odds of avoiding such an experience.

Additionally several studies show that maintaining aerobic fitness as you age can actually slow the physiological aging process. Staying fit also reduces your risk of a number of common chronic diseases including obesity hypertension Type 2 diabetes and several cancers such as colon breast prostate and lung cancer.

Let’s face it: Some people are blessed with natural aerobic ability; the rest must work at it which becomes painfully apparent as we age. The interesting thing however is that although there is a natural deterioration in all components of fitness as we age it doesn’t have to be as profound as many think. We’re often too quick to hang our hats on the theory that “They can’t expect us to be able to do the same things the younger firefighters can do.” Although that may be true it is completely reasonable to expect your entire firefighting team to perform to a minimum standard. For some this may be a more involved process than for others. Remember fitness maintenance is much easier than playing catch up both mentally and physiologically. If you maintain your fitness levels as you mature your maximum potential will be higher than if you don’t. And even if you’ve lived a more sedentary lifestyle up to this point the sooner you start getting fit the more potential you’ll retain. The bottom line: Adhere to the mindset of “Get fit and stay fit.”

 

Aerobic Improvement

Some people believe aerobic improvements can only be made by spending long tedious hours pounding the asphalt. We’re happy to report this is only part of the equation. As we discussed last month there are three critical components to a successful aerobic training program: rhythmic activity the use of large muscle groups and a sustained effort. This means you must engage in at least 20 minutes of a repetitive activity that uses leg gluteus chest or back muscles. People generally use combinations of these muscles during most aerobic exercises.

Now back to pounding the asphalt. When it comes to aerobic training many people get sucked into a monotonous routine exercising 20-plus minutes plodding along at the same pace day in and day out. If that works for you great. But it doesn’t work for many of us who need variety in our routines and/or who want to continue improving our aerobic fitness through effective endurance training.

But what actually defines aerobic improvement? In layperson’s terms it simply means being able to push harder for a longer duration without experiencing an extremely labored effort. (You’re laboring when you can’t say five words without gasping for a breath.) In technical terms aerobic improvement is represented by a higher VO2max score or a higher anaerobic threshold (see “Get Moving Part 1 ” December issue p. 86 for a refresher on these topics).

Improving aerobic fitness relies on four things: the intensity of your workout the length of the workout how often you work out and the type of exercises performed. To get the maximum benefit from your training pay close attention to your heart rate which is a good measure of intensity. Your workout intensity will vary depending on the type of workout and how hard you actually push yourself.

Varied workout intensity will likely yield the best results. If you’re relatively fit you can divide your effort between high- and low-intensity training. Low-intensity training is any exercise in which you exert between 55 and 75 percent effort. Believe it or not you may have to slow your sustained aerobic efforts to fall within that range.

High-intensity training is any exercise in which you’re exerting between 80 and 100 percent effort. This is not a sustained effort but rather high-intensity effort for a short duration. (For more information about using workout intensity levels to determine your target heart rate see the sidebar “Heart Rate 411” on p. 112.)

High-intensity training is generally performed as interval training. Because you cannot maintain that high level of exertion for an extended period of time you should cycle in periods of recovery. You can utilize this technique while hill training exercising on various machines (i.e. stairclimber versaclimber treadmill) or performing fartleks–a form of conditioning in which the speed or intensity varies. Interval training can be very beneficial to improving aerobic capacity; even marathon runners incorporate intervals into their aerobic training programs.

 

Develop a Workout

Once you’ve determined your target heart rate (or range) for both high- and low-intensity workouts it’s time to develop your workout program. But how should you divide your time between the high- and low-intensity workouts? We recommend an 80:20 ratio with 80 percent of your time spent on low-intensity training and 20 percent on high-intensity (interval) training. For example if you spend 100 minutes each week on aerobic training 80 minutes should be at a low intensity and 20 minutes should be at high intensity. Keep in mind: If you do 10 1-minute intervals with 4 minutes rest between each one only the interval time (10 minutes) counts toward the 20 percent weekly high-intensity training.

Interval training not only helps improve your aerobic capacity it also breaks the monotony of aerobic training. When designing interval workouts your foundation is the work-to-rest ratio which relates to distance or time. If you’re just starting out your ratio will include a little work and much rest. For example you could sprint 200 meters and recover with a 400-meter walk or you could exert for 1 minute and recover for 4 minutes.

As your fitness improves reduce the work-to-rest ratio gradually increasing the work and reducing the rest. For example you could now sprint 200 meters and recover with a 200-meter walk or you could exert for 2 minutes and recover for 2 minutes. A 1:1 work-to-rest ratio is pretty intense. Remember: The high-intensity efforts are at 80—100 percent effort and only the time spent on the high-intensity portion of the training applies toward the 20-percent high-intensity total for the week.

 

Additional Notes

If you’re just getting started with your fitness program and you’re not in good aerobic condition start slowly. You may reach your target heart rate for low-intensity effort with just a brisk walk. If that’s where you need to start then so be it. You’ll improve quickly especially if you’re dealing with weight issues as well. As you increase your activity and pay close attention to what you eat you’ll quickly see aerobic improvement. We do not recommend high-intensity training for people in very poor physical condition. Be patient and as your conditioning improves you can slowly (and gently!) incorporate the principles of high-intensity training into your fitness program.

Also varying your training will keep it interesting. Don’t spend all your time performing one exercise. For example run with a friend or ride a stationary or regular bike for 20 minutes and then move to a treadmill or elliptical trainer for 10—20 minutes. This breaks up the monotony of the workout and makes time pass faster. Plus you’ll end up exercising for longer than you would if you stuck with just one exercise.

The most important thing: Keep your heart rate within your target range throughout the workout. Train smart and you’ll see the aerobic improvement. Don’t get discouraged. The bottom line: Try to use this information to create your optimum workout. The closer you can come to following these guidelines the more effective your workouts will be. 

 

Heart Rate 411

How to calculate your target heart rate

Effective training means not working out too hard or not hard enough. Your workout intensity can be measured in several ways the most common being as a percentage of your maximum heart rate or as a percentage of your heart rate reserve (HRR)à‘the most accurate method. If you don’t know your maximum heart rate you can determine your theoretical maximum heart rate by subtracting your age from 220.

To calculate a training (or target) heart rate (THR) you also need to know your resting heart rate (RHR). To measure your RHR take your pulse before you get out of bed one morning. Count your heart beats for 15 seconds and multiply by four. This is your RHR which will factor into calculating your THRs for various intensities.

Your THR is determined using a percentage of your HRR. To calculate your THR for a given intensity use the Karvonen Formula: THR = % Intensity [(220 – your age) – RHR] + RHR. Note that the à’% Intensityà“ should be converted to a decimal (e.g.   75 percent would be 0.75).

Let’s use 75 percent intensity as an example. We’ll use 60 for our RHR and 40 for our age. Therefore the THR is 0.75 [(220 – 40) – 60] + 60 which equals 140. So a 75 percent effort for a 40-year-old with a RHR of 60 equals 140 beats per minute. Adding and subtracting six to this number gives you a reasonable heart rate range.

 

Fitness Q & A

How long should you wait after eating before beginning a fairly strenuous workout? And how soon after this workout should you eat something?
-Mark A. Grimm fire inspector Alcoa Warrick Operations Newburgh Ind.


After a strenuous workout your body is most receptive to carbohydrate replacement within the first 30 minutes. This is a critical time to get a jump start on replacing all the glycogen you just depleted from your muscles. Look for food with a high glycemic index (i.e. potatoes carbohydrate replacement drinks) to maximize the benefits of eating carbs during that 30-minute period. (Anything with a glycemic index of 70 is considered high.)

As for eating prior to exercising performance will be better if you eat food on the lighter side. For example it is recommended that marathon runners not eat any solid food for four hours prior to racing. Keep in mind however that it is still important that they eat carbs during those four hours. Sport drinks gels etc. are the preferred source of carbs during that period.

I know from personal experience that eating light low-fat food prior to a workout makes the training experience much more pleasant. For our hardcore Combat Challenge workouts we would avoid heavy meals before workouts unless we wanted to revisit it in a not-so-pleasant fashion during training. The bottom line: Wait several hours after eating before you hit it hard.

If you’re training early in the morning keep it light (i.e. toast cereal low-acid juice a piece of fruit). Technically you’ve been fasting all night so don’t omit breakfast altogether. Get some carbs in you first thing in the morning. Remember: If your workout is long (more than an hour) you must replace the carbs throughout the workout. When you’re finished sit down to a plate of pancakes with syrup. You’ve earned it! Hope this helps. — M.E.

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