The Effectiveness of a Functional Preconditioning Program in Reducing Musculoskeletal Injuries in a Tactical Population

This study examined the effects of functional training on musculoskeletal (MSK) injuries, days lost from training, and attrition rate among police recruits in Abu Dhabi. A total of 441 Abu Dhabi Police recruits were randomly allocated into experimental (n = 220) and control (n = 221) groups. The experimental group underwent six weeks of preconditioning functional training, while the control group followed the standard Abu Dhabi Police recruitment procedure. Subsequently, both groups entered 16 weeks of basic military training (BMT). The outcome measures (injury rate, days lost from training, and attrition rate) were collected at the end of BMT. The proportion of injuries reported by the experimental group was significantly lower than that reported by the control group (15.3% versus 52.3%, respectively [χ2 = 66.8, p < 0.001]). There were significant differences in the median (minimum, maximum) number of injuries and number of days lost to training between the experimental and control groups [1 (1, 5) versus 2 (1, 9), p = 0.002 (r = 0.30); and 2.5 (1, 26) versus 5.0 (1, 37), p < 0.001 (r = 0.34), respectively]. The number of dropouts due to MSK injuries during BMT was 1 in the experimental group and 5 in the control group (p = 0.06). Tactical athletes who did not undergo preconditioning training demonstrated a greater risk of non-contact lower-limb injury than those who received structured conditioning training. Therefore, preconditioning training might be a beneficial tool to minimize injuries among tactical athlete trainees. Trial Registration: ISRCTN registry (ISRCTN41786994), retrospectively registered on 13 April 2026.