Impact of anaerobic fitness on performance and physiology during simulated firefighting tasks

BACKGROUND: Firefighting requires high levels of physical fitness and due to abnormal work schedules, on-duty training is necessary to meet occupational demands. However, firefighters are concerned with possible impairments in occupational readiness from various types of on-shift exercise. It has yet to be determined if higher levels of strength prove protective against potential decrements in readiness following on-shift exercise. Therefore, this study sought to determine if maximal strength influences occupational performance and physiological responses during simulated firefighting tasks (SFT) following different types of acute exercise. METHODS: 32 participants (17M/15F; 25.2 ± 4.1 yrs; 173.8 ± 9.8 cm; 75.6 ± 13.2 kg) completed 3-repetition max bench press (MBP), squat (MBS), deadlift (MDL), and vertical jump (VJ), and 3 experimental trials: resistance exercise (RE), aerobic exercise (AE), and rested control (CON) followed by the SFT (4 rounds of 10 deadlifts (using 85 or 135lbs) and a 0.15-mile carry with a 40lb-sandbag) in an environmental chamber (35°C; 50% humidity). Time to complete (TTC), rating of perceived exertion (RPE), and blood lactate concentrations (BLC) were analyzed. Participants were split into tertiles based on low, moderate, and high strength and power. Two-way ANOVAs were used to compare fitness level by exercise condition. RESULTS: There was a main effect of MDL on TTC (Low MDL: 1395 ± 248; Moderate MDL: 1135 ± 179; High MDL: 1007 ± 176; p 0.15). CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest performance and physiological responses during SFT differ based on anaerobic fitness (strength and power). Specifically, those with greater strength and power completed SFT faster, with lower perceived exertion and lactate accumulation. However, these differences in strength did not influence how participants responded after each type of exercise (RE, AE, CON). These findings emphasize the importance of strength training and provide support for using strength assessments to ensure occupational readiness. This project has no funding sources to disclose. This is the full abstract presented at the American Physiology Summit 2024 meeting and is only available in HTML format. There are no additional versions or additional content available for this abstract. Physiology was not involved in the peer review process.