Keywords
physical training methods
military personnel
operability
performance
How to Cite
Abstract
Introduction: Modern combat requires the adoption of new operational capabilities and a better qualification of human resources. In this context, physical training still plays a prominent role among the capabilities and qualifications for the readiness of the military. Therefore, in order to maintain the physical fitness of the troops, physical training and specific tests aim to prepare and evaluate the military for the tasks and demands of combat.
Objective: To examine the correlation of isometric strength tests and the tests that make up the Brazilian Army's (BA) Operational Physical Test (OPT) with performance in BA-specific simulated combat tasks (SCT).
Methods: Observational study that is part of a longitudinal study on the efficiency of the OPT, in which a total of 234 active military personnel participated, 116 of whom were physically active in the preliminary study (of both sexes) and in the present study, there were 118 male participants, physically active, serving in an Infantry Battalion. The individuals underwent physical tests focused on muscle and cardiorespiratory fitness, in addition to performing BA-specific SCT. The correlation between each task test was estimated using Pearson's correlation coefficient (r).
Results: The handgrip strength test showed significant correlations with all SCT, and for the transport of injured (IT) people and obstacle transposition were negligible (r<0.3). Among the physical tests of the OPT, the ones that presented the highest predictive values were the sprint-drag-carrying (SDC) and the continuous run of 3,200m (CR). SDC showed strong correlations (r=0.7–0.8) with all SCT and CR showed moderate to strong correlations with all SCT, except for IT task.
Conclusion: This study demonstrated the predictive effect of physical tests related to BA-specific OPT. The findings suggest that multitasking physical tests together with CR can be used reliably in relation to performance in SCT.
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