Firefighter Workout #3

Author: Jon vitolo April 9, 2016

Here is the third installment of Jons firefighter workouts. You will see that this one is different and more informative than his past posts. This post gives a lot of information about Jon and what it was like growing up in the Bronx and testing for a firefighter/Policeman in New York

I think this is some great information and I personally learned a lot when I read it.

He hit it on the nose with this post and it’s a very informative one. So without further or due, here’s Jon:

The New York City Fire Department is perhaps one of the most well-known fire departments in the world. Growing up in The Bronx, small firehouses were located in neighborhoods alongside apartment buildings and residential houses. Sometimes the only way that one could distinguish a firehouse was by the NYFD Shield on the building and the big red garage doors. The streets in The Bronx were narrow with parked cars lining their curbs, I was amazed that anyone could navigate those large trucks in and out of the buildings they were located in.

My neighborhood was located in the Norwood section of The Bronx, my families home was just off the corner of Perry Ave on 201st Street. The closest firehouse to my home was located just about 3 blocks away on Briggs Ave. The Briggs Ave. firehouse was home to Engine 79 and Ladder 37. That small firehouse was certainly busy.

The Bronx has its share of old houses, large apartment buildings and no shortages of emergencies. I could always hear the whine of the sirens from where I lived and at one point we lived just a block away from the firehouse and from my bedroom window I could see them pulling out onto Bedford Park Blvd and rushing out on a call.

When you are 10 years old and someone asks you what you want to be when you grow up three of the most popular answers are sure to be Policeman, Fireman or Baseball Player.

None of my friends made it to the big leagues but a good amount either became officers in the NYPD or a fireman for the NYFD. One of my uncles was a fireman and I wanted to be one as well.

The first chance I had to take the test was around 1998. It starts off with an application process followed by a written exam. Do well enough on the test and you will move on to go through the physical ability tests and examinations.

When I took the test I scored 100% on the written and got in line to take the physical.

As I mentioned I had one uncle who already was in the department, I also had another uncle who had gone through the examination process with me as well as the physical agility test but ended up taking a job with the NYPD. They gave me advice as to what to expect when I showed up and mentioned the course was the same as when they took it years before.

When you take the physical agility test you do so in full gear along with a SCBA on your back. I was nervous about the ladder hoist, I wasn’t as tall as them but I remember not struggling with that particular obstacle. I was warned to get low on a crawling obstacle, my taller uncles both got tied up there by ramming their tank into the top of the makeshift tunnel’s entrance bringing them to a halt; I made the same mistake.

Other than that I made it through the course under the time that was allowed and passed. However the last obstacle proved to be the most challenging of the day. It wasn’t anything technical or glorious, it was supposed to mimic the action of pulling down ceilings once the fire was out.

When i arrived at the obstacle I didn’t know how much time I had to complete it but I knew I had to hurry. The panel I had to raise and lower with a hook weighed in the neighborhood of 80 to 100lbs and was on a hinge. I busted out on a torrid pace and ended up in a squatting pattern holding the hook close to my body, standing up and sitting down and was wiped at the finish. They had saved the hardest work for last and not knowing where you stood timewise made it even harder.

Normally when you are training strength and power, the two important elements that all firefighters should be focus on, you will put those larger elements at the top of your workout. The reason being you will be less fatigued, less likely to use poor or compromised form and your performance will be better. But as you may have come to experience is the hardest part of your job will come when you are fatigued and there may not be much time left to finish the task. There is a real sense of urgency in these times and you must be able to finish by any means necessary.

This type of stress should be experienced in your training at some point or another. It will test your will and improve your focus on the task at hand. I wouldn’t recommend this approach in all of your workouts but as the saying goes “practice how you play”. If you are remaining comfortable throughout your training you will not be experiencing the type of stresses that will lead to the adaptations that will be critical for you performance.

This past week Crossfit announced its open workout 16.5. It consists of 21-18-15-12-9-6-3 reps of each 95lb thrusters and burpees over bar. It’s a grueling workout that you are supposed to complete for time in order to obtain a score that could eventually put you in a position for a spot in the Crossfit Games. I am not a Crossfit trainer but like many others I am a fan and follow the methodology and information that they put out. I am always looking to challenge myself and this workout will do that. I did it in my backyard, no fancy equipment, gear or timers, my only goal was to finish. After completing the round of 12 thing seem to get easier and there is an end in sight.

Maybe you are like me and a fan of the sport, maybe you belong to a box and have completed this workout already and posted a time. Either way here is what you can do next to spice this up and accomplish some of the goals we have been talking about. Take this workout and flip it upside down, do the low sets first and work up to the higher sets.

Grab a water bottle and put the clock away.

If you want to watch a video on learn how to do these movements the right way just click on the following links: Thrusters / Burpees over bar

At 95lbs:

3 Thrusters / 3 Burpees over Bar

6 Thrusters / 6 Burpees over Bar

9 Thrusters / 9 Burpees over Bar

12 Thrusters / 12 Burpees over Bar

15 Thrusters / 15 Burpees over Bar

18 Thrusters / 18 Burpees over Bar

21 Thrusters / 21 Burpees over Bar

Yes, it will probably be more difficult this way, you won’t complete it in the same time you did working down the line, you may have to break up those higher sets but remember you are not training like the average Joe. You didn’t get into this line of work because you wanted to take the easy way out or were looking to remain in your comfort zone. Save the hardest for last.

Juan here again and if you read the whole post then you will agree with me when I say that it was a GREAT post. I personally learned a lot from it.

I looked through Amazon for the cheapest products that I could find so you will be able to do this workout. I put the links above and I believe that I found a good mixture of quality and price.

Please remember that I will not be posting another blog post for a few weeks because I will be working on some projects for this site and ultimately for you.

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