Training for a beginner?

[WHTGE8]

Hey guys this is my first post here. I'm 20 years old and have decided to start a career as a firefighter. I'm starting my firefighter I course in january and want to be physically prepared for a test they call the "Fit for Fire" test here in Orlando, FL. It involves lots of stairs and dragging. What kind of workouts or what kind of muscles should I be focusing on to best prepare myself for this kind of test? Sorry if this question is a bit repetitive to you guys. Thanks in advanced!

[pewter98]

Hey guys this is my first post here. I'm 20 years old and have decided to start a career as a firefighter. I'm starting my firefighter I course in january and want to be physically prepared for a test they call the "Fit for Fire" test here in Orlando, FL. It involves lots of stairs and dragging. What kind of workouts or what kind of muscles should I be focusing on to best prepare myself for this kind of test? Sorry if this question is a bit repetitive to you guys. Thanks in advanced!

I would say the most important aspect of firefighter P.T. is cardio. Regardless of how good your cardio is now, you still have plenty of time to make great improvements between now and January. If your doing your cardio on a treadmill or some other machine, I would gradually transfer your cardio workouts to outdoor running.

As far as strength training, I would trained evey muscle group at least once a week at a rep range of around 8-15. Focus on exercises that strengthen your core too. Don't go for that 1-3 rep range every single time you hit the gym. (Like I saw a ton of people do when I worked at a gym!)

Maintain a healthy diet and drink plenty of water and gatorade throughout the entire day.

Here are some links to other helpful P.T. posts on this board:

http://forums.firehouse.com/showthread.php?t=104867

http://forums.firehouse.com/showthread.php?t=107265

http://forums.firehouse.com/showthread.php?t=110424

Hope this helps and good luck!

[The1Engine]

Hey guys this is my first post here. I'm 20 years old and have decided to start a career as a firefighter. I'm starting my firefighter I course in january and want to be physically prepared for a test they call the "Fit for Fire" test here in Orlando, FL. It involves lots of stairs and dragging. What kind of workouts or what kind of muscles should I be focusing on to best prepare myself for this kind of test? Sorry if this question is a bit repetitive to you guys. Thanks in advanced!

Yes WHT it is a repetitive question. However its a good one. And one on here that has a majority reply; CrossFit... look in to it www.crossfit.com
There are many fire departments, Law Enforcement, and military personnel who operate a CrossFit affiliate within their organization. Just give it 1 month and see what you think. Some of the best Cross fitters are FF's. As well the world record holder for the FF Combat Challenge is a Cross Fitter.

[powerhourcoug]

Yes WHT it is a repetitive question. However its a good one. And one on here that has a majority reply; CrossFit... look in to it www.crossfit.com
There are many fire departments, Law Enforcement, and military personnel who operate a CrossFit affiliate within their organization. Just give it 1 month and see what you think. Some of the best Cross fitters are FF's. As well the world record holder for the FF Combat Challenge is a Cross Fitter.

Spot on. I have been doing CrossFit for a year, and nothing I did in the past comes within a whiff of comparison to what CF does to prepare you for the rigors of firefighting. Period. CrossFit provides the workouts for you. They're fun, extremely challenging, and highly varied...kind of like firefighting!

There are people on here who are on "CPAT routines". The majority of their workout consists of getting on the stepmill with a weightvest, day in, day out. It gets boring real fast, and can really reef on your knees and lower back. I own a V-Max weightvest, and I can tell you from experience, the "stair routine" doesn't work in the long run.