Massachusetts National Guard (MANG)—
Devon Smith, On-site Specialist with Massachusetts National Guard:
The MANG O2X Human Performance Team had a strong start to the year throughout the month of January. We began with an educational presentation on building resilience, which we delivered to medics participating in a professional development course. This presentation covered acute and chronic management of stress using EAT SWEAT THRIVE principles and 1% solutions.
During our second engagement of the year we focused on implementing a performance plan for crew members of an aviation battalion, with the goal to improve job efficiency and reduce injury risk. Soldiers in attendance also received a nutritional presentation on proper quality, quantity, and timing from our registered dietitian. This performance plan has opened new doors for Readiness Assessments (RA), presentations, ACFT clinics, and more to come in the near future.
As a part of our continued engagement with the Recruit Sustainment Program (RSP) we ran incoming and returning recruits through an RA to get baseline or follow-up data, respectively. On this same day, RSP privates crushed an early morning PT session, which included exercises to train up for the ACFT. Now that we’ve delivered hands-on instruction on these specific movements, we can easily incorporate these exercises into a training plan with the privates. As a performance team, our 1 on 1 involvement with Soldiers is continually increasing and our calendars are filling up with presentations, assessments, and training for the coming month.
Washington D.C. Fire Department—
Ryan Glaize and Conner Freeland, On-site Specialists with DC Fire & EMS:
The DC Fire O2X Team is off to a great start in 2022 with a very productive January. Our goal has been to increase the quality of recruit and cadet training, visit more firehouses, and continue our outreach into the department. We have done this by getting more involved with each other’s scope of practice. Weekly, all four On-site Specialists are interacting with each class to aid in coaching, teaching, or providing therapy. Our “Whiteboard Wednesdays” have been a huge hit, as classes receive 45 minutes of educational sessions regarding nutrition, recovery, and overall performance. These sessions are often interactive and involve recruits learning to cook nutritious meals or put themselves through manual therapy.
As we continue to see an increased desire for group workouts, cooking demos, manual therapy, and consultations, we continue to complete more firehouse visits. We made more than 20 visits this month, visiting all six battalions at least twice.
Our biggest win of the month came from the completion of a build-out project with Sorinex equipment. The Apparatus Shop’s weight room underwent a massive upgrade with brand new equipment. The centerpiece of the gym is the Apex Rack that has bumper plate storage, moveable pull-up bars, three pulley systems, and the capability for more customizations. The gym also received a three tiered rack with 5lbs – 100lbs of dumbbells, leg press machine, assault bike, rower, and benches. This is the first build-out that O2X has been involved with, and we hope to complete many more like this in the future, starting with Engine 23 this February.
Arlington County Fire Department—
Trevor Sheasley, On-site Specialist with Arlington County Fire Department:
January started with several winter storms that affected the DC area, leading to altered work schedules. Thanks to our Human Performance App, Trevor was able to distribute training to the department with no interruption. ACFD personnel have reported the app making workouts “convenient” and “easy to follow.” This has eliminated barriers that were preventing some personnel from getting into the station’s fitness center and training.
In January ACFD put out its own station cookbook. This cookbook was a collaborative effort between the Health and Safety team, Clare Sabio, Tim Perkins, Trevor Sheasley, and several other members of ACFD. Clare Sabio headed this project and delivered a phenomenal product that will simplify the purchase of healthy ingredients with easy to follow preparation instructions. The cookbook has been designed with recipes that are simple to understand, easy to clean, and modifiable for the addition of future recipes. Immediately after being placed in the Firehouses members were utilizing this great tool. The feedback has been extremely positive with some stations taking the challenge of cooking every recipe over the next year.
Frederick County Fire Department—
Kayla Schmit, On-site Specialist with Frederick Co. Fire Department:
Over the month of January, O2X has been focusing on providing the highest quality of impact while we remain virtual for most of the training days. New weekly “O2X Presentations” have started, and the main focus of these is to reach as many people as possible to have the most impact. This allows Kayla to quickly and efficiently share weekly tips on health and human performance to the whole department.
The new customized O2X App feature has been gaining users and has allowed Kayla to create and distribute custom workout programs, individual exercises, or return to work programs directly to individuals or the Department as a whole. This has also allowed Kayla to continue conducting virtual nutrition consultations and giving recommendations, and conducting live webinars on various topics that are streamed department-wide. Kayla has been able to push out recipe ideas, workouts, and share new recipes for healthy protein packed snacks. This update has been helpful with maintaining a consistent presence while remaining virtual due to current restrictions.
