PHYSICAL FITNESS OF THE BRAZILIAN FEDERAL HIGHWAY POLICE CANDIDATES CONCLUDING ACADEMY TRAINING: AN EXPLORATOY STUDY

UN ESTUDIO EXPLORATORIO

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.31501/rbcm.v33i1.14448

Abstract

The aim of this study was to explore and characterize the physical fitness profile of the largest graduating class from the Professional Training Course of the Brazilian Federal Highway Police (PRF). The sample consisted of 1,433 candidates (198 women – 13.8%), with a median age of 30 years (range: 19–48) and a median BMI of 24.73 kg/m² (range: 16.45–33.53). Participants were assessed across all health-related physical fitness components, as well as agility and muscular power. Performance was compared by sex and age group using the Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis tests, respectively, with a significance level of 5%. Results are reported as median values (minimum–maximum). The findings revealed a high overall standard of physical fitness. Female candidates showed significantly lower performance than males (p<0.01) across all tests and age groups, with differences ranging from −7.7% to −19.9%, except for flexibility, in which women outperformed men by 4.1%. The negative impact of age on performance was observed only among men, particularly in strength and muscular endurance tests. In conclusion, the physical fitness levels of the PRF training course graduates were superior to those observed in the general population and in other police forces. The sex-based differences identified in such a large sample may justify the development of differentiated minimum fitness standards. The observed performance decline among men within a relatively narrow age range, combined with the average age of entry and extended career duration under current Brazilian retirement regulations, supports the need for systematic physical training initiatives to maintain fitness throughout the career.

 

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Author Biographies

Ossian Guilherme Scaf Barbosa, University of Brasilia - UnB

University of Brasilia, Faculty of Physical Education, Brasilia, Brazil
Federal Highway Police University, Florianópolis, Brazil

Mastering in Physical Education by UnB. Specialist in Education by the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio Grande do Sul and Bachelor in Physical Education by the University of Estácio de Sá. He has experience in the area of Public Security and Collective Health. Member of two research groups: Group of Studies in Physiology and Epidemiology of Exercise and Physical Activity (GEAFS/UnB) and of the Group of Studies and Research in Health and Performance (GESaDe/UniPRF). Member of the Brazilian Society of Physical and Health Activities (SBAFS). He is currently working and researching in the area of Continuing Education, Physical Fitness and Health, working mainly on the following topics: police, motor activity, physical fitness, physical activity, work performance and health.

Ph.D., University of Brasilia, Faculty of Physical Education, Brasilia, Brazil

University of Brasilia, Faculty of Physical Education, Brasilia, Brazil
University of Brasilia, Group of Studies in Physiology and Epidemiology of Exercise and Physical Activity (GEAFS), Brasilia, Brazil

Graduated in Physical Education (1994), Master's in Health Sciences (1999) and PhD in Medical Sciences (2007) from the University of Brasília. He has been Professor at the Faculty of Physical Education at the University of Brasília (UnB) since February 2013, where he is part of the Study Group on Physiology and Epidemiology of Exercise and Physical Activity-GEAFS. He was a Postdoctoral fellow at Harvard University (Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health) between 2015-2016, where he served as a Visiting Scientist until 2019 at the Environmental & Occupational Medicine & Epidemiology Program, where he continues to act as a "Collaborator". He conducts research on cardiovascular risk in firefighters and police officers, focusing on physical fitness, physical activity, and cardiac autonomic function. He served as a collaborator at the Cardiovascular Laboratory of the Faculty of Medicine at UnB between 1997 and 2018. He is an effective member of the Graduate Program in Physical Education at the Faculty of Physical Education at UnB. He has experience in the area of physical activity and health, with emphasis on applied cardiovascular physiology and epidemiology of physical activity, working mainly on the following topics: physical conditioning, aerobic physical activity, arterial hypertension, quality of life, promotion of physical activity for the community and studies cardiac autonomic function, worker's health and in different clinical-epidemiological aspects of the relationship between physical activity and health. He was creator and coordinator of the Agita TST Program between 2004 and 2013. He is an Honorary Member of CELAFISCS (2016) and scientific advisor of the Agita São Paulo Program since 2009. He acts as a reviewer for national and international journals. Member of the Brazilian Society of Physical Activity and Health and of the American College of Sports Medicine - ACSM since 2009. He is also currently an elected member of the Board of Directors of the Brazilian Society of Physical Activity and Health, term 2020-21.

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Published

2025-06-20

Issue

Vol. 33 No. 1 (2025)

Section

Original Article