Because, The Holidays

It’s that time of year where everyone is super stressed, walking through the stores like an army of zombies, draining their bank accounts and getting a third mortgage on their house just to show all of the people they normally hate how much they care about them. It’s also the time of the year to …

Why Are Some People Motivated To Work Out?

Ever have those days where you just do not want to work out?  Like, there is no way it’s going to happen.  Maybe this is every day for you.  Then there are those people that no matter what they always seem to get a workout in.  They must never have these days. That’s a common …

Individual Differences In Low-Back Pain Recovery

In my last post about low-back pain I highlighted many of the similarities in recovery for those recovering from low back pain.  It was by far my most popular piece of writing, which, as the stats would suggest, tells me that lots of people are in the same boat as me, or worse where I …

Low-Back Pain and How to Fix It

Low-back pain sucks donkey balls.  Roughly 85% of people will experience it at some point in their lives.  It may vary in severity but no matter how you look at it, that’s a fuck-ton of people with ouchies in their back. I am one of those people.  I have had low-back pain of various forms …

Periodization for Firefighters: Part 4

Check out Part 1, 2 and 3 here, here and here. Honestly, this has been a challenging series to write.  Periodization is a heavy topic to tackle.  For most people, it’s not exactly a hot topic.  It’s possibly the most important topic for long term progression but it’s far from sexy. I try to keep …

This Blog Won’t Help You Improve Your Fitness

This blog won’t help you improve your fitness, or your life for that matter.  Reading through all the posts I have written over the past 2 ½ years will probably just be a waste of your time.  Not because I haven’t made an attempt to simplify things.  Not because I haven’t provided helpful information. No. …

Periodization for Firefighters: Part 3 – High/Low Days

If you haven’t picked up on it yet, I’m kind of pushing the conjugate method as an effective way to lay out a program for firefighters.  It helps the firefighter meet the varied demands of the job with their training.  This method is appropriate for those with a bit higher of a training age (the …

Winter Is Coming

Did you spend the summer trying to get in shape? Did you have a few moments over the summer where you thought you should have been able to do something but turns out you didn’t have the physical capacity? Winter is coming. My training changes with the seasons and for most people it should also. …

Periodization For FireFighters: Part 2

In the first post of this series, found here, I introduced 3 main methods of periodization and discussed concurrent mostly while making a super drawn-out poop joke. I’m sure after the post, when I hinted that there was plenty more to come, many people were left uttering the immortal words of Canada’s pop-punk princess, “Why’d …

Periodization For Firefighters

A close look at the demands of firefighting should paint a picture for how to properly prepare the body to avoid injury and perform well.  Diving right in, the main qualities a firefighter needs to train would be strength, power and endurance. “What about speed?” “What about mobility?” “What about stability?” Whether you run on …