Few jobs are as stressful as law enforcement. Law enforcement officers are put in stressful situations every day. This stress can have a negative impact on their lives if they’re not careful about how they handle it. One of the best ways to handle stress is by exercising and staying in shape.
These six exercise can get LEOs moving, and help them stay in shape to reduce stress
1) Plank Walk
This exercise helps give law enforcement officers core stability and improves overall upper-body strength.
Begin in a plank position with your hands flat on the ground. Lift one hand off the ground and drop to that elbow, then drop the other hand to its elbow as well. Push yourself back up to your hands, one at a time. Repeat this exercise for as many times as feels challenging for you.
2) Loaded Walks
Loaded walks help you strengthen your core, your shoulders, and improves your stability.
This exercise is fairly simple. You can complete it with kettlebells, plates, sandbags, or really anything that’s heavy--even grocery bags! Just load up the weight and walk a distance that feels like it causes strain on your shoulders without causing pain. Walk slow and with good posture, and you’ll see results in no time.
3) Walking Lunge
Use walking lunges to improve your leg strength, stability and stamina.
This exercise is simple. Just step into a lunge and hold it for a second before bringing your rear leg up to a standing position. Continue to walk forward in this manner. You should feel the burn in your hamstrings and glutes. Start with no weight, then progress up to dumbells and kettlebells when you feel comfortable.
4) Landmine Press
Strong shoulders are important for law enforcement officers. The landmine press helps you build that shoulder strength by isolating those muscles through pushing mechanics.
Simply put a plate on one side of the barbell and tuck the other end into a corner (some squat racks have attachments specifically for this). Push the barbell up with one hand and press it toward the sky. Make sure you work both sides.
5) Spiderman Push Up (Knee-to-Elbow)
This push-up variation is great for building upper-body strength in your chest and arms, while also improving core strength dramatically.
Get into push-up position and do a regular push-up. The only difference is that you’re going to bring your knee up to your elbow when you’re at the bottom of the push-up. Return your leg to its regular position on the way back up. Repeat with your other leg. Continue to alternate sides until you feel the strain on your muscles.
6) Clean And Press With The Use of Sandbag
The clean and press is an olympic style advanced lift that gives your entire body a workout and improves fast-twitch muscle fibers and explosive strength.
The clean and press starts in a deadlift position with a barbell and your preferred weight. Both of your hands should be in overhand grip. Drop your hips low and use your entire body to pull the barbell up to shoulder height in one smooth motion. When the barbell reaches its apex, drop your hips again and get your full weight under it, catching the barbell across your shoulders and fingertips. This is an advanced exercise, so it’s important to watch tutorials and practice with light barbells to start!
Staying in shape is important for law enforcement officers. It helps you de-stress, and also keeps you sharp while on duty. These six exercises help you stay in shape while building strength in key areas.
