Download Fitness Overview

Fitness Overview
All of our operational roles are physical demanding as you will be responsible
for the safe moving and handling of both patients and equipment
It is necessary to ensure prospective recruits have sufficient physical ability to
cope with extreme work demands, as and when these occur, and to minimise
both the health and injury risks known to occur within lower fitness groups
when regularly engaged in hard physical work.
Therefore, it is recommend that you should start and follow a regular
programme of fitness training, which should have commenced some months
before applying for positions within the service to ensure your fitness levels
are to the standard required.
To do this you may consider undertaking any exercise which is continuous,
rhythmical and engages any large muscle groups. Activities such as walking,
running, cycling, rowing, swimming, aerobics or circuit training are ideal and
should be brisk and vigorous enough to leave you slightly breathless and to
have broken out into a sweat.
The programme of training should be started at low intensity and gradually
progressed over a period of weeks as your fitness increases. You should aim
to complete 3 - 5 sessions per week at this intensity, beginning with 15 - 30
minutes and progressing to longer sessions as your fitness level increases.
You will find, as you progress, you can extend the duration of your exercise
periods. Always include a gradual warm-up before vigorous exercise and a
cool-down after completion. These should include gentle mobilisation of the
muscles and joints and some stretches for flexibility. You may wish to mix
exercise types for variety, and include some form of weight training for
strength improvement.
It is suggested you consult your GP before staring any exercise programme,
especially if you have not engaged in physical activity for some time, are not
used to exercise, or suspect any problems (e.g. heart, joint or muscle), that
may be made worse by exercise.
Do not exercise if you have, or are recovering from, colds, flu or fever. If you
require specific advice about types of exercise, intensity or duration, seek the
assistance of a reputable, qualified fitness trainer or health club, explaining
your requirements.