Document Type

Article

Publication Date

4-2023

Publication Title

Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research

Keywords

tactical, occupational, police, law enforcement, aging

Abstract

Research suggests that police officers lose fitness as a result of their policing vocation with occupational factors like stress, shift work, poor sleep, and poor diet all contributors to this loss The purpose of this research was to measure changes in fitness test scores of qualified police officers over a 5-year period. Archived fitness data for 523 state patrol officers (n = 494 men; 29 women) from one agency were used for this analysis. These tests included 60-second sit-up [SU] and push-up [PU] scores (muscular endurance), vertical jump height [VJ] (lower-body power), and 20-m multistage fitness test (aerobic capacity). A series of paired-samples t-tests and effect size calculations were used to investigate mean differences in fitness tests score at the beginning and end of a 5-year period. The paired-samples t test showed significant tests score decreases among male officers over the 5-year period in VJ, PU, and VO2max,, with no differences observed in SU performance. Small effect sizes were observed in both VJ (g = −0.20) and PU (g = −0.27) with a trivial effect size observed in changes to VO2max (g = −0.14). In contrast, significant improvements in performance were observed in SU performance among female officers, with a small effect size (g = 0.38). No other significant differences were found in female measures. Whether at an organizational or individual level, annual fitness assessments for police officers can serve to educate and motivate officers regarding their personal fitness and potentially slow the negative impact of aging on health, fitness, and performance in these populations.

DOI

10.1519/JSC.0000000000004327

Comments

This is the final peer-reviewed manuscript of an article published in Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research 37, no. 4 (April 2023): 881-886. DOI: 10.1519/JSC.0000000000004327.

Available for download on Thursday, January 02, 2025

Included in

Kinesiology Commons

Share

COinS