From the Fireground to the Gym: Apply the “AAR Approach” to Your Firefighter Fitness
By Ryan Provencher
Learn how to measure performance in your firefighter workouts using the AAR approach. Track both how you feel and how you perform to drive meaningful progress in the gym and improve your readiness on the job.
Part 6 in the 6-Part “Firefighter Peak Performance: Fitness Plan Framework” Series.
Catch up on previous posts:
Part 1: Your Fitness Action Plan
Part 4: 4 Tactics to Build Strength, Resilience, and Real-World Readiness
Part 5: A Firefighter’s Guide to Choosing Job-Specific Exercises
In the Fire Service, the Job Doesn’t End When the Fire’s Out
We regroup. We review. We write the report.
The After Action Report (AAR) helps us assess performance, capture lessons learned, and improve future response.
Your firefighter fitness deserves the same level of accountability.
Just like an AAR improves response on the fireground, scoring your workouts enhances performance in the gym and on the job. It provides a framework for reflection, adjustment, and growth.
Because you can’t improve what you don’t measure.
Scoring means tracking both how the workout felt (subjective) and how you performed (objective)—so you can learn, adapt, and make steady progress.
Scoring the Workout Is Part of the Workout
Tracking performance isn’t just about numbers—it’s about awareness.
Scoring your workouts gives you a baseline and a feedback loop, helping you reduce injury risk and make meaningful progress in your training.
At Firefighter Peak Performance, we use two types of metrics to evaluate every session:
Intentional Training Metrics – Subjective measures based on how you feel and function
Intentional Scoring Metrics – Objective measures based on the work you do and how you perform
Together, these tools help you assess your internal experience and physical output during each training session. Use them the same way you would analyze a fireground incident: with purpose, reflection, and a commitment to improvement.
Intentional Training Metrics (Subjective Awareness)
Intentional Training Metrics are subjective measurements that help you evaluate how you feel and function during training.
Developing awareness and mindfulness in your workouts helps reduce injury risk and optimize performance—both in the gym and on the job.
Each of the following Training Metrics are measured on a 10 point scale:
Movement Rating (Movement Quality)
This rating reflects your form, control, and stability during each exercise.
10 – Excellent form; strong and stable
8 – Good form; minor corrections needed
6 – Satisfactory; needs improvement
4 or below – Poor; performance compromised
Goal: Always aim for 8 or higher. Use the “6-Point Self-Check” to monitor and correct movement in real time. Never sacrifice movement quality to achieve a workout goal.
Progress: Performing at the same level of challenge with a higher Movement Rating or at a higher level of challenge with the same Movement Rating, never dipping below 8/10.
Intensity Rating (Rate of Perceived Exertion - RPE)
This rating reflects your perceived effort during a session.
9–10 – Max effort; unsustainable
7–8 – Challenging but manageable
5–6 – Moderate; controlled effort
3–4 – Light; warm-up or recovery
Goal: Learn what different intensity levels feel like and train in the right zone for your goal. Adjust load, tempo, or volume as needed.
Progress: Achieve the same work at a lower Intensity Rating or complete more work at the same Intensity Rating.
Managing your effort under stress helps conserve energy and prevent burnout. Pair with heart rate monitoring for real-time feedback.
Discomfort Rating (Pain Scale)
Discomfort is your body’s “Check Engine Light”—a signal to pay attention, not a cue to push through pain.
0–2 – No or very minor discomfort
3–4 – Mild and tolerable
5–6 – Moderate and distracting
7+ – High or severe; stop immediately
Goal: Train hard, but train smart. Never push through pain to meet a goal.
Progress: Reduce or eliminate discomfort over time. If pain persists, adjust your plan or consult a physician.
Focus Rating (Cognitive Function)
Stress can reduce mental clarity and cause tunnel vision. This rating reflects your ability to stay focused when working at a higher intensity.
10 – Laser-focused
8 – Present and aware
6 – Occasionally distracted
4 or below – Easily distracted; reduced performance
Goal: Maintain strong focus even under fatigue.
Progress: Improve focus over time, completing cognitive tasks with precision as stress and intensity increase.
Train cognitive function by completing mental tasks like radio size-ups or hydraulic calculations during or after your workout.
Dexterity Rating (Fine Motor Control)
Fatigue and stress can impair coordination and fine motor skills.
10 – No errors; full control
8 – Minor errors; still effective
6 – Acceptable but not optimal
4 or below – Frequent mistakes or poor coordination
Goal: Maintain coordination and control as fatigue sets in.
Progress: Sustain or improve fine motor control as intensity or duration increases.
Practice knot-tying, hose coupling, or tool handling during or after your workout to simulate fine motor demands under stress.
Tracking these values may feel cumbersome at first, but your ability to monitor them intuitively will improve with practice. Apply these same metrics during training evolutions and emergency response tasks to optimize performance.
Intentional Scoring Metrics (Objective Performance Data)
Intentional Scoring Metrics establish a performance baseline by measuring objective data points such as duration, load, volume, and intensity. They guide your training and track progress over time, helping you make adjustments as needed to ensure steady improvement.
Each of the following metrics may be used to evaluate performance in your physical training:
Total Time (Duration)
What It Measures: The time it takes to complete the assigned work.
Progress: Complete the same work in less time, or complete more work in the same amount of time.
Total Weight (Load)
What It Measures: The combined weight of the tools used (excluding bodyweight) in your training session.
Progress: Complete more volume with the same weight, or the same volume with more weight.
Repetitions (Exercise Volume)
What It Measures: Repetitions completed with proper form.
Progress: Increase the total number of reps with the same load, or maintain reps while increasing load or exercise complexity.
Lowest Exercise Level (Complexity)
What It Measures: The degree of complexity or challenge of a specific exercise series/family.
Progress: Perform more work in the same exercise, or the same work in a more advanced version of the exercise.
Total Rounds Completed (Workout Volume)
What It Measures: Full rounds completed with safe technique and no discomfort.
Progress: Complete more rounds at the same challenge, or maintain your total rounds while increasing the difficulty of the workout.
Heart Rate (Intensity)
What It Measures: Heart rate during training, which reflects the intensity of your effort as a percentage of your max heart rate.
Progress: Complete the same work at a lower heart rate, or more work at the same heart rate.
Final Heart Rate (Recovery)
What It Measures: Your heart rate one minute post-exercise, indicating how quickly your body begins to recover.
Progress: A faster drop in heart rate after exercise signals improved cardiovascular fitness and recovery capacity. The quicker your heart rate returns to baseline, the better your conditioning.
Use a heart rate monitor for more accurate tracking during and after workouts.
Tracking objective metrics like duration, load, volume, and heart rate allows you to measure performance and guide your progress.
These numbers help you identify trends, adjust your training, and build the physical capacity needed to meet the demands of the job.
Train With Intention: Reflect. Adjust. Improve.
In firefighting operations, the After Action Report isn’t just a box to check—it’s a tool for continuous improvement.
Your physical training deserves that same level of purpose and reflection.
Scoring your workout is your personal AAR. It’s the moment you pause, assess, and adjust. When you track how you feel (subjective) and how you perform (objective), every session becomes a step forward—not just in the gym, but on the job.
I’ve seen this mindset deliver real results—especially in recruit academy, where structure and feedback are essential. Recruits who consistently log their sessions, rate their effort, and reflect on progress adapt faster, recover better, and build a stronger connection between training and operational readiness.
When you score your workouts, you build:
Awareness – Know how your body and mind are responding
Accountability – Stay on track and make purposeful adjustments
Progress – Measure growth over time
Readiness – Transfer your fitness to the fireground
It’s not about crushing every session—it’s about learning from each one.
Record it. Reflect on it. Apply what you learn.
Then show up more confident, more capable, and ready to take on each shift.