Eight out of every 10 police officers in the United States are overweight and researchers say they are 25 times more likely to die as a result of weight-related health problems than from an encounter with a criminal, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

 

Source: http://www.christianpost.com/news/fbi-says-80-percent-of-americas-police-are-overweight-more-likely-to-die-from-weight-related-disease-than-encounter-with-criminals-124906/

Considering that standards for the Pennsylvania State Police are this pathetic and still there are discrimination suits over it, it really is no surprise:

http://www.gettysburg.k12.pa.us/webpages/p29386/career_pathways.cfm?subpage=889574

Considering that standards for the Pennsylvania State Police are this pathetic and still there are discrimination suits over it, it really is no surprise:

http://www.gettysburg.k12.pa.us/webpages/p29386/career_pathways.cfm?subpage=889574

 

And I think they are wanting to make it easier. There was a story on my local news about 2 days ago saying that people are complaining that the test is too hard.

Where I'm from I have to disagree. I know of only 1 overweight officer... but he's K9 so he lets the dog do the work haha. But honestly, out of the 5 departments in my county there are a very very slim number of overweight patrol officers. 

 

Now detectives are another story...

Considering that standards for the Pennsylvania State Police are this pathetic and still there are discrimination suits over it, it really is no surprise:

http://www.gettysburg.k12.pa.us/webpages/p29386/career_pathways.cfm?subpage=889574

My school has higher standards than that, and I'm a Senior. Good God almighty those standards are terrible. I could probably pass those standards before my school PE standards, LOL.

My thing about it is, what was the point of going to the academy? Im not trying to sound mean, but seriously.

I don't really see that many overweight officers, and when I do they're usually in their 40s-50s

Well look on the bright side, to get overweight they have to buy food which means they contribute to the economy,,, 

In California this is definitely not true.

My thing about it is, what was the point of going to the academy? Im not trying to sound mean, but seriously.

Is that a serious question? It is required in order to be hired as a police officer. You think that you just walk into the police department and say "I want to be a cop" and they hand you a badge and a gun and tell you to grab the closest police car and hit the streets? The police academy is where police officers are initially trained to be police officers then they usually go through even more training out in the field with more senior officers who train them even more. There is not a single agency in the U.S. where going to the police academy is not a requirement and it has been that way for several decades.

I find that statistic hard to believe, or at least very misleading. I am willing to bet that statistic even includes officers who are just a couple of pounds overweight or guys who are just big, muscular guys who are technically overweight but not really. I would like to know how they define overweight and what are they using as a measurement. In the Army we have many guys who are way over their height/weight limit but they are by no means fat, they just are very big guys who go to the gym a lot. That is why the Army will measure your waist and neck to see if you are fat or just big.

Is that a serious question? It is required in order to be hired as a police officer. You think that you just walk into the police department and say "I want to be a cop" and they hand you a badge and a gun and tell you to grab the closest police car and hit the streets? The police academy is where police officers are initially trained to be police officers then they usually go through even more training out in the field with more senior officers who train them even more. There is not a single agency in the U.S. where going to the police academy is not a requirement and it has been that way for several decades.

I find that statistic hard to believe, or at least very misleading. I am willing to bet that statistic even includes officers who are just a couple of pounds overweight or guys who are just big, muscular guys who are technically overweight but not really. I would like to know how they define overweight and what are they using as a measurement. In the Army we have many guys who are way over their height/weight limit

but they are by no means fat, they just are very big guys who go to the gym a lot. That is why the Army will measure your waist and neck to

see if you are fat or just big.

Okay I didn't make myself clear enough, what I meant was, what was the point of going to the academy when you just end up fat again?

Well...I think the question should be asked is....define "overweight"

Definition: Overweight: above a weight considered normal or desirable.

Here are some synonyms, outsize,over stoutness, acromegalic gigantism,sprawl etc.

Okay I didn't make myself clear enough, what I meant was, what was the point of going to the academy when you just end up fat again?

To summarize l3ubba's post: The academy is not to get in shape. That's not the point of a police academy. They can have physical training as one component, but the point of a police academy is to learn how to be a police officer, and physical fitness is only a minor part of what makes someone qualified to be a cop (so an overweight officer is not therefore wholly incapable of doing their job). An officer who goes to the academy and then gains weight after graduation has in no way defeated the purpose of the academy, because physical fitness isn't something you need special police training for (there's no real reason PT at a police academy is different than going to a gym, while instruction in police procedure is something that the academy matters for).

Also, the dictionary definition of "overweight" isn't helpful here - "considered normal or desirable" is about as vague as you can get. The question is, what weight is considered "normal"? How do you tell what weight is appropriate for someone (height isn't a good measure, because then you come to the conclusion that muscular people are out of shape)?

Okay I didn't make myself clear enough, what I meant was, what was the point of going to the academy when you just end up fat again?

I Don't think they went into the academy to lose weight.. i think they went into the academy to be a cop like everyone else who went into it.  

 

 

 

 

Also I Don't think the overweight ratio is 8 to 10, but then again i DID see this..

http://puu.sh/aUuIi/07848597dd.jpg

 

Honestly i think these are loaded statistics.. being overweight does not necessarily mean your fat you could be swole as fuck and still be classified overweight according to the BMI calculator that a lot of people use

Edited August 16, 201411 yr by XBR410

Well...I think the question should be asked is....define "overweight"

 

This.

 

There is a big difference between "overweight" and "fat". What standards are they referencing with this article, because the article doesn't ever cite a specific set of standards they are using for reference.

 

For example, I'm 6'2" and 230 lbs. I'm "overweight", but that's largely because I have a big build (broad shoulders and big legs) and some decent muscle mass.

 

According to the US Army's standards, a male in my age range that is 6'2" tall would be considered "overweight" at 206 lbs: http://usmilitary.about.com/od/army/l/blmaleweight.htm

 

But according to the American cancer society, a male in my age range that is 6'2" tall would be considered "overweight" at as low as 194 lbs: http://www.cancer.org/cancer/cancercauses/dietandphysicalactivity/bodyweightandcancerrisk/body-weight-and-cancer-risk-adult-bmi

 

What standards is the FBI using to reach their 80% conclusion? An older source indicated that the FBI's own standards for "desirable weight range" for a male that is 6'2" tall would be 156-215 lbs.

 

So, with a quick google search we have 3 different weight limits of what is defined as "overweight". Facts are everything.

Edited August 16, 201411 yr by johnclark1102

To summarize l3ubba's post: The academy is not to get in shape. That's not the point of a police academy. They can have physical training as one component, but the point of a police academy is to learn how to be a police officer, and physical fitness is only a minor part of what makes someone qualified to be a cop (so an overweight officer is not therefore wholly incapable of doing their job). An officer who goes to the academy and then gains weight after graduation has in no way defeated the purpose of the academy, because physical fitness isn't something you need special police training for (there's no real reason PT at a police academy is different than going to a gym, while instruction in police procedure is something that the academy matters for).

Also, the dictionary definition of "overweight" isn't helpful here - "considered normal or desirable" is about as vague as you can get. The question is, what weight is considered "normal"? How do you tell what weight is appropriate for someone (height isn't a good measure, because then you come to the conclusion that muscular people are out of shape)?

Okay I understand, the standards are different for everybody, here at my afjrotc class, we have a pt team, you don't have to join it but everyone there is required to workout at least once a week.

But according to the American cancer society, a male in my age range that is 6'2" tall would be considered "overweight" at as low as 104 lbs: http://www.cancer.org/cancer/cancercauses/dietandphysicalactivity/bodyweightandcancerrisk/body-weight-and-cancer-risk-adult-bmi

It's actually 194 pounds, which is very different from 104 lbs.

It's actually 194 pounds, which is very different from 104 lbs.

 

Whoops, typo. Thanks for the correction.

Also I Don't think the overweight ratio is 8 to 10, but then again i DID see this..

http://puu.sh/aUuIi/07848597dd.jpg

Lol that is the worst photoshop job I've ever seen.