The effect of general duty police ensemble on graded exercise and simulated work performance

Abstract

This 2-part study examined the impact of general duty police ensemble on selected cardiopulmonary responses during incremental treadmill exercise and on simulated work performance in 25 healthy young male and female participants. Part I comprised randomly ordered treadmill tests in 2 experimental conditions: physical training (PT; undergarments, shorts, t-shirt, and running shoes) and police duty ensemble (PDE; undergarments, body armour, patrol uniform, boots, duty belt with required equipment, radio, and weapons). The PDE added 10.3 kg (SD 0.4) or 14% (SD 2) body mass. Participants walked at 5.6 km·h−1, starting at 0% grade with 2% increases in grade every 2 min. The 4% stage was 6 min in duration to achieve physiological steady state. Subsequently, the 2-min increments continued to exhaustion. Part II evaluated performance time on a recognized job-related work simulation circuit, in 3 experimental conditions: (i) PT, (ii) weighted belt (WB; PT plus a 7.5 kg weighted belt), and (iii) PDE. In Part I, physiological responses (e.g., oxygen uptake, ventilation, heart rate) were elevated (p < 0.05) with PDE during submaximal exercise but peak values were unchanged. Test duration and peak power output were significantly reduced with PDE. In Part II, circuit completion time was increased in PDE but not WB when compared with PT (p < 0.05). Heart rate and perceived exertion were similar in all conditions and perceived dyspnea was higher in PDE. Novelty Police duty ensemble negatively affected exercise performance more than would be expected due to load mass alone. Specificity must be considered when simulating occupational load carriage.