Author(s): NIMMERICHTER, A., PRINZ, B., ZÖGER, M., WIRTH, K., Institution: UNIVERSITY OF APPLIED SCIENCES WIENER NEUSTADT, Country: AUSTRIA, Abstract-ID: 280

INTRODUCTION:
Previous studies have shown that the COVID-19 restrictions had negative effects on physical activity and fitness. Law-enforcement officers are exposed to high levels of physical stress during their occupational tasks and required to quickly adapt from passive functions to situations where maximal physical exertion is needed. Physical fitness is therefore an essential component to be prepared to complete critical tasks. While most of the special-force staff are experienced officers between 30 to 50 years of age, regular recruitment of new trainees is required to ensure the operating capability of the unit. This study aimed to i) assess performance characteristics of cardiorespiratory endurance and upper- and lower-body strength over a 5-year period in special-police force officers, and to ii) compare these characteristics with newly recruited cadets.
METHODS:
Maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max) during a treadmill ramp-exercise test, one-repetition maximum (1-RM) of bench-press (BP), squats (SQ), latissimus-pull (LP) and leg-curl (LC) of 222 male officers (OLD) of the Austrian special-police forces COBRA and WEGA was assessed at four occasions: once before, twice during and once after the COVID-19 restrictions. A 2-way repeated-measure ANOVA was used to identify changes in OLD and to compare the results from 29 cadets (NEW) within the first 3-months after recruitment.
RESULTS:
There was a significant difference (p<0.001) in age between OLD (34.5±6.5 y) and NEW (30.3±3.8 y). Body mass (p=0.858) and percentage body fat (p=0.588) did not significantly change in OLD and were not significantly different from NEW (p=0.250; p=0.498). VO2max significantly decreased from 51±5 ml/min/kg in years 1+2 to 49±5 ml/min/kg in years 3+4 (p<0.001) with no significant difference to NEW (51±5 ml/min/kg; p=0.260). 1-RM for SQ was significantly lower in year 1 (115±26 kg; p<0.001) compared to years 2-4 (125-129 kg) and significantly different to NEW (136±17 kg; p=0.012). The 1-RM for LP was significantly lower in year 1 (81±13 kg; p<0.001) compared to years 2-4 (91-97 kg) with significant differences found for years 1+2 to NEW (102±12 kg; p<0.001). No significant changes over time or differences between OLD and NEW were observed for BP (104-108 kg, p=0.155; vs. 112±14 kg; p=0.135) and LC (64-65 kg, p=0.915; vs. 69±13 kg; p=0.074).
CONCLUSION:
The present study showed a significant decline in endurance performance during the COVID-19 restrictions. In contrast, upper- (LP) and lower-body (SQ) strength significantly improved. Since special forces were exposed to a constrained working and training environment (i.e. “bubble”) to enable maintenance of physical fitness, this interaction might be indicative of changes from outdoor to indoor activities as a result of the lockdown restrictions. Newly recruited cadets had higher 1-RM in SQ and LP compared to the initial measures in OLD. It is unclear however, whether these differences resulted also from an outdoor-to-indoor training shift.