By Kathy Vonk, C1 Contributor
If you had a crystal ball that was never wrong, and it told you that you would have a heart attack and die in exactly three weeks – unless you engaged in moderately intense physical activity for one hour each day – would you do it?
If you were told the exact day you would die from cardiovascular disease but you had the power to delay that date 10 or even 20 years, and all you had to do was reduce your calories consumed and increase your daily physical activity, would you do it?
Look at these alarming statistics:
1. Law enforcement officers live an average of 15 years less than the average American.[1]
2. Nearly 50 percent of officers will die from heart disease within five years of retirement.[2]
3. Statistically, officers are 25 times more likely to die from cardiovascular disease (CVD) than from the action of an offender.[3]
There are many more stats relative to CVD and law enforcement work, but just these three should sound alarm within our ranks – especially when CVD is by and large preventable through the lifestyle choices that we make every single day.
While genetics play a part in our chances of acquiring certain diseases, by taking the appropriate preventive action we can elude the contraction of many common diseases that are passed from one generation to the next. This preventive action primarily involves healthy lifestyle choices to include a nutritious diet without excess calories, and adequate exercise.
What we do and don’t control
Beyond the limitations that our genes place on us, every other major risk factor for cardiovascular disease is controllable. The seven major risk factors for cardiovascular disease include genetics, sedentary lifestyle, obesity, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, smoking, and diabetes. We have quite a bit of control over each and every one of these, but it takes time and effort, especially with age as our metabolism slows.
Poor diet and lack of exercise are the root causes of many risk factors, as a sedentary lifestyle slowly but eventually leads to being overweight and then obese. Diabetes, heart attacks, strokes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol are just some of the conditions that arise from obesity, though anyone can have any one of these without being overweight or obese.
To make matters worse, we have been living a time in which physical education has been all but cut from the public school curriculum and fast food chains and junk food vending machines are commonplace in elementary and high school cafeterias. Our overweight and obese children are now entering the workforce. We are experiencing serious health consequences in our society and it may be spilling over into our own rank and file.
Unfortunately in today’s world of technology, physical activity is on the decline and fast meals abundant in fat and calories are weighing heavily in everyday life. Add the stress of law enforcement work, restricted time for dinner breaks, limited restaurant choices while on duty, overtime and rotating shift work, and disrupted sleep patterns – and we have a recipe for physiological disaster!
Get in shape!
Fortunately, since we are all such control freaks, we can choose to hold the reigns in our own hands and put the time and effort into our future. We have two choices: Take control of our destiny, or be controlled by it. We can figure out how many calories are appropriate each day by using the Harris Benedict Equation, but more importantly exercise self-control when we reach our limit. We have the power to decide to exercise every day, and to choose something we enjoy - so that we are apt to continue.
Just 30 minutes each day (cumulative), can result in significant health-related improvements. We should initiate our program at an easy intensity rather than starting out like gang-busters, in order to minimize muscle soreness and improve our chances of exercising again. If we meet the definition of overweight or “obese” (female waist circumference 35” or greater and male 40” or greater) we should first consult a doctor before starting a program.
If weight loss is a goal, we must accept the fact that we will be hungry at times. One way to minimize these hunger pangs is by packing our daily intake with fruits and vegetables: they are nutrient rich but low in calories, so we basically get more food in comparison to caloric-dense foods such as hamburgers and French fries. For moderate but permanent weight loss, a calorie deficit of 300-500 calories each day is the recommended goal. This can be achieved by eating less, exercising more, or a little bit of both (the recommended option).
We should take care not to restrict calories in excess however, so that we don’t run the risk of depressing our metabolism. We should also keep in mind that one pound of fat contains 3500 calories, so permanent weight loss will be slow – but we have the power to be patient and determined! Moreover, once our weight goal is reached, we can add that 500 calories back into our daily allotment in order to maintain our new established weight. In other words, the calorie-deficit period is only temporary, but the beneficial lifestyle habits should remain!
Pack a lunch
Another strategy that will help is to pack our own lunch and keep it with us. This way, healthy snacks are always available to nibble on. Why would this be important? When our blood sugar is low we run the risk of making poor food choices, but having a pre-packed snack on hand could mean the difference between a healthy piece of fruit or a super-sized fast food meal after we clear the call and rush to the first and fastest source of food we see. One fast food meal can pack as many as 1800-2000 calories in just one sitting! For many of us, this exceeds our entire daily allotment for calories, saturated fat and cholesterol!
More importantly as officers, keeping a consistent blood sugar level will help our minds and bodies perform better at a moment’s notice, when the “fight or flight” response is induced. Our brain has the ability to function more clearly under a great deal of stress, and our muscles will be capable of contracting more forcefully for a longer duration if we have the necessary nutrients immediately available. As an officer, this may be an unexpected life-or-death struggle, so it may be worth dispersing our calories throughout the day (eating several smaller meals every two or three hours rather than three large servings several hours apart).
Preparing for that one incident
As an officer working the street, or as a detective dealing with violent criminals, we may spend our entire career preparing for that one incident. As past history has shown, even working a desk job in City Hall or working in the courthouse can prove to be a locale for a critical incident.
How we have chosen to prepare for that one incident in our career may determine the outcome; whether we outlast the suspect and win the encounter, whether we win the encounter but suffer a heart attack during recovery, or whether the suspect is able to gain control of our weapon and use it against us and others.
It’s our choice to take control of that crystal ball and determine our own destiny. It just may take a little time and effort…
Kathleen Vonk is a street cop of 19 years with a BS in Exercise Science and a BA in Criminal Justice. She is a wellness expert, consultant, and trainer for the Michigan Commission on Law Enforcement Standards (MCOLES), a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) by the National Strength & Conditioning Association (NSCA), a Certified Physical Fitness Specialist, and Health Promotion Director (Cooper Institute of Aerobics Research, Dallas). She is the primary fitness instructor for the Washtenaw Community College Police Academy in Ann Arbor Michigan. In addition to working the road full time, she serves as the Health Promotion Director for the Ann Arbor Police Department. She can be reached at kathyvonk@aol.com
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[1] Tracy, Tom. “Fit for Duty: Demand It.” Police. March 1993. p. 18
[2] Ibid.
[3] Ibid.