Where do you stack up?
If someone asked you what your fitness level was, what would you tell them? Beginner? Advanced? Somewhere in the middle? Those terms are all well and good, but a bit vague, don’t ya think? Wouldn’t it be better to really know where you stood? For one, you’d be able to find fitness programs that were a much better fit for you. Isn’t annoying when you start a workout and realize 10 minutes in, it was made for someone who considers a mile run a serious workout? On the flip side, it always a bit de-moralizing when you’ve got to quit your workout early because one more burpee will probably have you running to the bathroom to puke everywhere?
Not only will figuring out where you stand help you choose better and more appropriate workouts, but it’ll help you gauge your progress. Too many people fall into the same routine because they can’t tell if they’re making any progress. You’ll have no idea if all the work you’re putting in is getting you anywhere if you don’t have a baseline to compare to. This is why I’m going to give you a baseline fitness abilities test that I use with all of my clients.
This test was designed to measure all of your most vital fitness skill sets and show you how you stack up. From there, I can recommend programs that are better suited to you and your abilities, thus making our workouts even more effective for you.
So without further adieu, let’s check these quick fitness tests out…
Max Burpees in 1 minute. This one is pretty simple. Perform one full minute of burpees, counting each rep. 1-8 = 1 point. 9-16 = 2 points. 17-24 = 3 points. 25+ = 4 points.
1 Mile run. Oh yes..the mile run. How many are immediately taken back to grade school here? A mile is a perfect gauge of mid-distance endurance and will let you how you’re cardiovascular system is doing. 13+ minutes = 1 point. 10-12:59 = 2 points. 7-9:59 = 3 points. Sub 7 minutes =4 points.
Max Squat. You’ll need to be careful here not to injure yourself; we’re just looking for a ball park. The 1 rep max squat is a great testament to your body strength. As you may know, the squat targets a wide variety of muscles in your lower body, giving you a good overall sense of your lower strength. 50% of your bodyweight = 1 point. 100% of your bodyweight = 2 points. 150% of your bodyweight = 3 points. 150%+ of your bodyweight = 4 points.
Max Bench Press. Definitely grab a spotter for this one. Like the squat, we want to see how much weight you can press in one repetition. The bench press, while no means the best indicator of total fitness ability, despite claims by meatheads everywhere…
Read more: Share It Fitness
