Firefighter Combat Challenge Record Breaker Outlines Nutrition Tips

Editor’s note: Tuesday, the second day of the NVFC’s National Firefighter Health Week, focuses on nutrition, an essential part of firefighter health and wellbeing. In the following article, FireRescue1 discusses good nutrition with Firefighter Juliet Draper, who has been with the Colorado Springs Fire Department since 1997 and is the women’s world-record holder in the Firefighter Combat Challenge.

Photo by Davol Firefighter Draper is a former World Police and Fire Games women’s powerlifting champion.

What is your general philosophy about nutrition?

One of balance. Each meal should have a variety of nutrients, colors, textures and flavors to insure we are getting all that Mother Nature has to offer. Food is the most effective supplement money can buy hands down. Many of us spend countless hours and dollars checking out the latest and greatest powder, pill or potion to enhance our performance. That money and effort would be much better spent ensuring we eat appropriate amounts of good, clean food.

How often have we heard someone complain about the price of a package of boneless skinless chicken? That same person won’t hesitate to spend 200 dollars for a 21-day supply of “huge cycle extreme” at the local supplement store. More often than not, the magic formula is something they read about in the latest issue of Mystery and Fiction. Here is the secret to performance nutrition: there is no secret! If all the food on your plate is one color, I guarantee something is missing, and I bet a months pay it’s a vegetable or a fruit.

Nutrition is a huge part of performance as a firefighter and an athlete. We must fuel the machine, or the machine won’t run. The things we need to look at are volume (how much), frequency (how often), and quality (how good). If we think of ourselves as finely tuned vehicles, this point becomes quite obvious. If we don’t fill our “tank” with the right fuel, at the right time, it won’t budge. If the radiator isn’t topped off, the engine will overheat.

Without proper lubrication, moving parts will seize. These are undeniable facts. The same holds true for our bodies. Certainly we can temporarily “push through” on some things because the human body is so adaptable to challenge. However, if we continue to ignore the “service engine light,” everything will eventually come to a screeching halt.

Do you think proper nutrition would help decrease the incidences of heart disease, diabetes and cancer among firefighters?

Proper nutrition can help us in the fight against heart disease, diabetes and other ailments common among fire folks. This is scientific fact proven by endless studies from across the globe. Though it is true there are genetic components to each of our individual biologies, there is less and less validity to the, “I am just big boned,” argument in the 21st century.

I have finally come to grips with the fact that yes, I am naturally taller, stronger and more muscular than the average female my age. This has been true for me since I was a small child, and my dad has the family photo album to back this up! What a high school gym teacher helped me realize one day was I could grow up to be “big, strong and athletic or big, weak and pathetic.” No matter what, I would grow to be big — the rest would be up to me. Yes, the depth of our individual genetic pool may make the fitness journey more or less difficult, but no matter what we can strive to improve.

Do you think proper nutrition would help decrease occupational stress?

Proper nutrition could help a ton in the battle against stress. One reason is that a proper nutrition plan helps alleviate the moody ups and downs of drastic insulin fluctuation. Are we any different from our children? We consciously avoid giving them sugary treats when it gets close to bedtime, yet we don’t hesitate to eat a monster desert late night at the station. How many times have we seen this scenario play itself out in the firehouse — big tough firefighters eat big bowls of ice cream. They feel giddy and happy for an hour, fall asleep in the recliner only to wake tired and irritable when insulin levels come crashing back down.

Good nutrition helps avoid the blood sugar highs and lows along with the irritability that accompanies them. Don’t get me wrong; it is okay to have treats on occasion. Total deprivation leads to chronic “bad attitude” and increases stress levels of not only the dieter but also everyone around them. The key to managing treats is planning. Make them infrequent, and ensure they are the perfect snack. When treat day rolls around, don’t settle for a package of stale doughnuts from the corner store. Make an event of it. Hop on your bicycle or throw on your walking shoes, and zip over to Krispy Kreme. Now not only have you earned the snack but also you will have truly satisfied your craving.

What do you think about diets that exclude specific items such as carbs or fats?

Related Resources

Focus on Nutrition By the NVFC

Nutrition Resources and Tips On NVFC.org

A balanced diet is essential to performance on the fire line and in life. We can refer to our vehicle analogy from before. In essence, no gas, no water, no oil, no go, period. As far as diets are concerned, all of them work, this is also fact. Many of us have seen the results with our coworkers, spouses or even ourselves. The problem comes in our ability to sustain these eating plans.

One of the keys to maintaining health and fitness is consistency. What we need to do is learn to read labels, figure out which nutrient does what, and how many of each we need to maintain, gain or reduce. Yes, you can lose weight on a high protein plan with minimal carbohydrates.

The question is can you do this for the rest of your life? Most people can’t. So you quit the program and go back to familiar eating habits that got you in the jackpot in the first place. Also, who wants to eat foods they don’t like day after day? Here’s a tip: don’t try to lose weight on foods you hate. If you would not voluntarily eat egg whites, don’t start now. It only adds to that funky attitude you are sharing with the rest of the world just because you’re on a program. Is this carte blanche to eat only cupcakes because you love them? Of course not. It only means we need to make choices that are good to us and good for us. What I have seen work quite well is adding and prioritizing new items rather than subtracting. Add more green leafy veggies and eat them first. Add 16 oz of water first thing in the morning before you stop at Starbucks. Add a piece of fresh fruit before you have the cookies. What inevitably happens is as you include more appropriate options and consume them first the other stuff simply falls off the plate.

Isn’t it all about portion control?

Portion control is a vital part of health and wellness. Some say, “Yeah, this morning for breakfast all I had was a bowl of cereal.” Really? First of all, that trough is not a bowl, and a quart of whole milk is a tad more than a serving. The label says ½ cup cereal with 8 oz. skim milk. Read the box and measure the proper serving. Let’s face it, eating an actual portion of food will be difficult for many of us at first. For the most part, we have no idea what a portion is. Read the labels of everything you eat for the next week.

Find out what a portion really looks like. Often what we thought of as a “single serving” bag is two or more portions. Sometimes you’ll hear, “I deserve a little extra ‘cause I worked out so hard.” Or, “that amount couldn’t feed a bird and I’m a big strong firefighter.” You would be surprised at how lean we can become just eating the correct portion. Meat should be the size and thickness of our palm, not the whole hand including fingers and thumb! A serving of cheese is the size of a pair of dice. A far cry from the three slices of deli deluxe we just put on that bacon burger. A portion of salad dressing is a whopping 2 tablespoons, not half the bottle.

Do people make comments and look at me funny when I’m measuring all the time? You bet they do. People also look at me funny and make comments when they see me in the gym or wearing a tank top and cut offs.

How does nutrition decrease inflammation, which is now considered a big culprit in metabolic syndrome and cancer?

Balanced nutrition is critical when attempting to minimize the impact of inflammation, which has recently been linked to a host of ailments such as diabetes, heart disease even some cancers. The catchphrase these days in the battle against inflammation is “anti-oxidants.” If we are not eating plenty of veggies and fruits, we are missing many of the vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients, which are nutrients from plants, that fall into the anti oxidant category. Things like green tea and juice supplements help but there are certainly things we don’t know about the benefits of a whole food item as opposed to its extracts.

What role does alcohol play in a nutritious diet?

Alcohol plays zero part in a balanced nutrition plan. You can say what about red wine for the stuff that keeps my heart healthy? Try eating the red grapes! The substance you are after is reservatrol, which is found in the skin of red grapes. Even unsweetened grape juice is better. Why? Because the fermented part of alcoholic beverages is toxic. This is why we feel the buzz of intoxicating beverages along with the hangover if we consume too much. We have all seen alcohol poisoning in the flesh, but I have never in my 17 years in the fire service run on a patient suffering from acute onset of fresh fruit. Besides, grapes are tasty, nutritious, and don’t carry seven empty calories per gram like a fine merlot.

It is okay if you feel the need to celebrate holidays and special occasions with a hearty toast. Let’s just be clear about one thing -- booze ain’t good for you, period. It is in the same category as any other non-essential food or beverage. Gotta have it? Leave it for the treat day, and please enjoy responsibly.

What about supplements?

Supplements are just that, items used in addition to an already effective nutrition plan. Things like protein powder, Gatorade, etc. are convenient and easily digested. They are great if you are on the go, or need to maintain during a super long effort. Bars and powders don’t need to be kept cold nor do they require much more prep than a little water or opening a wrapper.

However, supplements should never be the main focus of your plan. We can lose weight, increase performance, and hydrate ourselves all without a trip to the local supplement store. Also, next time you swill down one of those pre workout concoctions, read the label and know exactly what you are ingesting. If you’re not careful, it’s a bunch of sugar, caffeine, and maybe a few micrograms of the latest greatest nitric oxide enhancer. Here’s a hint: waste of money and calories.

Chances are you don’t weigh 250 lbs with single digit body fat, nor does your two-hour arm blast workout constitute a super long effort. That hearty 450 calories you just sucked down is going straight to your ab. Then, in an effort to take advantage of the magical post workout “anabolic window,” you’ll go home and guzzle an 18 billion calorie “mass” shake followed an hour later by whole food.

Here is another secret: if it says in the magazine ad that someone gained 10 pounds of “solid muscle” in less than three to five years, it is a bald faced lie! Substances that can “enhance” performance like that are not legally available over-the-counter in the U.S. Can supplements make a difference? Yes, but everything else must be in check before you notice lasting benefit.

The bottom line is when it comes to nutrition, keep it clean and colorful. Limit the junk to weekends or special occasions, and ensure 75 percent of your daily beverage intake is plain old water. Simple? Yes, and the longer you do it the easier it gets.