HEALTH AND EXERCISE IN THE DEFENSE FORCES

Overview

The most important goal is to create a cost-effective, stimulating model for improving the employee's quality of life, work ability, and job satisfaction in the military operating environment. This is achieved by finding out how to activate an individual with the phone-based gaming and web-based feedback system to improve his physical condition. This study also tries to find out the adequate amount of physical activity to maintain the physical health of workers. Personnel work ability, to work safe in service and effective operation capability of emergency forces require a worker's state of total well-being, in which the health and the physical condition are important parts. The changes in these affects the individual's fitness to military. This study develops a model to encourage an individual to carry out physical activity by himself. This will lead to reduce the sick leaves and improve the health and fitness. Physical activity reduces morbidity. Professional soldiers must maintain their physical condition and skills. The study explores the optimum amount of working-age physical activity. It helps to maintain the working ability and one's fitness to field operations. With the help of the developed model it is possible cost-effectively activate a large number of employees to move more and to live more healthily.

In this study it will be used motion sensors which are sending feedback to individuals mobile phone. Feedback is also given by email and in an interview after analyzing data from cloud service. In the beginning of the study it will analyzed blood test, salivary test, body composition, height weight and basic motion. All volunteers are also answering a questionnaire. There will be an intervention group and a control group. The intervention group will receive feedback during the all six months they are carrying the motion sensor. After 6 and 12 months the basic analyzes will be repeated. Sick leaves and the changes in the muscular fitness test and changes in the 12-minutes running test will be analyzed.