Portland Fire & Rescue's (PF&R) Training Academy is demanding, both mentally and physically. Firefighter recruits should not expect to get into shape at the academy; they should come prepared for the physical fitness required.

Firefighting is a physically demanding profession.  Firefighters must be able to perform strenuous physical activities for extended durations in heated environments.  PF&R demands that their firefighters are in good health and are physically capable of doing the job.

Firefighter recruits will participate in physical training wearing full turnouts to simulate fire-ground operations. Turnouts and a Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) weigh about 50 pounds, which provides additional stress and heat to the firefighter.

In addition to bimonthly physical agility testing and daily drill ground evolutions, recruits will participate in daily physical conditioning;

Run 10 towers in full turnouts (1 tower is 6 flights)

Tower circuit in full turnouts

• 6th Floor - 10 pushups
• 3rd Floor - 20 body weight squats
• 1st Floor - 5 burpees
• Repeat the circuit 6-10 times
• 2 to 4 mile run 
• Circuit training, one minute at each station
• Station 1: Sledge hammer the tire
• Station 2: Wall ball shots
• Station 3: Renegade rows
• Station 4: Bear crawl 100 feet
• Station 5: Fan lift
• Station 6: Run a tower carrying hose bundle
• Rest for one minute
• Repeat the circuit 4-5 times