While it is certainly worthwhile to compare emergency responders to athletes, insofar as both professions require a great amount of physical activity, there are key differences between the two. For example, emergency personnel do not need any sort of super-human ability such as incredible running times or dead-lift records; instead they need to be able to engage in activities such as lifting, pulling, pushing and running with a normal aptitude, but often for extended periods of time. This requires that emergency responders train more consistently than athletes, and exercise a wider variety of muscles in preparation for engaging in more general tasks.
Here are 5 exercises for emergency responders to help prevent injury due to on-the-job stresses.
1. Getups – A “getup” helps to train full body agility and expanding the trainee’s range of motion.
• Start with your hands and knees as though you were crawling
• Push the floor away from you and roll onto the balls of your feet
• Exhale while rising slowly into a standing position
2. Crawling – Crawling exercises are great for working on the stability of your core muscles, as well as strengthening the muscles surrounding your shoulder-joint which is one of the most commonly injured areas.
• Raise yourself off the ground as though in push-up resting position
• Move in a variety of directions and speeds while keeping yourself off the floor
• Be sure to keep your arms underneath your shoulders to avoid injuring them
3. Power Sled – If you have a sled or another heavy, draggable object, “power sleds” are a great way to train for real-world experiences where one may have to quickly drag a heavy person or object. It develops power in both the legs, which offer the force to pull the object, as well as the arms and hands which must maintain a grip on the lead.
• Be sure to use both bilateral and unilateral movements
• Consider one “rep” to be a drag of at least 100 feet
4. Chop – This exercise helps train your core as well as your lower back, including getting used to the deceleration which is necessary in real-world scenarios.
• Raise a weight or kettle-bell above your head with two hands, feet spread
• Bend into a squad position and then touch the weight to the floor
• Rise slowly, paying attention to how your back and knees return to a resting position
5. Step-ups – “Step-ups” are great for developing lower-body strength as well as working on your coordination and balance.
• Use a bench or other object between 1 and 3 feet in height
• Step up with one foot and bring the other up after
• Step down with the same foot and then bring the other down
• Alternate which foot starts and begin again
Please contact us for more information about safety training for emergency responders.
