(43) RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN BODY FAT PERCENTAGE AND MEASUREMENTS OF FITNESS AMONG MALE FIREFIGHTERS FROM A RURAL SOUTH CENTRAL FIRE DEPARTMENT

Firefighting is a physically arduous occupation that requires a wide base of physical capabilities. Numerous factors may affect performance when performing firefighting tasks, including body composition. The impact of body composition, specifically body fat percentage (BF%), on movement and physical ability in firefighters has not been fully investigated. Further, it is important to investigate the relationships between BF% and fitness specific to each department, as the strength of these relationships may vary depending on location (e.g., city vs. rural fire departments. Rural fire departments in particular are often under-investigated in the scientific literature.

Purpose: Therefore, the purpose of this investigation was to determine the relationships between BF% and measurements of fitness among male firefighters from a rural fire department.

Methods: Twenty (n=20) male firefighters (height[RL1] : 177.88 ± 5.94 cm; mass: 97.09 ± 13.9 kg; BF%: 23.95 ± 6.91%) from a single South Central US fire department volunteered to participate in this study. Height was recorded using a portable stadiometer, mass, and BF% were measured using bioelectrical impedance analysis. Participants then completed a Functional Movement Screen (FMS) followed by and series of physical fitness tests including:  one-minute push-up (PU) and sit-up (SU) assessments, a sandbag carry (SBC) for time and distance and 12-minute treadmill test to estimate metabolic equivalents (METs) and aerobic capacity (VO₂). The SBC event was self-paced and was terminated at volitional failure by the participants. Pearson’s correlations were used to calculate relationships between BF% and the fitness performance tests. Alpha level was set at p ≤ 0.05 for all analyses.

Results: Strong to very strong negative correlations were found between BF% and SU, SBC distance, and SBC time (r range: -0.6 to -0.86; p < 0.01) were observed. There were moderate, negative significant correlations between BF% and PU, METs, and VO₂ (r range: -0.53 to -0.57; p < 0.05). No significant correlations between BF% and FMS score were observed

Conclusion: A firefighter’s job relies on having muscular endurance, balance, coordination, and the ability to move. Insufficiencies in any of these domains may impair physical abilities and place themselves, their fellow firefighters, and the public lives at risk. The results from this study indicated that there were significant relationships between BF% and the different measures of fitness, except for the FMS. Given that the fitness tests used in this study measured physical qualities important for firefighters (e.g., PU and SU: muscular endurance; SBC: muscular strength and endurance; METs, VO₂: aerobic fitness), excess body fat could impair a firefighter’s ability to perform job tasks that stress these qualities. This could be of particular concern for rural firefighters who may not have the resources available to them relative to their counterparts from city agencies.  PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: The results from this study suggest that fire departments focus on wellness interventions aimed at attaining and maintaining healthy body composition (i.e., BF%) levels for the maintenance of health, fitness and performance. A focus should be on providing rural fire departments with the resources needed for their firefighters to maintain a lower BF% that could be beneficial to their fitness and job task performance.


Acknowledgements: none