Fitness Levels of Firefighter Recruits Before and After a Supervised Exercise Training Program

Abstract

Federal law prohibits pre-employment physical examination of firefighter recruits, but these workers must perform intense exercise in arduous environments. Components of physical fitness of rookie firefighters (n ϭ 115; 104 men, mean Ϯ SD: age ϭ 28.3 Ϯ 4.3 years; height ϭ 1.76 Ϯ 0.07 m; weight ϭ 83.2 Ϯ 13.9 kg; percent body fat ϭ 17 Ϯ 8%) were measured upon being hired and following a 16-week exercise training program (1 h·d Ϫ1 , 3 d·wk Ϫ1 ) designed to improve physical fitness. Maximum aerobic capacity (V O 2 max) was estimated from submaximal cycle ergometry, body composition from skinfold tests, flexibility from a sit and reach test, strength by hand grip dynamometry, and muscle endurance by a push-up test. The results are as follows (*, p Յ 0.007 vs. pretraining): V O 2 max increased by 28% (35 Ϯ 7 to 45 Ϯ 6* ml·kg Ϫ1 ·min Ϫ1 , 88 Ϯ 20 to 113 Ϯ 17%* of predicted increase); muscle endurance increased (41 Ϯ 13 to 51 Ϯ 14* push-ups); flexibility increased (0.34 Ϯ 0.07 to 0.35 Ϯ 0.07* m); muscle strength tended to increase (102.9 Ϯ 18.7 to 105.4 Ϯ 18.7 kg, p ϭ 0.06); body weight tended to decrease (83.2 Ϯ 13.9 to 82.7 Ϯ 13.2 kg, p ϭ 0.06); lean tissue weight increased (68.8 Ϯ 9.9 to 69.9 Ϯ 9.5* kg); and fat weight decreased (14.6 Ϯ 8.0 to 13.0 Ϯ 7.1* kg). We concluded that aerobic capacity was 20% lower before training than that deemed sufficient for safe performance of fire suppression duties; that training improved aerobic capacity by 28%, decreased fat and increased lean tissue weight, and increased/ tended to increase other components of physical fitness. Prior to initiation of this training program, aerobic capacity of these firefighters was below that deemed appropriate for performing fire suppression duties. Training resulted in a large increase in aerobic capacity, so that the trainees ended the program with an aerobic capacity considered appropriate for fighting fires. It is hoped that the results of this study will encourage those who oversee workers who are responsible for the public's safety to mandate assessment of physical fitness of new hires, with mandatory participation in exercise training for those new hires who are found to possess less than appropriate aerobic capacity.

The Influence of Age on Aerobic Capacity and Health Indicators of Three Rescue Groups

“…A study of 115 urban firefighters showed that a physical exercise programme monitored by an expert over 16 weeks significantly increased V O2 max ; which rose by 28% [11]. Other studies on forest firefighters obtained 6% and 8% improvement in V O2 max after a 16-week training programme [9,10].…”

“…Other studies show that proper training can increase V O2 max of rescue groups by over 20% [9,10,11]. This fact is important for professions in which the intensity of actions and the demand for energy levels and muscular activity do not decrease with age.…”

Waist circumference and BMI are independently associated with the variation of cardio-respiratory and neuromuscular fitness in young adult men

“…Then the torso was lowered down to an elbow angle of 901. The result of this test was expressed as the number of push-ups during 60 s. 28,29 The entire test protocol took 2 h. Tests 1-4 were carried out during the first 30 min. A 30-min break followed after the maximal oxygen uptake test, and tests 6-10 were carried out during the last 30 min.…”

Physiological Determinants of the Candidate Physical Ability Test in Firefighters

“…For this reason, it has been difficult to design appropriate remedial intervention programs that make optimal improvements in the qualities most important for firefighting performance. Previous studies on firefighters have assessed factors most closely aligned with steady state work/exercise, i.e., aerobic metabolism (10,23,25,66,74,89), while little is known about the role of anaerobic energy sources during firefighting tasks (92).…”