The Relationship Between Army Physical Fitness and Functional Capacities in Infantry Members of the Slovenian Armed Forces

Abstract

Šimenko, J, Kovčan, B, Pori, P, Vodičar, J, Vodičar, M, and Hadžić, V. The Relationship between army physical fitness and functional capacities in infantry members of the Slovenian Armed Forces. J Strength Cond Res 35(12): 3506–3512, 2021—The primary purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between traditional army physical fitness test (APFT) and a novel functional testing battery that included countermovement jump (CMJ) testing, stork balANce test, pUll-ups, single leg hAmstring bridge test, and loaded prone pLank test—MANUAL battery. The secondary purpose was to explore additional baseline fitness aspects traditionally not covered by APFT. This cross-sectional study involved 181 Slovenian Armed Forces (SAF) infantry members (age 31.4 ± 6.1 years) that were tested using both the regular annual APFT and the MANUAL battery (testing was conducted 2 weeks apart). At the significance level of p ≤ 0.05, significant but weak associations between the MANUAL testing battery and APFT battery (0.2 ≤ r < 0.5; p ≤ 0.05) were observed. The MANUAL battery has highlighted possible hamstring (less than 20 repetitions on a single leg bridge test in 26% of SAF infantry members) and posterior shoulder pull-up muscle weakness (mean score 5 ± 4 pull-ups). Functional predictors from the MANUAL explained only 33.6% of the APFT score (R 2 = 0.336). Significant predictors of APFT score were single leg hamstring left (p = 0.048), loaded plank (p = 0.049), number of pull-ups (p < 0.001), CMJ (p = 0.01), and loaded CMJ (p = 0.026). The findings suggest that higher APFT marks are associated with better performance on the MANUAL tests and indicate the problem of hamstring and pull-up muscle weakness. The general recommendation is that the physical condition military programs should include more exercises to strengthen those muscle groups.

Predictive Validity of the Single Leg Hamstring Bridge Test in Military Settings

“…FPFT, as shown in Figure 1, was performed in the gym of the SAF military post and included the SLHBT, countermovement jump (CMJ) testing with and without additional load, pull-ups, loaded prone plank test, and stork balance test (the results from this test were not used in further analysis, as we have shown in our previous work that this test was not demanding enough for the performance level of soldiers). All tests were conducted from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m.; a detailed explanation of all testing procedures is provided elsewhere [8]. For the reproducibility assessment, the SLHBT was performed according to the same instructions given in the larger sample, but the individuals repeated the test after one week, during which they were not allowed to specifically train hamstrings.…”

“…The CMJ test was performed in uniform and boots (unloaded CMJ), and then the same procedure was repeated with soldiers wearing body armour and a helmet (loaded CMJ). Under each testing condition, an individual had two jump trials, and the repetition with the highest jump was used for further analysis [8].…”

“…Each holding time was recorded using a stopwatch. The holding time (seconds) of the prone plank test was used for further analysis [8].…”

“…This procedure was repeated at the individual's own pace (rest between repetitions was allowed only in the full hang position) until the individual could no longer complete a full pull-up. The number of successful repetitions was used as the performance measure in this task [8].…”

“…In military forces, the risk of injury for males with both higher and lower levels of hamstring flexibility was reported to be more than twice that of those with 'average' flexibility [5,6]; therefore, the need to maintain moderate hamstring flexibility in special military groups was highlighted [7]. With this in mind, strengthening of the hamstring muscle should form an important part of training programs in military settings [8,9].…”