The Nest — #Cardiac

  Firefighters may not have the physique of pro athletes, but that doesn't mean they're not fit. Take a moment to visualize a firefighter in action. Picture someone carrying a heavy ax with a big coat and large helmet? Did you notice the thick SCBA tank on their back, or the big boots? Well, the ax weighs close to 20 pounds, and the SCBA tank can weigh up to 50 pounds, depending on how full it is. Imagine carrying all of that while sprinting through a fire! Your local firefighters may not step onto a bodybuilding stage anytime soon, but it doesn't mean...

Five years ago, Jennifer Owens couldn’t manage to do a single pull-up. It kept her from passing a fitness performance test all police officers must complete as part of the police academy. But now she breezes through more than a dozen pull-ups. Last week she ripped off 18 of them. The 27-year-old Roanoke police detective can also do 70 sit-ups and can bench press 140 pounds, more than her body weight. Owens’ physical abilities have helped out her out at work, where she occasionally has to chase down criminals and restrain men whose size can dwarf her small frame, but...

Crucial lifestyle changes can prevent heart attack & improve health Firefighting has come a long way in the past few decades. Advances in technology, apparatus, building construction and firefighter fitness have contributed to a more effective and efficient fire service. The days of charcoal breathing canisters and Browder Life Nets have given way to state-of-the-art breathing apparatus and thermal imaging cameras. Yet despite these advances, there remains one factor we haven’t mastered that continues to fatally plague our personnel: heart attacks.According to the U.S. Fire Administration, 87 firefighters died while on duty in 2010. Of those, 50 of the 87...