Don Ardell is an old friend who produces a highly entertaining, well-informed, irreverent and thought provoking newsletter, the Electronic Ardell Wellness Report (EAWR). Way back in the Spring 2002 edition of ‘Well’ we awarded the EAWR the Speakwell Oscar for our favorite wellness newsletter, in part because it was the one we read without fail.
Don’s style is not for everybody, and not always for me. He is a prolific, relentless promoter of high-level wellness. One thing I like about Don’s writing is that he doesn’t play favorites and, when appropriate, will be critical of big business, the Surgeon General, vitamins, politics, religion, and even wellness conferences.
In this article he turns his spotlight on the town of Winter Haven, Florida and its fitness oriented police chief.
A Lesson Gained From The Sacking Of A Fitness-Oriented Police Chief
The sleepy town of Winter Haven, Florida got its 15 minutes of fame (or infamy) in early November when its police chief, Paul S. Goward, was fired for being a fitness promoter! More specifically, Mr. Goward, a very fit 60-year-old veteran cop, made a strong case for a fit police department in the form of a ten-point email to all the officers on the force. This sounds reasonable to me. How could this be a firing offense? Should he not have been given a raise?
Does this make sense to you? Could such a thing be a firing offense? You be the judge. Here is the fatal email message, "Are You a Jelly Belly?" obtained from the ex-chief himself.
As I look around the department, I see a disconcerting number of us that appear physically challenged with obesity and/or a general lack of fitness. This is a tremendous concern to me because the literature, to say nothing of common sense, says that if you are obese or out of shape, you are a predictable liability to yourself, your family, your partner, this department, the City of Winter Haven and the citizens of our city. Here is a list of the reasons. You generally:
1. Are a health risk and you compromise departmental readiness. You are prone to hypertension, diabetes, high cholesterol, back problems, hemorrhoids and a multitude of other illnesses and injuries.
2. Are a poor image representation of the profession.
3. Are not combat ready and cannot defend yourself properly against a fit suspect.
4. Are unable to successfully, without a much higher health or injury risk, chase a suspect for any great distance.
5. May have to resort to a higher level of force than a fit officer.
6. Lack energy, which impacts your initiative level.
7. Do not sleep well and are not properly rested.
8. Are actually, or appear to be, lazier than a fit officer.
9. Are not prepared to transition from a sedentary environment to a suddenly physically demanding one.
10. Are aware that you are not fit.
So, take a good look at yourself. If you are unfit, do yourself and everyone else a favor. See a professional about a proper diet and a fitness training program (we do have a workout room), quit smoking, limit alcohol intake and start thinking about self-pride, confidence and respectability. And, stop making excuses for delaying what you know you should have been doing years ago. We didn't hire you unfit and we don't want you working unfit. You owe it to us.
Don't mean to offend, this is just straight talk. I owe it to you.
Well, what do YOU think? The recipients of the message did not take it in the intended spirit, for gratitude was not the response—termination was. I believe ex-chief Goward’s initiative was an enlightened message, sensible, accurate and courageous. I think other police chiefs across the land should emulate Mr. Goward’s initiative, and be honored for doing so.
Of course, it's difficult to know what the real reasons might have been for the chief's dismissal—it’s hard to believe it actually was this ten-point call to wellness. Maybe the city manager or somebody in a high place wanted to can the chief for years, but could not make a proper case—until this.
If that's the case, he or she miscalculated. A different reason should have been found. This firing has made the ex-chief a national celebrity—and the town has been made to look ridiculous.
A columnist for the local paper, The Ledger of Lakeland, was quoted as follows: "He offered tremendously good advice, yet he was sacked." Just so. It was indeed tremendously good advice, and it should be promoted widely. A poll taken online of well over 300,000 respondents one week after the firing showed overwhelming support for the ex-chief. Asked if the 'jelly bellies' memo was inappropriate, 72 percent said "no;" only 28 percent agreed. Asked if "you think the chief should have been fired," the results were startling: only 3 percent said "yes" versus 97 percent "no."
If I were master of the universe, which I would not mind on occasions like this, I would reinstate the chief. I would also fire everyone associated with his sacking and ensure that Chief Goward got a handsome raise, a holiday named in his honor, a big parade and a bronze bust in his likeness. The latter would be mounted in front of the Winter Haven City Hall. (Martin’s comment: A typical bit of Ardellian hyperbole.)
Then I would require not just Winter Haven but police departments across the land to offer police officer mandates to be fit or get fired. Of course, as a warm-hearted, benevolent despot, I would give all officers ample time to do so and see that effective programs and trainings were made available—at no cost to the tubby officers. I would try to use positive incentives to guide officers to high levels of fitness. But, those who resisted, refused or otherwise remained fat and unfit would bear the awesome power of my righteous wrath—they would be terminated. They could find other lines of work wherein pooping out would not be a liability to the city and their families.
I think the ex-chief did the right thing and hope that he is appreciated in his next assignment.
I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Police Chief Paul Goward.
Paul has been in police work for 36 years. Prior to taking his post in Winter Haven, he was chief of police in Wichita, Kansas. He has a long record of fitness advocacy—the memo that led to his sacking was not the first time he urged officers to look after themselves, fitness-wise. A regular at the police gym, Paul encouraged his staff to make the most of health enhancement opportunities afforded by the town benefit programs. Regrettably, many if not most officers did not, despite the chief's frequent mention of the importance of exercise at police roll calls and other occasions.
I asked Paul what prompted him to write the fateful email to his 80-member police force. He explained that, while he had thought about the matter for some time, it was an article entitled "Fit for Duty: How to Train For the Real Deal" in the September edition of Law Enforcement Technology that sent him into action. Written by Carole Moore, a career police officer, the article began by acknowledging the cliché of the fat cop "that won't go away: His belly spills over his leather gear, dimming any chance of a quick, accurate draw. His uniform looks sloppy and poorly fitted. And he can barely squeeze behind the wheel of his patrol car, which is littered with empty fast food containers and cardboard coffee cups."
Wow. That was even MORE politically incorrect than the chief's email message. Did she get fired, too?
Officer Moore said that while Hollywood may play this stereotype for laughs, "In real life, out-of-shape officers pose a danger to both themselves and others." Comparing law enforcement work with military service, Moore noted how the two professions require similar skills. However, "overweight, out-of-condition soldiers don't show up on the Army's rolls." Why? Because the Army appreciates the fact that "those who can't pull their weight create a liability that reverberates throughout the entire organization."
No wonder the chief was called to action. I feel like sending a post to police officers myself, but alas I don't have the credibility of Officer Moore or ex-chief Goward, so I won't. Still, the article does show the merit of the ex-chief's initiative.
The chief told me he's been swamped with requests to do interviews on CNN, FOX and so on, but is already tired of the fuss and wants to move on, preferably in police work.
If I were mayor of a big city and had a police chief who was not promoting a fit officer corps, Mr. Goward would have to look no more. I would make him an offer he couldn't refuse!
I just hope someone who IS a mayor somewhere does the same.
The Ardell Wellness Report is a quarterly health promotion newsletter designed to entertain, inform and stimulate. It features ideas associated with a satisfying, exciting AND healthful existence. If you enjoy the daily "Don's Reports," you will love his weekly AND quarterly newsletters. The Report addresses all the 14 areas promoted at this site under the three self-management domains. Don's newsletters will be an antidote to the mediocrity of prevention, sickening normalcy and prescriptions from experts that tend to perpetuate "learned helplessness.
Subscribers receive FOUR published editions a year, plus the weekly electronic newsletter called the electronic AWR. At present, 300 plus editions of the E-AWR have been sent to subscribers. The Report has been produced quarterly since 1984; a subscription costs $30US for four issues mailed quarterly in the U.S.—$40 outside the U.S.
As I look around the department, I see a disconcerting number of us that appear physically challenged with obesity and/or a general lack of fitness. This is a tremendous concern to me because the literature, to say nothing of common sense, says that if you are obese or out of shape, you are a predictable liability to yourself, your family, your partner, this department, the City of Winter Haven and the citizens of our city. Here is a list of the reasons. You generally: 
5. May have to resort to a higher level of force than a fit officer. 
I asked Paul what prompted him to write the fateful email to his 80-member police force. He explained that, while he had thought about the matter for some time, it was an article entitled "Fit for Duty: How to Train For the Real Deal" in the September edition of Law Enforcement Technology that sent him into action. Written by Carole Moore, a career police officer, the article began by acknowledging the cliché of the fat cop "that won't go away: His belly spills over his leather gear, dimming any chance of a quick, accurate draw. His uniform looks sloppy and poorly fitted. And he can barely squeeze behind the wheel of his patrol car, which is littered with empty fast food containers and cardboard coffee cups."
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