The reliability of newly designed specific tests for assessing professional firefighters' physical fitness

Abstract

The aim of this study was to determine the reliability of newly designed tests for assessing professional firefighters' physical fitness. A total of 15 healthy and physically active firefighters participated in this study. The following tests were performed: Modified Step Test (MStepT), Fire and Rescue Obstacle Course (VPol), Firefighting Equipment Carry Test (NVOpr, and Dummy Drag Test (VLut). The testing was carried out using a randomized method. There was a 10-minute break between the tests. After a week, retesting was conducted under the same conditions. The results of the regression analysis showed that the value of the adjusted coefficient of determination (adjR2 ) for all tests ranged from 0.90 (90.00%) to 0.98 (98.00%), from MStepT to NVOpr respectively, and the repeatability (reliability) of the tests in relation to the sample used in testing for all variables was highly statistically significant (p = 0.000). A moderate effect size (d = 0.748, 95% CI = 0.162 - 1.314) was found for the VPol variable, while the effect size was found small (d = 0.212 - 0.281) for the variables (MStepT, NVOpr, VLut). The findings demonstrated that the examined tests can be applied in the practice of professional firefighters for the purposes of testing physical fitness related to the job. Methodologically, it is acceptable to conduct tests for firefighters in complete PPE so that the test conditions and workload are similar to the situational conditions during intervention in the field.