Repeat x 4

Movement Standards:

The 7 Key Features

Progression:

More Challenging: Increase Tempo, Resistance
Less Challenging: Decrease Tempo or Resistance

* Could also try the same circuit with a different piece of equipment – treadmill, bike, rowing ergometer, etc.

Enjoy!

Repeat with the right leg and finish with a third set of squats

Give it a try, your hips will thank you for it!

Every firefighter, regardless of age, experience, fitness or job status, needs the capacity to meet the demands of their life. The Demands-Capacity framework can help to establish exercise recommendations, minimize injury, and maximize quality of life. This workshop highlighted the latest developments of the IAFF’s PFT program and several “small steps” that can be taken to build and effective PFT program that can be sustained in the long-term.  Common questions regarding movement screening, CrossFit and stretching are also discussed following the presentation.

Repeat x 5

Movement Standards:

The 7 Key Features

Progression:

More Challenging: Increase Reps (or Tempo) or Load; Rest after performing each exercise 3 times (instead of twice)
Less Challenging: Decrease Reps (or Tempo) or Load; Rest after performing each exercise 1 time (instead of twice)

Our biggest successes all begin with a first small step. The IAFF’s Peer Fitness Trainer curriculum was developed to help firefighters live healthier, happier and more productive lives. It is structured to provide leadership and education on firefighter fitness, while highlighting the importance of inspiring change, shifting perceptions and engraining new movement behaviors to truly make exercise matter. But…it does so while emphasizing the power of small steps. This presentations highlights how the way you move can change YOUR life today, tomorrow and long into retirement. Whether your goals are health, safety, or performance driven, becoming aware of how, why and what movement patterns matter could be the small step that sparks long-term meaningful change.

Deficits in joint mobility and/or stability can certainly impact the way our clients move; however, so too will their fitness, perception of risk, prior experience, focus of attention, motivation, etc. Movement screens may offer a time- and cost-efficient means to screen for the general inability to move freely, symmetrically, and without pain. But their utility to assess injury risk, guide personalized recommendations for exercise, or evaluate the transfer of training may be limited. This session will explore a novel, evidence-informed approach to screening and assessment that can be used by every Kinesiologist to maximize the quality of their clients’ lives.

Exercise can and should be used to accomplish many things – prevent injury and disease, rehabilitation, enhance health and performance, increase energy levels, improve sleep, mood and attitude, etc. But ultimately, to make exercise matter – to ensure its impact extends beyond the training environment we must consider the reasons why we exercise in the first place.  This module provides an overview of the Demands and Capacity Framework, highlights the importance of how we move, and discusses fundamental principles that should guide a Peer Fitness Trainer’s practice.

This module introduces the “7 Key Features”, provides a visual demonstration of each, and illustrates how a Peer Fitness Trainer could assess whether they (or their clients) are adopting a desirable movement pattern.

The 7 Key Features

1. Knees IN LINE
2. Weight over  MID-FOOT
3. No arching or rounding of the low back (STRAIGHT)
4. No lateral bending of the low back (STRAIGHT)
5. No twisting of the low back (ALIGNED)
6. Shoulders DOWN
7. Shoulders BACK (shoulder and elbow moving together)

The best exercise program in the world will prove ineffective if the professional who implements lacks the skills to communicate with a client. Developing a teaching or coaching style that integrates both verbal and non-verbal communication is essential to providing effective instruction and feedback, and therefore the successful implementation of any exercise program. Effective professionals have the communication skills to provide suitable instructions and feedback to clients who prefer any learning style. Although most coaches use a combination of visual (demonstration), verbal (description) and tactile (hands on guidance) cuing simultaneously, practicing each in isolation can be an effective learning strategy. This module illustrates a model that can be used to observe, assess and communicate with any client.