Enough Is Enough on Who Is Tough

They say I’m a Millennial because I was born in the early 1980s. My generation has been called weak, unskilled, soft, too sensitive and any term you could drum up that removes the connotation of words like tough, strong, adaptive and intuitive. It’s frustrating because I currently work as a single station captain with more than 45 people assigned to the station. Many of those people are my age and younger, and we feel as though we can’t get ahead no matter how hard we try.

I was reminded recently on a social media meme that my generation could never be the “tough guys” of the fire service. The meme showed three firefighters riding the backstep of a 1970s-era fire engine explaining how those were the days when there were “real firemen.” 

But let’s pause for a moment and reconsider this comment on our “toughness.” 

I recently submitted a request up my chain of command to reinstate non-competitive, non-contact basketball as an authorized PT activity. Basketball is currently prohibited under our PT policy. Yes, in my fire department of over 700 members, basketball is prohibited. Why? Because it may cause injury. Yes, apparently, an athletic game that specifically prohibits you from touching another player is “too dangerous.”

Somewhere along the line, the generation ahead of me decided that staying in shape was fine, as long as you did the softest forms of exercise possible. Approved activities include running, yoga and exercise using cardio machines. Maybe that’s why they were the most obese generation in history. 

As mentioned earlier, I work at a large firehouse. We typically have 12 members assigned to our station daily, and we respond with several pieces of apparatus. My crew is large in numbers—and also large in size. Many of us are reaching our 30s or 40s, and we’re getting bigger by the day due to the additional stress of raising families on a shift schedule, not getting proper sleep, and a poor diet due to erratic schedules and stress. Our Firehouse dinner might be the only meal we plan a couple of times a week.

Because of this, guess what my generation needs? Exercise. 

We all need exercise, even the guy who’s in shape. We need it not only to get our waistlines slim, but also to benefit from the mental and psychological advantages of getting outside as one large crew. We need PT that incorporates team-building and bonding into a busy day that’s packed with technical training, online certification updates, pump-operator drills, public education events, first-due familiarization, and so many other activities, you know, like responding to emergencies. The fire service does everything, doesn’t it? 

But my crew can’t. We can’t partake in one of the most popular exercise activities in America—one that gets us up and running, raises our heartrates, releases endorphins and burns the calories, as a group. Might I mention that it is also one of the least expensive options for exercise. A basketball court in the local community already exists, and a decent basketball might set you back $20. This is in contrast to the newest rowing machine or treadmill that could cost around $2,000. Also note that exercise equipment causes about 500,000 emergency room visits a year according to Consumer Reports.

I’m sick of working in a fire service culture that continues to tell me I’m weak and less valuable than my predecessors, not because I can’t ride the backstep, but because I get warned that “Risk Management does not approve this activity.” The next time some top brass guy tells the young guys they aren’t tough when he’s busting your chops at the kitchen table, you laugh and say, “It’s because you won’t let us be.”

There needs to be a shift. Some of the liability concerns are overbearing. Our job and the conditioning required to maintain quality service may sometimes be dangerous—but not nearly as dangerous as running into a burning building or diving into swift-river water for a rescue. We need to push back against the bean-counters and the desk-jockeys. Chief, you want us to be conditioned for the job? Let us be. You want us to be the high-performing team that can communicate with just a wink or a nod? Let us build it. You want us to be less stressed and less likely to develop mental issues or even certain cancers? Let us destress. You want us to be cost-effective and find ways to save money? Let us PT using inexpensive ways. You want us to manage our time and you want us to get exercise with our mandatory PT program? Let us exercise productively, all at once. Let us be tough!