Fitness tests

“What you can measure, you can improve. And what you improve today determines how you age.”  

Assessing your fitness is a great way to monitor your progress, identify strengths and weaknesses, and set realistic goals.

Depending on what you’re trying to achieve—whether it’s changing body composition, improving strength, endurance, mobility, or balance—these are simple fitness tests you can perform using minimal equipment.

By comparing your results to established norms or recommendations, you can gain valuable insights into your current fitness level and track improvements over time.

The benchmarks provided are for women. Remember, these are just benchmarks, and your personal goal should be based on gradual improvement from your current ability.

Please refer to this video for a demonstration of each test:

1: Body composition scan (optional)

To perform this scan, you’ll need to google “body composition scan near me”.

When evaluating body composition, the most important metrics are skeletal muscle mass, body fat percentage, and visceral fat. These measurements offer a deeper insight into health and longevity beyond just weight or BMI.

• Skeletal Muscle Mass: Maintaining or increasing muscle mass is crucial for aging well. Higher muscle mass is associated with better mobility, metabolic health, and lower risks of chronic diseases. It’s also protective against frailty, which can affect older adults. Muscle mass is a key determinant of how well the body functions long-term, and a decrease in muscle mass (sarcopenia) is linked to an increased risk of mortality.
• Body Fat Percentage: Focusing on fat loss (especially visceral fat) rather than just weight loss is more beneficial for health outcomes. Visceral fat is considered one of the most dangerous types of fat because it’s associated with increased inflammation, insulin resistance, and other risk factors for chronic diseases.

2: Resting heart rate (RHR)

Resting heart rate (RHR) is important because it provides valuable cardiovascular and overall health insights. A lower RHR typically signifies better cardiovascular fitness and more efficient heart function.

Use a HR monitor, smartwatch, or check yourself:

• Take your resting heart rate first thing in the morning, before getting out of bed, after a good night’s sleep. This will give you the most accurate reading.
• Make sure you are calm and relaxed. Avoid taking it after intense exercise, drinking caffeine, or consuming other stimulants, as these can affect your heart rate.
• Count your pulse for 1 minute at rest.

A normal resting heart rate is between 60 to 100 beats per minute (bpm), though this can vary throughout the day and from person to person. For example, a trained athlete can have a resting heart rate of around 40-50 bpm. It’s generally better to have a lower resting heart rate as this can indicate improved heart function and physical fitness. 

3: Overall Health / Longevity

The Hang test is a simple and effective measure of grip strength and endurance, both of which are linked to longevity and overall fitness. 

What You Need

• A sturdy pull-up bar: The bar should be high enough to allow you to hang freely without your feet touching the ground.
• A stopwatch

Steps

1. Warm Up: Spend 5–10 minutes on light warm-ups such as arm circles, shoulder rolls, and wrist stretches to prepare.
2. Grip the Bar: Grab the bar with both hands in an overhand grip (palms facing away from you). Position your hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.
3. Engage Your Body: Lift your feet off the ground, allowing your body to hang freely. Engage your shoulders by pulling them slightly down and away from your ears. Tighten your core to maintain a straight body alignment.
4. Hold the Position: Breathe steadily and focus on maintaining proper form without swinging or bending your knees.
5. Time Your Hang: Hold the position for as long as you can.

5. Men: Aim for 2 minutes.
6. Women: Aim for 1.5 minutes.
7. Stop When Needed: End the test if your grip fails, your form deteriorates, or you feel pain or excessive strain.

These are just benchmarks, and your personal goal should be based on gradual improvement from your current ability.

4: Aerobic fitness

The Step test is a simple way to estimate your aerobic fitness and cardiovascular health.

What You Need

• A sturdy 12-inch (30 cm) step or platform.
• A stopwatch or timer.
• A metronome app (optional, to maintain step rate).
• A heart rate monitor (optional) or a method to measure your pulse.

Steps

1. Warm-Up:Spend 5 minutes doing light stretching or walking to prepare your body.
2. Step Rhythm: Step up and down the platform for 3 minutes (or until fatigue) at a consistent rate of 24 steps per minute. (up, up, down, down = 1 step cycle). You can use a metronome app (96 beats per minute) or count manually to keep pace.
3. After 3 minutes, stop, sit down and record your heart rate.
4. Wait for 1 min before taking your heart rate again. This is the number you can compare with the table below.

These are just benchmarks, and your personal goal should be based on gradual improvement from your current ability.

5: Muscular endurance: upper

The Push-up test is a simple way to test your upper body muscular endurance.

What You Need

• A stopwatch or timer.
• A marker for your chest to touch. *A full repetition is when elbows are at least level with shoulders at the lower position and fully extended in the upper position.
• Level 1 option: Perform push-ups against a wall.
• Level 2 option: Perform push-ups on an incline.
• Level 3 option: Perform push-ups on your toes.
• There is no option to perform push-ups on knees!

Steps

1. Warm-up: Spend 5 mins with light stretching and arm circles.
2. Assume a proper push-up position: hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart, fingers pointing forward, body straight from head to heels, core engaged.
3. Start the Timer: Begin performing push-ups as soon as the timer starts.
   
   • Lower your chest until your elbows are level with your shoulders (or your chest touches the marker).
   • Push back up to fully extend your arms.
   • Keep your body in a straight line throughout; no sagging hips or arched back.
4. Count Repetitions: Count each push-up completed with the correct form. Rest as needed during the minute but keep the timer running.
5. Stop After 1 Minute: Record the total number of push-ups completed.

These are just benchmarks, and your personal goal should be based on gradual improvement from your current ability.

6: Muscular endurance: lower

The Wall-sit test is a simple way to test your lower body muscular endurance.

What You Need

• A wall.

Steps

1. Warm-up: Spend 5 mins with light stretching focusing on your legs.
2. Position yourself: Stand with your back against the wall, feet shoulder-width apart. Slide your back down the wall and walk your feet forward until your hips align with your knees and your knees are above your heels.
3. Start timing: Hold the position for as long as possible without moving or adjusting. Stop the timer when you can no longer maintain the position.

These are just benchmarks, and your personal goal should be based on gradual improvement from your current ability.

7: Balance

The 6-Stage balance test is a simple way to test your balance. 

What You Need

• A chair or wall for support if necessary.

Steps

• Complete each stage progressively. If you cannot hold a stage for 10 seconds, stop the test.

1. Stage 1: Feet Side-by-Side
   • Stand with your feet together, touching side-by-side.
   • Hold this position for 10 seconds without moving or holding onto anything.
2. Stage 2: Semi-Tandem Stance
   • Place the instep of one foot against the side of the other foot.
   • Hold this position for 10 seconds.
3. Stage 3: Tandem Stance
   • Place one foot directly in front of the other, heel to toe (like standing on a tightrope).
   • Hold this position for 10 seconds.
4. Stage 4: Single-Leg Stance
   • Stand on one leg with the other leg lifted slightly off the ground.
   • Hold this position for 10 seconds.
5. Stage 5: Feet hip width heel raise:
   • Stand with feet hip-width and lift both heels off the ground.
   • Hold this position for 10 seconds.
6. Stage 6: Single foot heel raise:
   • Stand on one leg with heel lifted off the ground
   • Hold this position for 10 seconds.
   • Repeat both sides.

8: Mobility: upper

1: The Prone shoulder mobility test.

What You Need

• A flat surface: Use a mat or a comfortable floor area where you can lie down flat on your stomach.
• Space: Ensure enough room around you to extend your arms fully.
• Optional: A partner or video camera to observe and measure the height of your arms for accuracy.

Steps

1. Get Into Position: Lie face-down on the floor with your arms extended straight in front of you. Position your arms shoulder-width apart, thumbs pointing upward.
2. Engage Your Body: Keep your forehead, chest, and belly in contact with the floor. Ensure your legs remain straight and your toes relaxed.
3. Lift Your Arms: Raise both arms simultaneously as high as possible while keeping them straight. Avoid bending your elbows or letting your chest lift off the floor.
4. Hold the Position: Once your arms are lifted, hold the position for 5 deep inhales and exhales. Avoid holding your breath during the test.
5. Measure the Height (Optional): Use a ruler or have a partner measure how far your arms lift off the ground. The goal is to lift your arms at least 2 inches off the floor.
6. Take notes: Record any difficulties or restrictions in your movement throughout the test.

2: The Apley scratch test

What You Need

• Space: A comfortable standing area with enough room to move your arms freely.
• Partner (Optional): Someone to observe or measure the gap between your fingers if needed.

Steps

1. Get Into Position: Stand upright with a neutral spine, feet shoulder-width apart.
2. Start the Test:
   • Reach one arm overhead and bend the elbow to bring your hand down the center of your back.
   • Simultaneously, take the other arm behind your back, bending the elbow to bring your hand up towards the middle of your back.
3. Assess Mobility:
   • Attempt to touch the fingers of both hands behind your back.
   • Observe whether your hands meet, overlap, or are separated by a gap.
4. Measure (Optional): If your fingers do not meet, use a ruler or tape measure to determine the distance between them.
5. Repeat on the Other Side:Switch arms, with the opposite hand reaching overhead and the other behind your back. Compare results.
6. Record Your Results: Note if there are differences in mobility between sides or if you experience pain or discomfort during the test.

8: Mobility: lower

The Sit and rise test determines whether you have a good range of motion in your hips, knees and ankles.

What you need

• Open Space: A clear area with enough room to safely sit and stand without obstructions.
• Optional Support: A wall or sturdy object nearby for balance if needed.

Steps

1. Get Ready: Stand upright in the middle of the space with your feet shoulder-width apart. Ensure you’re barefoot or wearing flexible footwear for better control.
2. Start the Test: Cross one foot in front of the other, maintaining balance. Lower yourself into a cross-legged sitting position on the floor without using your hands, knees, or other supports.
3. Sit Fully: Once seated, ensure your body is stable in the cross-legged position. Avoid shifting or using external support.
4. Rise to Stand: From the cross-legged position, stand up without using your hands, knees, or external supports. Focus on engaging your core and leg muscles to maintain balance.
5. Observe Performance: Note if you can complete the movements smoothly and without assistance or if you require additional support to balance or lift yourself.
6. Record Results: Take note of any challenges, such as loss of balance, use of hands, or difficulty completing the motion.