Where firefighters come to talk training
Motivating members for a physical phytness program
I am a volunteer. I have a Monday through Friday, 9-5 job that sometimes has me working nights and weekends outside of my duties at the station and on calls. I am an unpaid professional, or at least I try to be :)
In my "spare time" (which is a term that is coming to be less and less familiar to me) I do what I can to provide my service to my community at the fire house. Just ask my fiance and she will tell you how much time I give! :)
For myself, I have fully embraced the concepts and effectiveness within the CrossFit program as it relatess to the fire service. What better way to mimic in the gym what we do on the fire ground than very intense, functional movements under a heavy load. It's perfect! I am motivated to stick to the workout regimen and paleo diet as much as I can for myself. The trouble that I am running into is trying to motivate other members on my department to do the same....
I find myself becoming more of a cheerleader than a motivator at times...which does nothing to help get people into the gym with me or on their own to work out regularly (not to mention eat healthy!).
Have any other organizations or members run into this same problem? More importantly, has anyone found an effective way to motivate people? We are a volunteer organization, so setting a mandatory "get fit or leave" mentality will only drive members away.
I welcome ideas of ways that have worked, or even just brainstorming ideas. "I am my brothers keeper". I feel this should extend to making sure people are healthy and fit for the job too.
Thanks all.
Tags: CrossFit, Fitness, exercise, nutrition
Views: 165
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Aaron Zamzow on
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Hello Trevor, I applaud you on taking pride in your level of fitness. It can be very frustrating to motivate the "unmotivated" especially when we (as firefighters) all know that we are more likely to die from heart attack on scene then in a fire. The biggest suggestion that I can give is to keep leading by example, try to create a challenge to the department (like a weight loss challenge or plan a department event) that may spark some members to take action and get in shape. The other suggestion I have is to post articles and fitness related material around the firehouse, give people resources that can help them. Also remember that CrossFit may be a little intimidating for some so keep your message about getting healthy not necessarily one particular program. One resource that I would recommend is www.FireRescueFitness.com you can get a free workout program and eating guidelines by joining the website (all for FREE). Good luck and keep fighting the good fight.
A. Zamzow
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Permalink Reply by P.J. Norwood on -
Trevor, check out my below blog; http://community.fireengineering.com/profiles/blog/show?id=1219672%...
As an added note; this past Sunday I received a text from one of my members that stated "1 year ago today I weighed in at 230 with you. Today I weighed in at 168! Thanks for motivating me!"
That text and previous conversations I have had made all the effort worth it! As Aaron indicated lead by example and maybe move some light workouts to the firehouse and maybe some will jump on board. Check out a new program I just started that can be moved into the firehouse http://www.trxtraining.com/.
Last point; use caution with the on-line "free" programs. That are prescripted and seldom take the individaul into consideration. basically, thay are generalized programs that are not tailored to the individaul. There is not such program or workout that is good for everyone. Also remember you get what you pay for.
Good luck!
P.J.
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