Starting at 7 a.m., first-, second- and third-year apprentices at the IBEW-NECA Technical Institute in Alsip, Ill., spend 30 minutes walking the perimeter of the campus, then drop in the parking lot for calisthenics—squats, lunges, knee bends and push-ups. They also do core-strengthening yoga poses such as planks and standing side planks.

For all three cohorts, physical training (PT) happens outside, in temperatures as low as 20ºF and on mostly clear days. When it’s raining heavily or extremely cold, PT happens in the school’s gymnasium, with apprentices walking the school’s wide hallways and dropping for exercise in the expansive vestibule and gym.

The practice started 20 years ago, but these days, it’s as important as ever.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one in three adults aged 18–24 is too overweight to serve in the military, which requires fitness levels similar to what’s needed to perform electrical work. 

Among young adults who meet healthy weight requirements, only three in four report doing physical activities that would prepare them for basic military training. 

“We’re not trying to make anybody into body builders,” said Gene Kent, IBEW-NECA Technical Institute executive director. “But we do want to get the blood circulating and get them used to moving. When they’re in the classroom, we don’t want them to lose the physical conditioning that would otherwise be taking place on the job.”

For first-year apprentices, the conditioning starts after orientation and continues through their 11 weeks of classroom training.

Before signing the dotted line, pre-apprentices complete a half hour of physical training and an hour of material handling, lifting and climbing to help them determine whether they are suited to work as an electrician. 

For second- and third-year apprentices, physical training carries through nine weeks of classroom instruction. 

“It’s especially important for me while I’m in school to make sure my body stays fit,” said third-year apprentice Drew O’Bryan of Chicago, appearing invigorated just moments after a PT session in the school parking lot. 

“This keeps you sharp for the field,” said Noah Safe, a third-year apprentice of Tinley Park, Ill. “I like to keep moving, and this helps you keep moving while learning.” 

At 35, Mikhail Goutkin-Lopez, also a third-year apprentice, described himself as older than most of the more than 100 apprentices training at the school that morning.

“My body is not as limber as it once was,” he said. “The core exercises and stretching really help in the work setting and outside of it, because I could just bend over to pick up something for one of my kids and put my back out. It’s also harder for me to get to the gym after the class ends at 3:30. Usually, I have to go get my kids.” 

All three apprentices said they appreciated the yoga moves. One even said the contractor he works for insists yoga helped to restore movement and flexibility for two employees who had suffered back injuries. 

It’s a physical job

As a sort of mini boot camp, a half-hour of PT also jump-starts orientation day for recently accepted apprentices who haven't officially signed on. An hour of material handling, climbing and carrying bundles of conduit follows.

“We tell them, ‘This is just an hour and a half. Think of doing this 8 hours a day,’” Kent said. “We don’t want to weed them out, but this is their chance to decide if working in this industry is right for them.” 

Following the orientation, new recruits must decide whether to pay for the required general and industry-specific physicals. The more specific physical includes being able to lift certain weights to waist height, crawl through a 2-foot-by-2-foot square—necessary for entering ceilings—and feel comfortable climbing and looking down from a 30-foot scaffold.

“That’s important, because much of the work they will be expected to do is performed at heights,” Kent said.

“I basically tell them, ‘Don’t give us your $500 if you’re not willing to do the physical parts of this job. Ask yourself, ‘do I want to do this for the next 40 years of my life?’” Kent said. “In the long run, we lose much fewer people, because those who decide to stay on know they can handle the physical demands of the work.”

Header image: Third-year apprentices start their class day with a half hour of walking, calisthenics and core-strengthening yoga at the IBEW-NECA Technical Institute in Alsip, Ill.

All photos by Susan DeGrane