DEVELOPMENT OF PHYSICAL-FITNESS STANDARDS FOR CANADIAN ARMED-FORCES OLDER PERSONNEL

The purpose of the study was to develop a minimum physical fitness sta ndard for Canadian Forces personnel, 35 years and older, based on comm on criteria for physically demanding tasks. A random sample of 100 men and 76 women performed the Exercise Prescription (EXPRES) test and fi ve physically demanding tasks that simulate common military tasks, whi le restricted,for safety reasons, to 90% maximal predicted heart rate. Results indicated poor predictive power, as variances ranged from 5 t o 55% between EXPRES fitness scores and task performance. With approva l from an expert panel, the 75th percentile score for each task was se lected as the cutting criterion. The passing-group data were converted to Z-scores in order to determine the 5th percentile from each EXPRES item. these scores became the EXPRES fitness standard. The minimum fi tness standard had a greater impact on women than on men but was repre sentative of the passing groups for both sexes.