Issue link: https://let.epubxp.com/i/856477
www.officer.com AUGUST 2017 LAW ENFORCEMENT TECHNOLOGY 19 Officer Luedtke has been in law enforcement for 19 years and began participating in the sport of triathlon around 2005. She was encouraged to tr y her first Ironman triathlon in 2011 when the event landed on Sept. 11. In order to get her workouts in during training season, she would occassionally run or bike to work. I n July, the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund released pre- liminary data revealing that in 2017 thus far, six law enforcement officers died of job-related ailments where they collapsed or suffered a cardiac event. The correlation between heart problems and police work has been studied for years. In 2012 the medical journal Cardiology in Review found that law enforcement is "prone to increasing the prevalence and incidence of cardio- vascular disease" in addition to a "high prevalence of traditional risk factors, such as hypertension, hyperlipidemia, metabolic syndrome, a sedentary life- style" and more. There are many LEOs, however, that do not adhere to the research findings of living "a sedentary lifestyle." Rather, they take physical fitness into their own hands and incorporate exercise into everyday life, both on and off duty. Physical fitness has not only helped in their overall health, but it has had its benefits in police work as well, includ- ing more energy, less sick time, less injuries and shorter recovery times. The unforeseen benefits To be crowned "Super SWAT Cop" at the Southeast Missouri (SEMO) SWAT Challenge this year, Officer Dustin Schmidt with the St. Louis County (Mo.) Tactical Operations Unit had to complete box jumps, kettlebell swings, front squats and shots on target with a pistol and rifle. Schmidt has been in law enforcement for a little more than six years but has placed an emphasis on physical fitness for even longer. In 2009 he began dap- pling in CrossFit and fully committed to the sport once he got out of the Marine Corps in 2011. The benefits of CrossFit in correlation to his everyday police work are noticeable, he says. "There are a few cops who do CrossFit in my area and I've noticed that people who do this sport—or any circuit training to get their heart rate up for that matter—we tend not to tire out as quickly as other law enforcement," he says. In one example, while on patrol, Schmidt got out of his car to speak with a civilian, who ended up taking off on foot. "We covered probably 400 meters LEOs go the 26.2-mile distance Af ter Modesto (Calif.) Police Depar tment Detective Sean Dodge ran the California International Marathon in full uniform in 2016 with Folsom (Calif.) Police Depar tment Sergeant Eric Baade, he wanted to take the concept to the next level. He created Project Remember. Dodge sent the word out to all the law enforcement he knew, looking for runners for the 2017 Marine Corps Marathon. Today the group has 11 members par ticipating in the full marathon set for Oct. 22 in Washington, D.C. to remember fallen of ficers and raise funds for their families. "The Project Remember team is already making plans for 2018 and we are waiting for a confirma- tion from the marathon director to announce the location," says Dodge. "Our goal is to tr y complet- ing a marathon ever y year in honor of fallen of ficers and their family." "We are running as a group, not for time," says Baade. "This is not for personal gain, rather, we are a brotherhood and we want to run together to show our solidarity." Dodge, as well as 40 uniformed of ficers will also be completing the Peace Of ficer Memorial Half Marathon in Modesto, Calif. on Oct. 1. Anyone interested in joining the group for future marathons can contact them at projectremember262@gmail.com. Find the group on Facebook at w w w.facebook.com/ ProjectRemember262.