How Fit Are You? Five Strength Tests for Your 50s
Strength training is a must for maintaining optimal health and function throughout life. If you’re in your fifties, you can — and should — start strength training.
“As you age, strength training becomes even more important than cardio,” says Melissa Leber, MD, associate professor of orthopedics and emergency medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City. Strengthening the muscles helps combat age-related muscle and bone loss, so you can keep up with daily tasks and avoid injury.
Curious how your strength is holding up? Put your body to the test with the following five exercises.
To evaluate your strength in your fifties, use the following five at-home tests suggested by Dr. Leber and Susane Pata, a National Association of Sports Medicine (NASM)–certified personal trainer in Miami. These exercises test your ability to maintain balance (muscular strength helps you maintain balance), as well as the strength of your leg, core, and upper body muscles.
Don’t stress if you can’t do all of the tests. After all, everybody’s fitness level is different, and if you haven’t been strength training, these may be more difficult for you than somebody who’s been strength training for years, Leber says. So use them as a baseline to measure where your strength is right now. You can then work on building strength over the next few months and test again to see if you’ve improved.
All you need to do these tests is a timer and a sturdy wall, though you may also want an exercise mat for floor exercises. Do these tests barefoot or wear comfortable athletic shoes.
From standing, shift your weight onto one leg and lift the other foot a few inches off the floor. Start your timer and see if you can maintain your balance without holding onto a wall or chair for support for 1 minute. Then, switch legs and repeat.
You’ll start this test with 10 points; your goal is to complete the test without losing any. Begin in a standing position. Cross one foot over the other and carefully sit cross-legged on the floor. Subtract a point every time you use a hand, knee, forearm, or other body part to help you. Once seated, rock your weight into your feet and return to standing. Again, subtract a point every time you use assistance. If you don't need any assistance getting up or down, your score is 10.
Stand with your back against a sturdy wall. Then, walk your feet forward a foot or two and slide your back down the wall until your hips are at the same height as your knees and your knees are over your ankles. Start your timer and hold this position. Aim for at least 30 seconds.
Get on the floor on your hands and position your wrists under your shoulders. Then, extend your legs behind you and place your toes on the ground. Your body should form a straight line from the top of your head to your heels. Tuck your chin so your gaze is toward the floor (but don’t let your head drop). Contract your glutes and engage your abdominal muscles. Start your timer and hold this position. Aim for at least 30 seconds.
Start in the same position as the plank with your hands and toes on the floor. To initiate a push-up, slowly bend your elbows backward, making a 45-degree angle with your torso. Lower your chest until it almost touches the floor, keeping your abdominal muscles tight and back flat. Pause briefly, then push your body back up. Aim for 10 repetitions.
Working the muscles through strength training helps combat sarcopenia, the loss of muscle due to aging.
This is where strength training comes into play. “Although you’re still going to lose some muscle mass because of the aging process, strength training can help you fight that loss,” says Melissa Boyd, an NASM-certified trainer in San Francisco, and head coach at Tempo, a virtual personal training service.
When you strengthen your muscles, you’ll also strengthen your bones and joints. Stronger bones help fend off osteoporosis (a bone-weakening disease), but there are additional benefits from this trio effect. “You’ll improve your balance and spatial awareness, both of which get worse as you get older,” Leber says.
Injury prevention is another potential benefit. Your muscles and ligaments are more flexible and pliable when you’re younger. As you age, though, your muscles become more rigid, making you more prone to injury, Leber says. It also takes longer for your muscles to heal. When your muscles are strong, you’ll be better able to prevent and recover from injury, Leber says.
As with any exercise program, check with your doctor first. While there isn’t any inherent risk to doing strength training when you’re over 50, having joint or bone issues (like arthritis or osteoporosis), diabetes, or heart conditions (like heart disease or atherosclerosis, a hardening of the arteries) might require modifications, Boyd says.
It’s also beneficial to work with a qualified fitness professional to make sure you’re using correct exercise form and technique. Nailing proper exercise form and technique becomes even more important as you age, especially if you have arthritis in your joints or any issues with your spine, Leber says.
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