What Is Your Fitness Level? Let’s Find Out!

If you’ve taken the first step to getting more exercise, great! You’re already reaping the benefits of being active. But if you want to take it to the next level, you’ll want to determine your fitness level.

This is when you can start to create fitness routines and training regimens that will accelerate your progress. You’ll feel strong and energized, not to mention you’ll love seeing your reflection. 

The question now becomes, how do you test your fitness level? Keep reading this guide to find out.

The Key Areas of Fitness

To assess your fitness level, you’ll need to examine your ability to perform in the key areas of fitness. This includes relative strength, power, and endurance. 

Relative strength is how strong you are in relation to how much you weigh. Don’t confuse this with absolute strength, which is how much weight you can lift regardless of your size. 

Power is the ability to express strength rapidly. This includes exercises like vertical jumps or sprinting. It’s a big component of athleticism, and it also determines how resistant you are to physical injuries. 

Finally, there’s endurance. You can break this down into cardiovascular endurance and muscular endurance. 

Muscular endurance measures how often your muscles contract against resistance for a given amount of time. Whereas cardiovascular measures the heart and lung’s ability to deliver oxygen to your body’s tissues as you exercise for an extended period of time.

Tests to Determine Fitness Level 

Now that you know the key areas, it’s time to look at fitness testing exercises that will get you closer to understanding how you perform. Remember that if you’re relatively new to the world of exercise, you may not do as well as you’d like. Let that motivate you to keep working hard so that you’ll notice a big difference when you do the same tests again.

The Plank

People tend to have a love/hate relationship with planks. That’s understandable; they deceptively challenging!

With that said, they’re a great way to assess core stability. Having good core strength is necessary to stabilize the spine and create harmony with other muscles in your body. Doing this plank exercise will test both strength and muscle endurance. 

First, get in a push-up position, but put the weight on your forearms instead of your hands. Your elbows should be beneath your shoulders.

Then squeeze those glutes and tighten your core. Visualize a straight line going from the top of your head to the heels of your feet.

Hold this for as long as you can, be sure to use a stopwatch to keep track of the time.

Classic Push-Ups

If you really want a solid indicator of upper body strength, it’s time to do some push-ups. You might think this tests pure strength, but it’s actually a better measure of muscular endurance. You’ll want to see how many you can do in a short amount of time instead of the amount of weight you can lift.

Get on all fours, keep your feet together and place your hands in line with your shoulders. Once again, be sure to squeeze those glutes and brace your core, so your body is in a straight line. 

Now, lower your chest—don’t forget to keep those elbows tucked! You’ll want to end up a few inches from the floor and then push yourself back to the starting position.

Do this as many times as you can within a minute and log how many you did.

Burpees

Now it’s time to test both the endurance and strength of your upper body, core, and lower body. If you don’t already include burpees in your workout, that changes today. Be warned—this will burn (but in the best way). 

To perform a burpee, you’ll start standing with your feet about hip-width apart. Then you’ll push your hips back as you bend your knees and put your hands on the ground in front of you.

Jump your feet back into a push-up position and then return to a squat. Now it’s time to explode up, reach as high as you can while you jump off the floor. Be sure to land softly to avoid any injuries. 

That’s one rep. Immediately begin the next one and repeat for a minute. Log the amount you were able to do.

Bodyweight Squat

There’s a reason why squats are known as the “King of Exercises.” It’s difficult to find another exercise that mobilizes the lower half of your body in the same way. Squats are one of those exercises that are easy to do incorrectly, so be sure to practice proper form before introducing any weights.

Let’s start with going over how to perform a bodyweight squat correctly. 

You’ll stand with your feet about hip-width apart and push your hips back while bending your knees. You’ll want the top of your thighs parallel to the floor. 

Now bring your arms in front of you and be sure that your chest is high, your back is flat, and that your weight is on the heels of your feet. Return to your original standing position as quickly as possible.

Repeat this for a minute and log how many reps you complete.

New Chapter in Your Fitness Journey

There’s a reason people get addicted to exercising, it boosts your brain health, improves your mood, and makes you feel confident. If you’re ready for the next chapter in your health journey, you’ll want to test your fitness level. There’s a variety of ways to do this, but sticking to some classic exercises is sure to give you the best idea of where you’re at.

Now you’ll know what your strengths are and where improvement can be made. And don’t forget to combine your new workout plan with a nutritious diet! Abs are made in the kitchen, after all. 

Ready to start your fitness journey? Then it’s time to contact Alloy Personal Training! Get ready to be in the best shape of your life. 

LEARN MORE ABOUT WHAT MAKES US DIFFERENT

We offer several options of personal training to meet every goal and fitness level

Watch This Quick Video

Play Video

Step 1: Enter Your Information Below

Step 1: Enter Your Information Below

Step 1: Enter Your Information Below