In response to a growing concern for the disabling illnesses and injuries suffered by their personnel, Police Departments and Sheriff’s Departments in Virginia began to address the issue of officer health and safety in the late 1980′s. Bever, a professor of health education at George Mason University, developed the LawFit® Program for law enforcement personnel. This program was designed to increas
e the cardiorespiratory efficiency, muscular strength, muscular endurance, lean body mass, and flexibility of officers. Personnel from participating departments completed an initial battery of tests to measure their levels of fitness. These tests included:
One repetition-maximum bench press
1 minute timed sit-up test
Sit & reach flexibility test
Push-ups
Pull-ups
1.5 mile run
Body fat estimation
Resting heart rate
Blood pressure
These tests were selected, since they have been found to be good predictors of the five major areas of fitness (aerobic capacity, muscular strength, muscular endurance, flexibility, and body composition). Since the inception of LawFit® there has been a highly significant increase in the levels of fitness of officers who have participated. With this increase in fitness there has been a reduction in lost-worktime injuries and workers’ compensation claims. Additionally, participating departments have noted that when officers have been injured in the line of duty they have recovered more quickly than those not participating in the program.
