Breathing Through The Burn: Tactical Breathing Workouts for First Responders

On this episode of Prep and Defend, host Chris Ruano—a wildland firefighter with over 25 years of field experience—shares a powerful training method tailored for first responders: breathing ladder workouts.

Chris takes the lessons learned from decades on the fireline and brings them to your workouts—integrating tactical breath control into lifting, hiking, running, and gear-intensive training. Whether you're climbing ridgelines with a pack or pushing through post-shift runs, you’ll learn how to regulate your breath, manage your heart rate, and stay mission-ready under physical stress.

This episode breaks down how to structure breathing ladder workouts, why they’re a game-changer for first responder tactical athletes, and how breathwork can unlock a new level of endurance, focus, and recovery.

♦️ Free Customized Periodized-Hybrid Training Guide

Our crazy First-Responder lifestyle makes it so difficult to improve our strength and physical performance.

Periodized-Hybrid Training is a unique year-round fitness strategy that I discovered through years of leading wildland fire crews as I struggled to stay prepared for fire-season not just once, but year after year.

By following this strategy, you’ll increase your strength and year-round performance, because its specially developed for the challenges and commitments of our first-responder lifestyle.