Body composition and physical capabilities of newly admitted police officers: changes during a training course

Abstract

Purpose. To investigate the changes that occur to body composition and physical fitness of newly admitted military police officers that undergo a training course involving a 24 weeks of physical training. Methods. One-hundred and seven male police officers were evaluated before, after 12 weeks, and after 24 weeks of physical training. Body mass, fat mass, fat-free mass, fat percentage and body mass index were measured. Physical capabilities of strength (push-ups), muscle resistance (sit-ups), handgrip strength, and aerobic capacity (VO2 max) were also measured. Results. An Anova with repeated measurements showed that after 24 weeks, there was a decrease (p < 0.01) of fat mass and fat percentage, and an increase (p < 0.01) in fat-free mass, number of push-ups, handgrip strength, and VO2 max. Most of the dependent variables already showed the best values in week 12. Conclusions. Positive changes were observed in the body composition, aerobic capacity, and muscle strength of newly admitted military police officers at the end of 24 weeks of physical training, applied during the Soldier Training Course, compared to the beginning. However, the improvements occurred up to 12 weeks, with no new improvements after this, suggesting that modifications to the physical training are necessary.