In the following interview, Russell Vidler, NY State Fire Inspector and Lead Physical Training Instructor for the NYS Fire Academy Recruit Firefighter Program, offers us insight into the importance of firefighter fitness and health. He has been training new recruits throughout New York for 3 years now. Incorporating his experience as a former Army Drill Sergeant, Vidler’s program is very structured and discipline oriented. He highlights how his 13-week training program plans to help improve the overall health of statewide fire departments by integrating fitness equipment and a wellness mindset, so that firefighters are better able to do their job and serve their community.
ASF: Can you talk about the major health issues that are affecting firefighters today?
RV: For years, the fire service has been plagued by deaths related to cardiac issues. Cardiac related deaths are the leading cause of Line of Duty deaths. A little more than half of firefighter deaths are related to cardiac issues. There’s a saying that the fire service is “200 years of tradition, unimpeded by progress”, which is a kind of silly way of saying that we're stuck in our ways a lot. So we’re trying to expand the fire department mindset through healthier habits.
ASF: How do you see exercise helping with these issues both mentally and physically?
RV: Exercise can help firefighters tremendously. It can improve their cardiovascular health, their endurance, their quality of life, sleep, strength, their ability to affect an emergency scene positively, and instills confidence in firefighters and the public. We all became firefighters to help people, so clear and simple programming and resources can set us up to better serve our community.
ASF: How do you incorporate an athletic, exercise-focused philosophy and knowledge into your training regimen?”
RV: One of the focuses is getting firefighters in the mindset of thinking of themselves as athletes. Once they have that mindset, they will train more specifically for the job. Football players train for any given Sunday. They have six days to train for it, but for us, it's any given minute. That means not only exercising and quality sleep, but also recovery, proper nutrition and wellness as a whole.
ASF: What kind of equipment are you seeing as necessary for the proper exercise programs, and how do you encourage year-round use?
RV: Accessibility and baseline knowledge will help wellness in fire departments take off. Having equipment specific to firefighters is paramount based on the principles of task oriented physical fitness and firefighter functional fitness. Firefighters use whole body movements, like tactical athletes. In a functional fitness program, it's all about taking the movements that you use on the job and then getting the equipment to incorporate those movements into your program. We use sandbags, and items that move around as you're lifting them, to practice balance and agility.
ASF: Essentially, any equipment that gives the firefighter power, conditioning, strength, agility, and speed are most important?
RV: Yes, all encompassing. Absolutely.
ASF: What type of goals would you like to see achieved for established firehouses and firefighters that have 10+ years of experience?
RV: The future goals of the overall PT program are to improve cardiovascular health, provide injury prevention, increase endurance, ability, and quality of work. That will then lead to improved overall wellness, excitement, firefighters looking forward to PT and enjoying a healthy lifestyle. Some long-term goals would be to give every department and firefighter access to exercise programs, nutrition programs, mental health resources, and resiliency building techniques. I would love to see every department have some type of physical fitness standard, whether it's a CPAT standard or something more general.
ASF: What message regarding fitness and wellness would you like to relay to firefighters everywhere?
RV: We all know our most recent history with cardiac issues is just destroying the fire service. But the good news is that we control our own destiny. Changing the fire service begins with me, it begins with you as individuals. Be a leader in your organization. Take the steps towards wellness. Wellness doesn't come overnight, it's a life choice that comes with a better quality of life.
If you’re a first responder looking for fitness solutions in your facility, we’re ready to help.