Balance and Coordination

One very important component to functional fitness is balance and coordination. Exercisers to developed better balance and coordination can help all groups of your body work together and better develop functional fitness.

Try this workout:

On a box that is 6 to 10 inches off the ground stand with one leg dangling off the side.  Squat down as low as you can but don't let the leg touch the ground.  Kick it back more to get further down without touching the ground.  After you feel like you have your balance, try adding speed.  How fast can you go and still have control?

Fire Truck Crash...Check this out.

Check out what happens when a fire truck does not stop at a red light. Every law in the country requires emergency vehicles to stop at red lights and stop signs before proceeding through. Luckily no one was severely injured. All fire fighters were wearing seat belts.

Endurance Week 1

Perform these three workouts as part of the strength-endurance portion of this program. Along with these workouts you can also perform your sport specific training or extra cardio workouts for this segment of the program.

1
Maximum Push-ups in a single set drill:
What is your max number of push-ups in a single set? Max number requires no resting during the set. If you put a knee down you are done. So lets say your max number is 50 push-ups. Multiply that number by 4. This is the total number of push-ups you will perform during this drill ( in this example it would be 200 push-ups).

Max 1-set push-ups x 4 = total push-ups to perform.

Run 1/4 mile
Push-ups to failure
Run 1/4 mile
Push-ups to failure

Continue this until all push-ups are performed then end with a final 1 mile run.

Keep a running clock. How fast can you do it in? It will take you at least 4 cycles (but I'm sure many more than that). Remember once you stop or put a knee down during one of the sets you have to stop and start the run.

2
Maximum Pull-ups in a single set drill:
What is your max number of pull-ups in a single set? Max number requires no resting during the set. If you drop from the bar or put your foot down you are done. So lets say your max number is 10 push-ups. Multiply that number by 4. This is the total number of push-ups you will perform during this drill ( in the example that will be 40 total pull-ups).

Max 1-set pull-ups x 4 = total pull-ups to perform.

Run 1/4 mile
Pull-ups to failure
Run 1/4 mile
Pull-ups to failure

Continue this until all pull-ups are performed then end with a final 1 mile run.

Keep a running clock. How fast can you do it in? It will take you at least 4 cycles (but I'm sure many more than that). Remember once you stop or put a foot down during one of the sets you have to stop and start the run.

3
Run, Push, Run, Pull:
Run 1/8 mile.
Perform 10 push-ups
Run 1/8 mile.
Perform 5 pull-ups

Repeat for 10 cylces (Total 2.5 miles, 100 push-ups, 50 pull-ups)

Keep a running clock. How fast can you perform this in? Can you do it under 30 minutes?

Weekly Plan 9/29-10/5

This week we will do the same three workouts as last week but our number of sets will be higher. This will allow you to be able to build on the muscle development and fiber recruitment for those movements.

Remember to also perform at least 3 cardio workouts of your choice during the week.

Week: 9/29-10/5
Concentration: Muscular growth (hypertrophy)
Method: High reps, moderate weight with reduced rest periods.

Complete these three strength and conditioning workouts during the week along with proper cardio work.

1. Turkish Get-ups: 25 lb dumbell. Alternate hands holding the weight every 10 reps. Rest for 45 seconds between each hand switch. Repeat for 6 sets (total of 60 reps).
2. Tire Drag: 40 yard forward drag. Rest 45 seconds between drags. Repeat for a total of 12 drags.
3. The Ups: 5 pull-ups, 10 push-ups, 15 sit-ups. Rest 45 seconds between series. Repeat series for a total of 12.

Post details of the workouts to comments.

Substitution: Hill sprints for tire drags

2006 Virginia Cylcocross Championship at Mount Trashmore. This is the hill I use for hill sprints as well as training for cyclocross racing.

If you don't have a tire to pull, do hill sprints in place of the tire pull described for this week. The hill should be at least as long as the tire pull and everything else stays the same.

Weekly Plan 9/22-9/28

The pink ribbon tour and Team Stihl from the Virginia Beach Fire Department on "We care enough to wear pink day".
Photo by Martin Grube

I know its mid week. But let's start the plan. The weeks will run from Monday to Sunday. Do the workouts in any order to fit your needs. The workouts listed here are the functional strength and conditioning workouts. You will need to warm up and warm down properly. You will also need to do your cardio workouts (or workouts related to your specific sport). The workouts here will increase your functional strength, endurance, injury prevention and overall usefulness.

Week: 9/22-9/28
Concentration: Muscular growth (hypertrophy)
Method: High reps, moderate weight with reduced rest periods.

Complete these three strength and conditioning workouts during the week along with proper cardio work.

1. Turkish Get-ups: 25 lb dumbell. Alternate hands holding the weight every 10 reps. Rest for 45 seconds between each hand switch. Repeat for 4 sets (total of 40 reps).
2. Tire Drag: 40 yard forward drag. Rest 45 seconds between drags. Repeat for a total of 10 drags.
3. The Ups: 5 pull-ups, 10 push-ups, 15 sit-ups. Rest 45 seconds between series. Repeat series for a total of 10.

For the next couple of weeks we will build on these three workouts (as well as add others) to increase muscular growth and muscle fiber recruitment.

Post details of the workouts to comments.

The Plan

Variety is key. Every hear that before? I believe in that, but I think some programs may take it too far. That is where this program was heading.

Even when I was the PT coordinator for the recruits at the fire academy I developed a program which rarely repeated workouts. But the program did repeat movements. Every week we would drag tires at least once, we ran at least once, we did push-ups, sit-ups and pull-ups at least once a week. The workouts were put into a program in which made them different to keep interest, but also made them similar to gauge progress.

So here's what I think: Each week I will post 4 workouts. I will not post rest days, I will not post cardio days. If you are an athlete, these 4 workouts can be done on strength days or along with your normal workout to give you a little bit of an edge. If this program is your primary training tool then you need to ensure you are getting enough cardio training. Firefighters need cardio training more than they need strength. Argue that if you want but it is true. The four workouts posted each week will be functional strength workouts. At least one, maybe two of those workouts will be repeated for a series of 3-4 weeks. This allows adaptation and increased functionality. This program will also cycle through power, growth, and weight reduction to keep improving the functionality of your bodies.

The first set of 4 workouts will be posted tomorrow.

Please use the comment section. It does a couple of things. First it tells me people are actually reading and using this stuff. Second it will help you compare yourself with others and maybe motivate you to push yourself a little harder.

Thanks for reading.

Joshua Goyet.