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The journey to becoming a great firefighter and having a healthy life begins with motivation.

On scene, a smart firefighter never goes into a situation without his or her proper tools. But why don’t we do that when it comes to our health? There are countless tools around us to assist us in maintaining or obtaining good health. Shouldn’t we be using them? A...

Have you ever been sitting around the firehouse when the training for the day is done, and you realize you haven’t had the time to work out yet? Or does your shift workout all together at a set time during the day? Either way, the camaraderie of a good workout together can go a...

Everyone in fire and rescue knows that sometimes we just don’t have time to eat.  But that is only one reason to have a smoothie.  As crazy as this sounds, I wouldn’t eat fruit or vegetables, other than corn and potatoes, for most of my life. (Yes, me, the supposed health...

Firefighting Is Both A Job & A Lifestyle Being a firefighter/EMT is really more than just a job: it’s a lifestyle.  Whether you perform the duties as career or volunteer, it is a job and a lifestyle. We all have a job to do to protect life and property.  But before we...

What are two words firefighters don’t want to hear? Portion control! That’s right. This goes against the usual dinner philosophies we usually see and hear. When I started cooking for the guys at work, they liked the food, but didn’t like my portion control plating....

Have you ever thought of doing Yoga? YOGA?! What is Yoga you ask? In short it is “creating balance in the body.” Yoga first started over 5,000 years ago and was for men as well as women. Over time it has evolved in many ways, but the basic concepts of health and wellness of the...

Working as a firefighter is a physically demanding job, taking our bodies to the limit. Personal protective equipment shields us from many hazards but it also limits our ability to move at times, reducing our range of motion and adds weight to our back, neck and knees.  Because...

I used to think only women worried about their skin, especially when it came to dry hands.  Then over the last few years I have worked with some men who have told me they worry about it too. They even ask if there is any lotion they could use. They often complained that they have...

The world of sugar comes to us in many forms. The meals we eat at the house or the snacks we sneak in at midnight between calls all contain some type of sugar; but what does it do to our body? Sugar is found in many forms; fructose in fruits, lactose in milk, and corn syrup which...