A few weeks ago I showed you the one stretch that firefighters should never do. On the flipside, if I were to give you only one stretch to do, what would it be? A hamstring stretch. But not just any hamstring stretch; one that stretches only the hamstring/gluteal muscles without [...]

Over the past few weeks I've explained why static stretching before exercise isn't a good idea (especially this stretch); however, a warm-up is vital. Exercise scientists agree that warming up the muscles and joints prior to heavy exercise definitely reduces risk of injury and often even soreness. The main purposes [...]

Last week I discussed some misconceptions about stretching, including the myth that static stretching before exercise reduces injury risk. While it seems like fitness enthusiasts recommend more and more stretching across the board, there are some instances, like that just mentioned, in which excess stretching may not be a good [...]

Have you ever observed someone, perhaps a fellow firefighter, who has seemingly “converted” from being a very muscular person to a very overweight person? Often people believe this occurs when a person’s muscle tissue turns into fat; but that is a myth. Muscle DOES NOT turn into fat. Muscle cells [...]

Last week we started a discussion about stress: a very real and detrimental consequence of being a firefighter. I explained that the cascade of events which occur when a person is emotionally or physically stressed causes breakdown of the immune system and muscle tissue. Read more about that here. But [...]