Grab a yard stick and sit down with your legs out line up the bottom of your feet with the 15-inch line on the yard stick. To check how flexible you are, do the sit-and-stretch test which measures flexibility in the back of your legs, hips and lower back. It’s important to note, too, that men typically lose their flexibility faster than women. While age may play a role in how flexible you are, regular stretching can help lessen the natural decrease in flexibility that begins in our 30s and 40s. For example, someone might get tendinitis of the knee because their calf muscles are so tight. Tissues: An inflexible person may find that they suffer from a lot of differed pain. Weak hamstring muscles could increase the chance of an ACL tear. The hamstring muscles, for example, keep the knees stabilized. That can lead to muscle fatigue which, in turn, could lead to joint injuries since the muscles are too tired to do their job. Muscles: Inflexible muscles put more pressure on other muscles. If you’re inflexible, joints may not be getting the nutrients they need. Joints: A healthy joint, like the hips and knees which bear a lot of your weight, gets lubricated, or oiled, when there’s a good blood supply. FlexibilityĪccording to the University of California Davis’ Health Sports Medicine division, flexibility is an indicator of an individual’s overall health profile because it tells the story of joint, muscle and tissue health. You’ll likely need a personal trainer to help you assess your muscle strength. Common methods include a bench press or leg press, arm curl, pull-down, knee extension and/or knee curl. “Good fitness” for a 35-year-old woman means doing 30 sit-ups (or crunches), or a man of the same age should be able to do 40 in one minute.įor muscular strength, you can test in a variety of ways. While the Mayo Clinic considers the push-up test more accurate than a sit-up test, you can try this test too. If you are a 35-year-old woman, your target goal is 19 push-ups without stopping if you’re a man of the same age, you should be able to do at least 21. In the push-up test, you’ll need your chin to touch the floor. You can test your muscular endurance with a push-up and sit-up test. The American Council on Exercise (ACE) says, “There are two types of muscular fitness assessments: muscular-endurance tests, which assess the ability to resist fatigue and muscular-strength tests, which assess the maximum amount of force an individual can produce in a specified number of repetitions.” On this rating chart, a healthy 36 - 45 year-old man’s pulse will be 90 or lower and a woman in the same age category should come in at 96 beats or less. Harvard Health suggests checking your rate against the YMCA standard. Once you’ve hit the fifth floor, rest or sit for one minute, then check your pulse using the same method described above. Harvard Health, a division of Harvard Medical School, suggests taking the step test which involves walking up five flights of stairs.

While a 25 year old’s target heart rate falls between 98 and 166, a 55 year old’s should be between 83 and 140.

Also known as your target heart rate, the numbers should different depending on your age. Second, test your heart rate while doing an aerobic activity. Set a timer for 15 seconds and count the beats. Check your pulse by placing your index and middle fingers (not your thumb) on either the side of your neck or the inside of your wrist. For your heart to be considered healthy, the typical adult’s resting heart rate should fall between 60 and 100 beats per minute. Aerobic Healthįirst, figure out your resting heart rate. So, how healthy are you? The following metrics can help tell you. A 2015 report suggests that many people with a seemingly normal BMI (body mass index) have a significantly higher risk of metabolic problems and death despite the way they look. This unhealthy bunch - those who eat donuts for breakfast, avoid vegetables and seldom consider what they put in their mouths - have earned the moniker “skinny fat” others suggest this group suffers from “ normal weight obesity ” (NWO). And this applies to many people who look great to the naked eye, and often stay that way no matter what they eat. The researcher behind it found that 1 in 4 people has an underlying condition, like high blood pressure. In fact, a study released in 2008 suggests that you can be fat and fit and thin and unhealthy. Remember, being thin isn’t the same as being healthy. Research suggests there are four main indicators that together assess our fitness: aerobic health, muscular strength and endurance, flexibility, and body composition. Your level of fitness isn’t limited to the number you see on your scale or the size of your biceps.

Ymca body fat calculator