Firefighter Physical Fitness Research Articles

Physical fitness profile of a large urban fire department: Exploring age and rank dynamics.

Firefighter physical fitness (PF) plays a crucial role in mitigating health issues and supporting occupational performance. The influence of rank on firefighter PF remains understudied and previous research is often limited by small sample sizes of firefighters volunteering for research studies, potentially biasing results towards fitter firefighters not representative of entire departments. To examine the PF profile of firefighters in a large urban fire department and the influence of age and rank on PF. Data, including muscular fitness, estimated aerobic capacity (VO2max), and body fat percentage (BF%) measures from 1361 firefighters (90% male; age: 37.4±10.1yrs; 60 recruits, 973 firefighters, 290 lieutenants/captains, 38 chiefs) were analyzed. Correlation and ANCOVAs were conducted to examine the impact of rank on PF while controlling for age. Score distributions were scrutinized to profile the PF of the department. Age was negatively associated with pull-ups (r = - 0.39), sit-ups (r = - 0.39), and push-ups (r = - 0.32), but positively associated with relative VO2max (r = 0.17) and BF% (r = 0.39). Rank had a statistically significant, but trivial effect size, on pull-ups (p = 0.028, η2 = 0.007) and sit-ups (p = 0.034, η2 = 0.005). Firefighters with lower PF levels were older, had higher BF%, lower fat-free mass, and were a greater proportion of females. Firefighters exhibited diverse levels of PF. Age, not rank, appeared to influence firefighters' PF. The findings that firefighters who were older, female, with poorer body composition are more likely to have lower PF levels highlights the need for individualized PF training to enhance occupational performance and health across the fire department.

Analysis of Exercise Intensity Based on Cardiorespiratory Response in a Virtual Reality-Based Exercise Program for Firefighter Physical Fitness Enhancement

OBJECTIVES Current regulations for Korean firefighters primarily emphasize exercise during working hours without specifying particular exercise methods. This study aims to evaluate the exercise intensity of the stepwise Korean Firefighter Fitness Program (KFFP) using Kinect-based mixed reality device (Virtual mate, VM), considering the demanding 24-hour shift work and high physical strength requirements. The objective is to assess its potential as one of the exercise methods and provide valuable insights.METHODS CResearchers recruited 30 participants to evaluate the exercise intensity based on the cardiopulmonary responses induced by the Stepwise Korean Firefighter Fitness Program (KFFP) using Virtual Mate (VM). Initially, the participants' resting heart rate, maximum heart rate (HR<sub>max</sub>), and maximum oxygen consumption (VO<sub>2max</sub>) were measured. Subsequently, researchers monitored the participants' cardiopulmonary responses by employing portable gas analyzers and wireless heart rate monitors while implementing the Stepwise KFFP with VM. Exercise intensity related to cardiopulmonary responses was recorded using both absolute parameters (VO<sub>2</sub>, HR) and relative parameters (%VO<sub>2max</sub>, %HRR, %HR). Researchers utilized repeated measures analysis of variance for statistical analysis.RESULTS The analysis of the stepwise KFFP using VM showed significant increases all parameters as the program advanced(<i>p</i><.001). VO<sub>2</sub> increased from around 19.4 ml/kg/min in Step 1 to approximately 22.8 ml/ kg/min in Step 3. Similarly, %HRR rose from roughly 40.6% in Step 1 to about 53.9% in Step 3.CONCLUSIONS Upon evaluating the stepwise KFFP based on the exercise intensity levels recommended by ACSM, it is confirmed that the stepwise KFFP using VM comprises both moderate-intensity and highintensity exercises. This approach is deemed effective and can serve as a fitness management method for firefighters working in 24-hour shift patterns that demand high fitness levels.

A Study on the Preliminary Validity Analysis of Korean Firefighter Job-Related Physical Fitness Test.

The purpose of this study is to revise and modify the firefighter job-related performance tests from overseas to implement into the circumstances in Korea, examine its validity by analyzing the level of association between the test employed in the ongoing firefighter selection process, and propose a Korean firefighter job-related physical fitness test. Therefore, a modified version of Candidate Physical Ability Test (CPAT) from the United States firefighter selection process was conducted on 28 male firefighter officer candidates. Recorded results from VO2max, heart rate, blood lactate, anaerobic power test, and the ongoing Korean firefighter physical fitness test were analyzed to assess the validity of the modified test. IBM SPSS Statistics Ver. 27.0 was employed for the data correlation analysis in different fitness factors and the total circuit physical test time. The results revealed the proposed modified firefighter job-related physical fitness test showed significant correlation with VO2max (r = −0.450, p < 0.05), METS (r = −0.735, p < 0.01) recovery lactate over 15 min (r = −0.460, p < 0.05), peak power (r = −0.484, p < 0.05), average power (r = −0.647, p < 0.01), and in the ongoing firefighter physical fitness test, grip strength (r = −0.709, p < 0.01), lower back strength (r = −0.681, p < 0.01), standing long jump (r = −0.618, p < 0.01), sit-ups (r = −0.397, p < 0.05), and shuttle run (r = −0.523, p < 0.01). Fitness factors including VO2max, recovery lactate, anaerobic power, muscular strength, and so forth known to play a crucial role in firefighting operations were also shown to be important in the modified firefighter job-related physical fitness test. However, we suggest that studies with a larger sample size are needed in order to generalize our findings.

Relationship between Firefighter Physical Fitness and Special Ability Performance: Predictive Research Based on Machine Learning Algorithms.

Firefighters require a high level of physical fitness to meet the demands of their job. The correlations and contributions of individual physical health parameters to the tasks of firefighting would enable firefighters to focus on the effects of specific physical conditions during their physical training programs. Therefore, the purpose of the present study was to identify the relationships between various physical health parameters (weight, maximum oxygen uptake, body fat percentage, upper body muscular power and lower body muscular power) and performance on simulated firefighting ability tasks, which included a set of seven tasks (rope climb, run 200 m round trip with load, 60 m carrying a ladder, climb stairs with load, evacuation of 400 m with supplies, run 5 km with an air respirator, run 100 m with the water hose). Through use of a partial least-squares regression (PLSR) algorithm to analyze the linear correlation, we revealed the change in various training performances of specific ability tests with physical fitness parameters. The present study demonstrated significant relationships among physical health parameters and performance on simulated firefighting ability tasks, which also represent that those parameters contributed significantly to the model’s predictive power and were suitable predictors of the simulated firefighting tasks score.

What do Firefighting Ability Tests Tell Us About Firefighter Physical Fitness? A Systematic Review of the Current Evidence.

Fyock-Martin, MB, Erickson, EK, Hautz, AH, Sell, KM, Turnbaugh, BL, Caswell, SV, and Martin, JR. What do firefighting ability tests tell us about firefighter physical fitness? A systematic review of the current evidence. J Strength Cond Res 34(7): 2093-2103, 2020-The firefighting profession is a physiologically demanding occupation. Currently, sudden cardiac deaths account for 40-50% of firefighter job-related deaths, for which, inadequate aerobic fitness (AF) and obesity are established as risk factors. Departments have instituted firefighting physical ability tests (FPATs) as a method of quantifying readiness for occupational-related demands. A systematic review of the current literature examining the correlation between field fitness test performance and FPAT completion times was performed. The search identified 5 studies that met the eligibility criteria. The total number of subjects in the 5 studies was 265 (259 men and 6 women), including 200 professional firefighters (75.5%), 40 volunteer (15.1%), 20 officers (7.5%), and 5 recruits (1.9%). Upper-body strength (UBs) and upper-body endurance (UBe) had the strongest correlation to FPATs (r = -0.31 to -0.66; R = 0.10 to 0.44 and r = -0.27 to -0.61; R = 0.07 to 0.37; p < 0.05, respectively). Two studies suggested that AF has a weak-to-moderate relationship with FPATs (r = 0.38 and r = -0.62). Two studies showed that anaerobic capacity had weak-to-strong correlations with FPATs (r = -0.40 and r = 0.79; R = 0.16 to 0.62; p < 0.05). No studies found a statistically significant correlation between lower-body strength and FPAT performance. Further research is needed to better understand the role of field-based fitness test results on FPAT performance. An annual department-driven multicomponent fitness assessment measuring UBs, UBe, anaerobic capacity, and AF is recommended based on the evidence reviewed.

The Impact of Firefighter Physical Fitness on Job Performance: A Review of the Factors That Influence Fire Suppression Safety and Success

Purpose: The objective of this review was to analyze the physiological impact of fire suppression on the human body. Design: The literature review included studies focused on workload requirements for common firefighting tasks, effect of health status on the firefighting profession, and attempts to establish a minimum physiological workload capacity for successful performance of firefighting. Findings: The existing literature provides evidence of the high degree of physiological stress that firefighters are under during fire suppression tasks and the great degree of maximal physical capacity that firefighting often requires. Firefighters often operate close to maximal aerobic capacity while performing tasks common to the profession. This is especially true due to the added physiological stress placed on the human body while wearing personal protective equipment during firefighting. Conclusions: Future investigations are necessary to further explore markers of physiological stress during firefighting and the impact that it may have on the ability to withstand the development of disease as well as fire suppression safety. Using completion time of fire suppression tasks as a criterion of success may be an important consideration in addition to the physiological requirements of the occupation when assessing the appropriateness of an individual to be a firefighter. An important future consideration is the effect that fire suppression activities may have on reaction time in critical situations in which life-and-death decisions must be made.

Variability in performance on a work simulation test of physical fitness for firefighters.

The Canadian Forces Firefighter Physical Fitness Maintenance Evaluation (FF PFME) requires firefighters in full fire-protective ensemble, including self-contained breathing apparatus, to correctly complete 10 work-related tasks on a measured and calibrated course. Fitness for duty is inferred from completion time of the course. We hypothesized that completion time may be dependent on pacing strategy and day-to-day fluctuations in biological function. To examine variability in performance, 20 females and 31 males (mean ± SD; age, 27.6 ± 10.5 years; height, 176.7 ± 8.3 cm; mass, 77.3 ± 13.4 kg) were familiarized with the FF PFME and then completed the test on 6 separate days. Pre-test behaviours (e.g., sleep, diet) and test conditions (e.g., calibration, time of day) were consistent. Repeated-measures ANOVA revealed a significant decrease in completion time between tests 1 and 6 (18.7%) and between all sequential pairs (e.g., tests 1 and 2). There was also a small but significant increase in the fraction of total test time for task completion and a corresponding decrease in the time to transition between tasks. The performance improvements cannot be explained by differences in effort (heart rate and perceived exertion). Coefficient of variation for tests 1, 2, and 3 was 7% and for tests 4, 5, and 6 was 2.6%. The results indicate the importance of practice on performance and the potential for false-positive or false-negative decision errors if biological variability is not taken into account.

Establishment of performance standards and a cut-score for the Canadian Forces Firefighter Physical Fitness Maintenance Evaluation (FF PFME)

The Bookmark method for setting cut-scores was used to re-set the cut-score for the Canadian Forces Firefighter Physical Fitness Maintenance Evaluation (FF PFME). The time required to complete 10 tasks that together simulate a first-response firefighting emergency was accepted as a measure of work capacity. A panel of 25 Canadian Forces firefighter supervisors set cut-scores in three rounds. Each round involved independent evaluation of nine video work samples, where the times systematically increased from 400 seconds to 560 seconds. Results for Round 1 were discussed before moving to Round 2 and results for Round 2 were discussed before moving to Round 3. Accounting for the variability among panel members at the end of Round 3, a cut-score of 481 seconds (mean Round 3 plus 2 SEM) was recommended. Firefighters who complete the FF PFME in 481 seconds or less have the physical capacity to complete first-response firefighting work.

Professional Firefighter Physical Fitness And Dietary Practices

Professional Firefighter Physical Fitness And Dietary Practices