NCJ Number
180913
Journal
Law Enforcement Technology Volume: 26 Issue: 11 Dated: November 1999 Pages: 32-35
Date Published
November 1999
Length
4 pages
Annotation
Physical fitness in police personnel depends on personal motivation; some police agencies offer encouragement in the form of promotion points, voluntary physical fitness tests, or optional wellness classes.
Abstract
Police agencies have minimum physical fitness hiring requirements and training academies provide physical training for recruits, but few agencies require their employees to remain in shape after graduation. Davidson Umeh of John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York City has compiled a health handbook for police. the Public Safety Training Consortium emphasizes a lifetime fitness curriculum. Police academy training typically focuses on cardiovascular health and agility, based around State Peace Officer Standards and Training. State standards vary. Upper management must make fitness a priority if it is to become important to the rank and file. Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Louis Freeh demonstrates this top-down theory by going out and running with each new academy class. However, each individual officer needs to formulate and carry out a plan of action regardless of department incentives or lack of them. Photographs and information about obtaining Umeh's health handbook on the Internet