Fitness Fights Fires: Exploring the Relationship between Physical Fitness and Firefighter Ability

<i>Background</i><i>:</i> Regular exercise in firefighters may be effective in preventing or attenuating ill health (e.g., hypertension, diabetes, and obesity), as well as improving their firefighting ability. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship betw...

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Autores principales:	Annmarie Chizewski, Allyson Box, Richard Kesler, Steven J. Petruzzello
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	MDPI AG 2021
Materias:	fitness firefighters health Medicine R
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/6b49ff80d9544f2aaa0d3e491569cce7
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:6b49ff80d9544f2aaa0d3e491569cce72021-11-25T17:47:49ZFitness Fights Fires: Exploring the Relationship between Physical Fitness and Firefighter Ability10.3390/ijerph1822117331660-46011661-7827https://doaj.org/article/6b49ff80d9544f2aaa0d3e491569cce72021-11-01T00:00:00Zhttps://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/22/11733https://doaj.org/toc/1661-7827https://doaj.org/toc/1660-4601<i>Background</i><i>:</i> Regular exercise in firefighters may be effective in preventing or attenuating ill health (e.g., hypertension, diabetes, and obesity), as well as improving their firefighting ability. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between physical fitness and firefighting ability. <i>Methods</i>: Male firefighter recruits’ (<i>n</i> = 89; age = 27.1 ± 4.2 yrs) physical fitness and firefighting ability were assessed at Week 1 and Week 7 during a basic firefighting training academy. Physical fitness was assessed via 1.5 mile run time, sit-up and push-up repetitions, the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) bench press test, vertical jump height, and sit-and-reach flexibility, while firefighting ability was assessed via completion time on a firefighting skills test. <i>Results:</i> Fitness predicted significant variance in firefighting ability at Week 1 (<i>R</i><sup>2</sup><i>=</i> 0.46; <i>p</i> < 0.01) and Week 7 (<i>R</i><sup>2</sup> = 0.46; <i>p</i> < 0.01), after accounting for age and body mass index. Cardiovascular endurance accounted for 22.4% (<i>F</i>Δ (1, 85) = 25.75) and 39.3% (<i>F</i>Δ (1, 85) = 55.53) while muscular endurance accounted for an additional 19.0% (<i>F</i>Δ (3, 82) = 10.34) and 6.3% (<i>F</i>Δ (3, 82) = 3.2) unique variance in firefighting ability at Week 1 and Week 7, respectively. <i>Conclusions:</i> Given the strong association between fitness and firefighting performance, municipal departments may want to focus on increasing fitness levels among firefighters.Annmarie ChizewskiAllyson BoxRichard KeslerSteven J. PetruzzelloMDPI AGarticlefitnessfirefightershealthMedicineRENInternational Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, Vol 18, Iss 11733, p 11733 (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	fitness firefighters health Medicine R
spellingShingle	fitness firefighters health Medicine R Annmarie Chizewski Allyson Box Richard Kesler Steven J. Petruzzello Fitness Fights Fires: Exploring the Relationship between Physical Fitness and Firefighter Ability
description	<i>Background</i><i>:</i> Regular exercise in firefighters may be effective in preventing or attenuating ill health (e.g., hypertension, diabetes, and obesity), as well as improving their firefighting ability. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between physical fitness and firefighting ability. <i>Methods</i>: Male firefighter recruits’ (<i>n</i> = 89; age = 27.1 ± 4.2 yrs) physical fitness and firefighting ability were assessed at Week 1 and Week 7 during a basic firefighting training academy. Physical fitness was assessed via 1.5 mile run time, sit-up and push-up repetitions, the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) bench press test, vertical jump height, and sit-and-reach flexibility, while firefighting ability was assessed via completion time on a firefighting skills test. <i>Results:</i> Fitness predicted significant variance in firefighting ability at Week 1 (<i>R</i><sup>2</sup><i>=</i> 0.46; <i>p</i> < 0.01) and Week 7 (<i>R</i><sup>2</sup> = 0.46; <i>p</i> < 0.01), after accounting for age and body mass index. Cardiovascular endurance accounted for 22.4% (<i>F</i>Δ (1, 85) = 25.75) and 39.3% (<i>F</i>Δ (1, 85) = 55.53) while muscular endurance accounted for an additional 19.0% (<i>F</i>Δ (3, 82) = 10.34) and 6.3% (<i>F</i>Δ (3, 82) = 3.2) unique variance in firefighting ability at Week 1 and Week 7, respectively. <i>Conclusions:</i> Given the strong association between fitness and firefighting performance, municipal departments may want to focus on increasing fitness levels among firefighters.
format	article
author	Annmarie Chizewski Allyson Box Richard Kesler Steven J. Petruzzello
author_facet	Annmarie Chizewski Allyson Box Richard Kesler Steven J. Petruzzello
author_sort	Annmarie Chizewski
title	Fitness Fights Fires: Exploring the Relationship between Physical Fitness and Firefighter Ability
title_short	Fitness Fights Fires: Exploring the Relationship between Physical Fitness and Firefighter Ability
title_full	Fitness Fights Fires: Exploring the Relationship between Physical Fitness and Firefighter Ability
title_fullStr	Fitness Fights Fires: Exploring the Relationship between Physical Fitness and Firefighter Ability
title_full_unstemmed	Fitness Fights Fires: Exploring the Relationship between Physical Fitness and Firefighter Ability
title_sort	fitness fights fires: exploring the relationship between physical fitness and firefighter ability
publisher	MDPI AG
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/6b49ff80d9544f2aaa0d3e491569cce7
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Fitness Fights Fires: Exploring the Relationship between Physical Fitness and Firefighter Ability

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