THOMASVILLE — Members of Thomasville Fire Rescue are sweating it out and shaping up with a new physical fitness program spun toward improving their overall health and ability to serve the community.

TFR has partnered with the Thomasville YMCA to create a fitness program for TFR staff.

“Our members were doing a good job of doing some type of physical exercise each day, but varied fitness levels, exercise programs, and individually desired results created separate sessions,” Fire Chief Bryan Croft said.

“There were good fitness improvements, but it was not department-wide improvements. It was time to step things up!”

Currently, “spin” classes are held for personnel at the Everett-Milton YMCA three times per week.

“Spin is basically like riding a bike, but a bike with no wheels,” Kim Smith, fitness and wellness director for the Thomasville YMCA, said. “We simulate hills and jumps and tension; it is one of our best cardio classes.

“The reason I picked this for the fire department staff is you are in control of how hard you work your bike: there are all different levels.”

Heart attack related deaths are the number one killer of firefighters, nation-wide, Croft said, and this was a main motivator to implement a departmental fitness program.

“We make great investments to make sure our personnel are protected and trained to the highest of standards, to ensure that they provide a great service,” Croft said. “If we don’t change our thinking and past practices, we really are not protecting our investments or our community.”

The chief said the department “experimented” with a variety of workout and fitness ideas and policies, but none quite hit the mark.

The missing link was a team building approach, according to the chief, and after meetings with TFR and YMCA staff, a fitness partnership was forged.

“Being a firefighter is a physical job and a strong fire department benefits the entire community,” Tom Everett, branch director at Everett-Milton, said. “The Y feels like, by giving back, this is our way of helping to ensure that the firefighters have an avenue to remain healthy.”

Smith said she intends to switch up the fitness program every six weeks.

Croft said every member of each shift is mandated to participate, as a team, and there is a dedicated time slot for fitness training built into daily duties.

“Everyone is held accountable,” he said. “If you are going to be a member of our organization, you will do fitness training because we owe it to our citizens to send the very best.”

Lt. Marty Butler, an EMT, said the first class was “somewhat challenging but yet rewarding.”

“We went in not knowing what to expect; however, we were all up for the challenge,” he said. “A lot of the guys said it was more of a challenge than what they expected but we were prepared to meet the challenge.”

Butler also said being sore was a given.

“We knew we had been there,” he said.

Capt. Mark Sealy, a paramedic, said arriving for the first class was “interesting” because no one was sure what to expect.

“Once our instructor entered the room, she broke the ice and everyone loosened up and began to have fun,” he said.

Sealy thought the first class was different from the normal physical fitness routines personnel did in the past.

“This was definitely cardio-based and it does challenge you based on the level of resistance you put on the wheel,” he said.

“Increasing resistance definitely makes it harder and uses more muscle.”

Also, Sealy said he was not sore where he expected: his legs.

“The consensus of the class was that our buttocks were definitely sore,” he said.

The department just finished its third week of classes and participants seem pumped about the results.

“We are seeing great participation and personal motivation to improve,” Croft said. “We have even seen results of personnel losing 10-13 pounds so far.”

Croft loves the classes.

“Taking a break in the middle of the day to go and really put it all on the line enables you to return more focused and with a really clear mind,” he said.

Butler hopes to gain the satisfaction that all participants will be in better physical shape by the end of the program.

“We feel it would help us improve agility and endurance and also promote teamwork,” he said.

Sealy said the department is meeting the NFPA 1500 Standard for Health and Fitness, along with bringing personnel together to be the best department and provide the best service it can to the citizens, visitors and businesses it protects.

As an individual, Sealy hopes to increase his strength and cardio.

“I want to make myself a better fit person so that my health remains good for my family and the city which I protect so that everyone goes home to their families after each shift,” he said.