Fitness and the UK police
Discussion
I'm sitting in Barcelona typing this ,being a busy tourist city there are a lot of police about , prior to the recent terrorist attacks armed police had always made me nervous but now I find it reassuring
However one thing I have noticed is all the officers on the streets are young, under 40 at least and none of them are overweight , not one I've seen so far
Compare that to the coppers seen on TV puffing and panting when someone legs it it was quite a surprise to see such a young fit police force
So should our coppers be suspended if they start chubbing up until they're fit enough to do the job or is it the TV again , like whenever there's an incident in the north of England they find a woman with rotten teeth and yellow hair to interview, is our police force up to the job , you don't see fat soldiers so why isn't there a more stringent fitness test for the police
However one thing I have noticed is all the officers on the streets are young, under 40 at least and none of them are overweight , not one I've seen so far
Compare that to the coppers seen on TV puffing and panting when someone legs it it was quite a surprise to see such a young fit police force
So should our coppers be suspended if they start chubbing up until they're fit enough to do the job or is it the TV again , like whenever there's an incident in the north of England they find a woman with rotten teeth and yellow hair to interview, is our police force up to the job , you don't see fat soldiers so why isn't there a more stringent fitness test for the police
There are plenty of fat soldiers.
There's also a multitude of reasons why. After 10 years of carrying 70+kg in the dark, running with 20kg, dropping off 12ft high walls, taking a knee on gravel every 5 mins with said weight on your back.
Yes you could probably sack them but is it worth it, 2, 4, 6 years until retirement where their knowledge and experience doesn't necessarily require the above anymore.
There's also a multitude of reasons why. After 10 years of carrying 70+kg in the dark, running with 20kg, dropping off 12ft high walls, taking a knee on gravel every 5 mins with said weight on your back.
Yes you could probably sack them but is it worth it, 2, 4, 6 years until retirement where their knowledge and experience doesn't necessarily require the above anymore.
I saw a copper at Bristol Balloon Fiesta that was obese. Not just a bit large, really really fat. Looked like he had eaten his way through a lorry of Krispy Kreme.
I think there has to be a point at which you can be so fat that you can no longer do your job. For a job that includes any amount of expected physical effort that threshold needs to be much lower than for an office job. But, having seen quite a few portly coppers in the UK, it doesn't seem to be applied much here. In the case of the fatty in Bristol, I doubt he could have chased down an 8 year old boy without having a heart attack.
ETA: No, I don't think all coppers are like that. Definitely a minority. But a VERY visible one
I think there has to be a point at which you can be so fat that you can no longer do your job. For a job that includes any amount of expected physical effort that threshold needs to be much lower than for an office job. But, having seen quite a few portly coppers in the UK, it doesn't seem to be applied much here. In the case of the fatty in Bristol, I doubt he could have chased down an 8 year old boy without having a heart attack.
ETA: No, I don't think all coppers are like that. Definitely a minority. But a VERY visible one
wack said:
I'm sitting in Barcelona typing this ,being a busy tourist city there are a lot of police about , prior to the recent terrorist attacks armed police had always made me nervous but now I find it reassuring
However one thing I have noticed is all the officers on the streets are young, under 40 at least and none of them are overweight , not one I've seen so far
Compare that to the coppers seen on TV puffing and panting when someone legs it it was quite a surprise to see such a young fit police force
So should our coppers be suspended if they start chubbing up until they're fit enough to do the job or is it the TV again , like whenever there's an incident in the north of England they find a woman with rotten teeth and yellow hair to interview, is our police force up to the job , you don't see fat soldiers so why isn't there a more stringent fitness test for the police
- Soldiers train and keep fit during duty time. However one thing I have noticed is all the officers on the streets are young, under 40 at least and none of them are overweight , not one I've seen so far
Compare that to the coppers seen on TV puffing and panting when someone legs it it was quite a surprise to see such a young fit police force
So should our coppers be suspended if they start chubbing up until they're fit enough to do the job or is it the TV again , like whenever there's an incident in the north of England they find a woman with rotten teeth and yellow hair to interview, is our police force up to the job , you don't see fat soldiers so why isn't there a more stringent fitness test for the police
- The Spanish police also can keep fit on duty time IIRC.
- Spain has over twice as many police officers per 100k of the population vs the UK (533 vs 227).
- Give us over 100% more police and I'm sure we could find a system which allows police officers to train on duty.
- We operate at over 96% of our prison capacity on a continuous basis and have one of the highest prison populations in Europe per 100k. That's an indication of an organisation that's 'up to the job'.
I wonder about the effectiveness of the tiny little ones too, how do you arrest someone twice your weight and 3 times your strength? I'm sure once upon a time it was a requirement to be of a certain size, strength and fitness to join the police, does anyone know if and how the standards have changed and what they are now?
numtumfutunch said:
My brother is in the RAF and is pushing 50
He claims his annual physical has a higher required standard than that needed by teenagers signing up
Obviously he may be spinning me a yarn......
A 50 Yr old bloke has to run to a higher standard than an 18 year old girl.... true story! (The VO2 max based "bleep test", push ups & sit ups are split into age groups & gender with varying levels for each group. Naturally the standard decreases as you get older, but the very young Female standards cross over with the older bloke!)He claims his annual physical has a higher required standard than that needed by teenagers signing up
Obviously he may be spinning me a yarn......
TurboHatchback said:
I wonder about the effectiveness of the tiny little ones too, how do you arrest someone twice your weight and 3 times your strength? I'm sure once upon a time it was a requirement to be of a certain size, strength and fitness to join the police, does anyone know if and how the standards have changed and what they are now?
YOU. You know "if". The answer is yes. There are no height requirements. There are basic fitness requirements. There are no educational requirements, there is a test to pass.Contrary to the popular belief posited in the OP, the vast majority of modern police work does not involve "chasing down" suspects. Why would it? Arresting someone should not have to involve force in most cases.
Additionally, I doubt most of us can tell very much about an indivIdual's level of overall fitness just by looking at them. A colleague of mine, for example, has a much larger belly than me and "looks" obese, but he cycles to and from work, about 7 miles each way, every day. I would say he is much fitter than me, but put us side by side and the assumption might well go the other way.
Edited by Pothole on Tuesday 11th October 01:15
I've been in the job since 2003 and seen as sorts of shapes and sizes.
My personal opinion is that there should be an annual medical and basic fitness test I.e mile and a half run or bleep test. I also think they should be given time to train on duty.
In Scotland you are tested regularly for first 2 years then it's up to you. Combine the lack of annual testing with shift work, lots of sitting in cars eating on the go, regular breakfast rolls and cakes culture and you do see a few folk piling on the pounds. As said before cops in uk do not get to train on duty.
That said, there's a few blokes on my shift who are overweight and look pretty unhealthy but If your getting a kicking in a pub, you'll want them instead of the ultra fit but slimline girls who will try their best but don't have the strength or weight to tackle a drunk scaffolder full of coke.
Appearances can be deceiving but as long as they are fit enough to do the job and can back me up if we get into bother then I'd be happy having them on my team. If they are obese and lazy I wouldn't be shy in telling them to change things as they are putting the team at risk. Most shift are the same. No point running up 5 flights of stairs to help your mates if your blowing out your arse when you get there.
My personal opinion is that there should be an annual medical and basic fitness test I.e mile and a half run or bleep test. I also think they should be given time to train on duty.
In Scotland you are tested regularly for first 2 years then it's up to you. Combine the lack of annual testing with shift work, lots of sitting in cars eating on the go, regular breakfast rolls and cakes culture and you do see a few folk piling on the pounds. As said before cops in uk do not get to train on duty.
That said, there's a few blokes on my shift who are overweight and look pretty unhealthy but If your getting a kicking in a pub, you'll want them instead of the ultra fit but slimline girls who will try their best but don't have the strength or weight to tackle a drunk scaffolder full of coke.
Appearances can be deceiving but as long as they are fit enough to do the job and can back me up if we get into bother then I'd be happy having them on my team. If they are obese and lazy I wouldn't be shy in telling them to change things as they are putting the team at risk. Most shift are the same. No point running up 5 flights of stairs to help your mates if your blowing out your arse when you get there.
There is the annual fitness test. You also have to undergo annual officer safety training in my areas force.
I don't know what challenges Spanish Police face but ever tried running wearing (heavy) body armour, vest, kit? You'll huff and puff especially if you have go suddenly jump out of a car in a cold wet night.
The smaller officers? I wouldn't mess with some of them. Like everyone they have to prove themselves.
Every force might deviate slightly but a British Bobbies job isn't sunshine and sangria
I don't know what challenges Spanish Police face but ever tried running wearing (heavy) body armour, vest, kit? You'll huff and puff especially if you have go suddenly jump out of a car in a cold wet night.
The smaller officers? I wouldn't mess with some of them. Like everyone they have to prove themselves.
Every force might deviate slightly but a British Bobbies job isn't sunshine and sangria
La Liga said:
- We operate at over 96% of our prison capacity on a continuous basis and have one of the highest prison populations in Europe per 100k. That's an indication of an organisation that's 'up to the job'.
https://www.durham.police.uk/About-Us/Documents/Pe...
Its not all about punch-ups, its about being able to get over gates and fences, up hills to crime / RTC scenes etc and still being in a fit state to deal when they get there. Cops on my team have their annual tests/refreshers today. The larger units are allowed to take a walking test on an uphill treadmill! My boss gets through it every year and does no exercise between times - not that testing particularly.
I retired a couple of years ago, but was still rolling around on the floor with suspects in the custody suite, and passed the bleep test etc about a month before I left.
Imho there should be a much stricter annual physical.
There should be at least 2-3 hours or 5/10% per week of duty time to keep fit/use of force as well. You can't be too well trained in UOF.
Doing exercise as a group/shift etc would also build team spirit etc
I was fairly lax at doing exercise in my own time but would have upped my game to keep the job. So would most of the others I worked with. I need the incentive of being penalised for failing.
If officers are injured on duty and then medically certified as unable to do the test, then they should be exempted or concessions applied.
The job has to look after those injured in the line of duty, or no one will put their job on the line to catch that suspect/save that person from a fiery death/intervene in that fight etc etc.
Being generally fitter and better trained in UOF would also reduce the risk of injuries anyway, as you could catch / gain control of suspects quicker, and be ready to exert yourself when required.
Imho there should be a much stricter annual physical.
There should be at least 2-3 hours or 5/10% per week of duty time to keep fit/use of force as well. You can't be too well trained in UOF.
Doing exercise as a group/shift etc would also build team spirit etc
I was fairly lax at doing exercise in my own time but would have upped my game to keep the job. So would most of the others I worked with. I need the incentive of being penalised for failing.
If officers are injured on duty and then medically certified as unable to do the test, then they should be exempted or concessions applied.
The job has to look after those injured in the line of duty, or no one will put their job on the line to catch that suspect/save that person from a fiery death/intervene in that fight etc etc.
Being generally fitter and better trained in UOF would also reduce the risk of injuries anyway, as you could catch / gain control of suspects quicker, and be ready to exert yourself when required.
When I was in a firearms team I trained two hours a day with my colleagues, one hour in my own time and one in the job's. I've never done so much police work. The amount of energy I enjoyed is now but a fond memory. I went straight from that to gaoler where I was required to be on scene even when eating lunch. For a couple of months I spent 12 hrs a day at work, plus half an hour hand-over, with an hour's journey to and from work. I remained slim - I deliberately curbed by food input - but I was no longer fit and my recovery time went up and up.
Despite what May said, there is little time for patrol nowadays so officers are inside most of the time. There is little time for breaks, so food is taken where and when, so bought on the street. The job is an unhealthy one. Further, shift work, that's rotating shifts, can have a major negative effect on health.
Fitness of officers is a concern, and the sedentary work that is now the norm is one of the major causes. There was a gym at three of the stations I was posted to and all have since been removed.
I used to cycle to work for most of my time in the job and that kept me fit. But if there had been a gym in my last two nicks I'd have been fitter.
Equating fitness with being overweight does not necessarily give a true picture. The tight head in the rugby team I support is overweight but he is fit. His stamina is remarkable and he takes a lot of stopping when he's on a run. He does everything the rest of the team does in training.
Despite what May said, there is little time for patrol nowadays so officers are inside most of the time. There is little time for breaks, so food is taken where and when, so bought on the street. The job is an unhealthy one. Further, shift work, that's rotating shifts, can have a major negative effect on health.
Fitness of officers is a concern, and the sedentary work that is now the norm is one of the major causes. There was a gym at three of the stations I was posted to and all have since been removed.
I used to cycle to work for most of my time in the job and that kept me fit. But if there had been a gym in my last two nicks I'd have been fitter.
Equating fitness with being overweight does not necessarily give a true picture. The tight head in the rugby team I support is overweight but he is fit. His stamina is remarkable and he takes a lot of stopping when he's on a run. He does everything the rest of the team does in training.
Gassing Station | Speed, Plod & the Law | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff