Law Enforcement Stress and Health Essay

How does exercise a benefit to my health?
For a long time, health, youth, and beauty are necessary conditions to lead an active way of life. In particular, they include regular physical exercises. They not only improve the functioning of body systems, maintain vitality, but also have a positive effect on the emotional background of a person. The more effective they are, the higher the potential that the organism is capable of. It is necessary to distribute the load evenly to all parts of the body. This distribution will eliminate injuries and deformations of muscles and bones. In addition, regular exercises reduce the risk of developing chronic pathologies, increase life expectancy, and improve its quality (Hoeger, Wener, et al). When exercises become part of the usual rhythm of life, it becomes easier to perform everyday tasks, for example, climbing stairs, going to the store, working in the garden or at home. In addition to the physical health, mental well-being is also improved.

In fact, people that maintain low level of activity have increased risk of developing coronary artery disease or a heart attack. Exercises for health and longevity suggest regular classes throughout life. If a police officer is active only in youth, there is no guarantee that the exercises will benefit in the elderly. Workouts are effective for the heart system – a human heart becomes sturdier, works better, pumps more blood, and is able to cope with additional loads (Hoeger, Wener, et al). Due to sports, a police officer can lower cholesterol level and blood pressure (Galloway, 414). The results of the studies show that with improvement of blood circulation, the state of patients with lower limb ischemia and pathologies of the coronary arteries becomes better.

What can I do to prevent injury? Why is this important?
When making sports or during the work, a police officer can be injured. It happens due to the specifics of the profession and lack of proper preparation accordingly. Injuries from overloads can be as follows: damage to muscles or joints – fractures, stretching, and inflammation. Typically, such injuries can be obtained due to mistakes in training and technique. One can make these mistakes if overstraining – a body obtains too much load in a short time. For example, a man runs too long or performs complex exercises too quickly. It can cause serious tension in the muscles and lead to injuries (Lavie). Errors in the technique and improper exercises may adversely affect health. Although there is a risk of injuries during training, it is especially high among those who suffer from some diseases. Older people also get more injuries, especially if they start following programs that are designed for a younger body.
To prevent injuries, one has to distribute loads evenly. If starting trainings, it is important not to take a week’s load in one day, so as not to overload. For example, one can stretch the workout for a week and practice 30 minutes a day with aerobics and 15 minutes a day doing strength exercises (Hoeger, Wener, et al). It is also required to warm up before training and after. One has to choose exercises that fit age. If a police officer was engaged in sports in youth and then gave up exercising, over the years it will be hard to immediately perform those exercises given in the past (Hoeger, Wener, et al). Eventually, the last requirement is to gradually increase the load. When starting to exercise, it is not a great strategy to try to become a master at once. In general, gradual increase of the load will help avoid injuries and traumas.

How does fitness assist with my mental wellbeing?
Exercises help officers maintain not only physical health, but also mental health. There are types of activity improve memory and concentration. In order to get strength and big muscles, one needs to exercise. In particular, yoga develops flexibility and helps to relax. Running relieves extra inches and is one of the fastest ways to improve body and lose weight. Different fitness areas help to become healthy and focused and create the perfect body. They are something like an energy bomb for human mental health as well (Lavie). Thanks to the latest researches, people can develop the brain in the desired direction in the same way as the body. Different physical exercises in different ways affect not only the body, but also the brain: each of them activates a specific site.
Physical activity makes people more intelligent, defers the emergence of senile dementia, and helps fight depression and Parkinson’s disease. It happens due to blood, saturated with oxygen, hormones and nutrients, quickly reaching the brain. Heart and lungs are the first organs that become affected (Lavie). Fitness and exercises make police officers healthy, efficient, and strong (Mumford 122). The scientists decided to find out which zones of the brain are affected by high-intensity interval, aerobic and strength training, yoga, and other sets of exercises. In addition, aerobic exercise increases the production of protein, and strength training reduces the level of homocysteine ​​- an amino acid, the amount of which increases in the brain of elderly people with dementia (Lavie). Therefore, combining power and aerobic training will create a powerful neurobiological cocktail.

How will you fit fitness into your lifestyle when your schedule changes frequently?
If something is indeed important has to fit in, people find a way to tailor it to the schedule. It can be a new video game or a new hobby like fitness. Regular exercises or fitness may not be as convincing as a video game, but people have full control over what happens in their calendar. In fact, a rare person literally cannot take time for exercise, even a police officer. If having trouble determining a fitness session, one can keep track of time in a scheduler or app. Additionally, some kinds of exercises can be combined with the other tasks needed to do. One may be struggling to fit in with a 30-minute workout, but it is easy to find an activity that takes too much time. Rebuilding a schedule will be required to change a lifestyle for an officer.

Following a critical incident is physical fitness helpful? Why or why not?
Thus, it is worth remembering from the research that the brain and the mental health are effected by physical exercises. Running and aerobic activity help fight senile dementia and prevent Alzheimer’s, improve verbal memory, and ability to remember. Strength training positively affects the executive functions of the brain, that is, the planning and regulation of conscious actions. Games with complex coordination of movements help children to concentrate better. Interval training allows to control appetite. Finally, the greatest positive effect for the brain can be achieved by combining different types of activity, for example aerobic and power loads.

Work Cited
Galloway, Riley, et al. “Measured Fitness and Self-reported Exercise and Stress in Law Enforcement Officers: A Longitudinal Study.” Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise50.5S (2018): 414.
Hoeger, Wener WK, et al. Lifetime of Physical Fitness and Wellness. Cengage Learning, 2018.
Lavie, Carl J., Xuemei Sui, and Richard V. Milani. “Emotional distress after myocardial infarction: Importance of cardiorespiratory fitness.” (2018): 2047487318770516.
Mumford, Elizabeth A., Bruce G. Taylor, and Bruce Kubu. “Law enforcement officer safety and wellness.” Police Quarterly 18.2 (2015): 111-133.