Unconventional Exercises for the Firefighter – Part 2

Last week in my introductory article we discussed taking the stairs.  This week we are going to look at how to make push-ups fun but also increase the number you can do.

Draw a card

This next exercise can be done alone but it is more fun with a few other people.

All you need is a deck of cards and your own body weight.  Put the deck of cards down on the floor or ground and get in a circle around them.  The first person draws a card then performs that number of push-ups. The next person does the same, then so forth and so on, until the deck is gone.  If you want to add more of a challenge to it, try timing how long it takes to complete the deck.

Photo Courtesy: Buffy Schilling, Firefightertoolbox.com

Mix it Up!

You can do push-ups anywhere and they build stamina and improve strength, using your shoulders, chest, triceps, and abdomen.  Improving the condition of your abdomen, or your core muscles as we call them, will in turn strengthen your back. It is important that you use proper form when doing the push-ups. Your body should be in a straight line with arms holding your body up off the ground and your legs at a comfortable distance apart.

One variation is shoulder width apart, index fingers and thumbs together to form a diamond, hence the phrase diamond push-ups, and wide push-ups. Make sure your bottom stays in line with the rest of your body, which means do not put it in the air or let it sag to the ground. Lower your body down to an imaginary fist sitting up under your chest, then return to the starting position.  There are many other variations.  They can be pumped out with momentum or you can do them nice and slow, holding for a couple of seconds halfway, then lowering down and beginning again.

No matter how you do them, you will notice the benefits of doing them fairly quickly.  The more you practice, the more you will be able to do.

Next week I will have an interesting workout that works the whole body, takes little time, and can be fun as well.

Part 2 of 3