A milestone birthday, a health scare, feeling a bit more ‘creaky’, or realising that it’s more of an effort to bend or stretch can lead us to wonder about our fitness. Keeping fit and active as we age is one of the most important things we can do; it’s fantastic for mind and body and really does help to ‘future proof’ us.
How do you gauge how fit you are though? There are some obvious indicators like still being able to run for a bus, fit into your clothes or get up and down the stairs easily, but it’s important to have some baselines that you can measure. Everyone’s fitness levels are different, so comparing yourself to other people isn’t very useful, but there are ways that you can test yourself and see progress. Here are a few quick things you can try yourself as a start, and I’m using an average 60 year old as an example.
The Chair Test
To measure lower body strength, sit on a chair with your arms crossed over your chest. See how many times you can stand up and sit down in 30 seconds without using your hands. You should be aiming for at least 12 repetitions.
You can improve your number with regular practice, and lower body exercises like lunges and squats.
The Leg Stand Test
Balance is key as we age, so this test is an important one. Stand barefoot on a flat surface, put your hands on your hips and lift one foot off the ground. If you can hold the position without swaying, hopping or putting your foot down for about 30 seconds you’ve achieved a good result.
Consistency is key to improvement here, try standing on one leg as you brush your teeth for example.
The Walk Test
This simple test checks how well your heart, lungs and muscles are working. Find a flat path and walk for 6 minutes; at age 60 you should be reaching at least 500 metres.
Walking regularly and trying to go further or quicker will all help you push past your targets.
The Grip Strength Test
Grip strength gives a simple measure of overall musculoskeletal health, and you may have done a grip test the last time you visited your healthcare professional. You can test yourself at home by squeezing a tennis ball or similar; simply squeeze it for as long as you can before your grip fatigues. If you can squeeze hard for over 20 seconds then you are doing well.
Strength training will help improve your grip, even doing wrist curls while holding a can of beans!
The Press Up Test
The dreaded press up! It’s still one of the most effective ways of testing and improving your fitness. They aren’t easy to get right, and it’s perfectly acceptable to do ‘half’ press ups on your knees or doing them vertically against a wall. At age 60 men should be able to do more than 8 and women more than 5 press ups in a row, and that does mean slow press ups with good form!
Repetition is your friend here, doing press ups every day will give you a dramatic improvement, and lots of bragging rights.
All of these tests can give you an indication of how fit you are, but remember they are just broad outlines and everyone is different. What they can show you is where you can improve, and that’s the important information. By doing these activities regularly, and building physical activity into your daily life will help you improve performance and age well.
Make sure you are moving regularly, whether it’s walking, running, cycling, swimming or dancing. Do as much strength training as you can, and try to get out in the fresh air as much as possible. Eat and sleep well, and challenge your mind by reading, doing quizzes or learning something new. Before long you’ll be feeling better and really ageing well.