{"id":9953,"date":"2025-06-09T09:05:11","date_gmt":"2025-06-09T14:05:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/firerescuefitness.com\/?p=9953"},"modified":"2025-06-09T09:05:18","modified_gmt":"2025-06-09T14:05:18","slug":"stretches-that-will-improve-firefighter-performance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/firerescuefitness.com\/2025\/06\/stretches-that-will-improve-firefighter-performance\/","title":{"rendered":"Stretches that will Improve Firefighter Performance."},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Stretching and flexibility are often taken for granted. \u00a0The older I get (over 50), the more I realize how valuable the flexibility and mobility components of a workout are. \u00a0Often skipped, I believe that a solid flexibility program (active warm-up, stretching, and foam rolling) can greatly improve your performance on and off the fire ground.<\/p>\n<p>Today I wanted to give you a 5 Simple Exercises that can improve your performance. \u00a0These exercises can be performed after a workout or a shift or even during your shift. \u00a0 You want to hold each stretch for at least 15 seconds, if not 30 seconds. \u00a0Repeat the circuit as many times as possible. \u00a0Remember to breathe and maintain good posture throughout each stretch, and don&#8217;t force the stretch. \u00a0Ease into each position and if it hurts&#8230;stop.<\/p>\n<p>Here is a video overview of the stretches.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Pd4hEzD46yw?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox\"><\/iframe><\/span><\/p>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Here are the individual Stretches.<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"margin: 0px; padding: 0px;\"><em><strong>Downward Dog<\/strong><\/em>&#8211; Push your heels down and stretch the upper back and hamstrings.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/firerescuefitness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/downward-dog-stretch.jpg\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-2792 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/firerescuefitness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/downward-dog-stretch-300x169.jpg?resize=300%2C169\" alt=\"downward dog stretch\" width=\"300\" height=\"169\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><em><strong>Kickstand stretch<\/strong><\/em>&#8211; Move forward and back slowly, and extend your leg to a comfortable position. \u00a0Make sure to stretch both legs.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/firerescuefitness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/kickstand-stretch.jpg\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-2789 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/firerescuefitness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/kickstand-stretch-300x219.jpg?resize=300%2C219\" alt=\"kickstand stretch\" width=\"300\" height=\"219\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><em><strong>Spiderman<\/strong><\/em>&#8211; Step to the outside of your hand. \u00a0Keep your back leg straight for more hip stretch. \u00a0Watch your upper-body posture, and stay relaxed through the shoulders and traps. \u00a0You may need to keep your back leg on the ground when you first try this stretch.\u00a0 This is one of my favorite stretches and helps open the hips.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/firerescuefitness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/spider-man-stretch.jpg\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-2788 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/firerescuefitness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/spider-man-stretch-300x233.jpg?resize=300%2C233\" alt=\"spider man stretch\" width=\"300\" height=\"233\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Straight leg raises (toes to nose): <\/em><\/strong>Ease into this stretch; do not overdo it. Hold the leg in a stretched position,\u00a0then slowly flex your toes to your nose to get more stretch through your calf.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/firerescuefitness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/straight-leg-raise-stretch.jpg\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-2790 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/firerescuefitness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/straight-leg-raise-stretch-295x300.jpg?resize=295%2C300\" alt=\"straight leg raise stretch\" width=\"295\" height=\"300\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Cross-over stretch- \u00a0Keep your palms up and arms straight, and slowly move into the stretched position. \u00a0Start with your knee bent then gradually try the stretch with the leg straight.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/firerescuefitness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/cross-over-stretch.jpg\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-2791 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/firerescuefitness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/cross-over-stretch-300x198.jpg?resize=300%2C198\" alt=\"cross over stretch\" width=\"300\" height=\"198\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Remember, to see improvements, you have to make a consistent effort! Try to do these stretches at least three times per week. I try to do them before a shift and after I complete a workout. Let me know your thoughts and progress.<\/p>\n<p>Stay safe and Get FRF!<\/p>\n<p>Aaron Zamzow<\/p>\n<p>PS- My Mission is to transform, motivate, and educate 100,000 firefighters, EMTs, and medics to get more &#8220;fit for duty.&#8221;<a href=\"https:\/\/firerescuefitness.com\/get-frf-program-quiz\/\">\u00a0 Let me know how I can help you!\u00a0 We have programs for all levels of fitness&#8230; Click here to discover the best FRF Workout for you!<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Stretching and flexibility are often taken for granted. \u00a0The older I get (over 50), the more I realize how valuable the flexibility and mobility components of a workout are. \u00a0Often skipped, I believe that a solid flexibility program (active warm-up, stretching, and foam rolling) can greatly improve your performance on and off the fire ground.&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":9955,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[38,190,55,12],"tags":[267,402,359],"class_list":["post-9953","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-firefighter-fitness-program","category-best-exercise-for-firefighters","category-fire-athletes-workouts","category-fire-rescue-fitness","tag-firefighter-flexibility","tag-firefighter-stretches","tag-fit-for-fire"],"acf":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paAEPz-2Ax","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/firerescuefitness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/5-stretchs-instagram.png?fit=800%2C800&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/firerescuefitness.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9953","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/firerescuefitness.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/firerescuefitness.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/firerescuefitness.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/firerescuefitness.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9953"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/firerescuefitness.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9953\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22749,"href":"https:\/\/firerescuefitness.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9953\/revisions\/22749"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/firerescuefitness.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9955"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/firerescuefitness.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9953"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/firerescuefitness.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9953"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/firerescuefitness.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9953"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}