Everyone left their physical form a little forgotten during confinement. The only question that arises is: how forgotten?
There is only one way to find out, and that way is by experiencing some fitness challenges (fun, of course!). To test your stamina, strength and cardio, we chose exercises that are both simple to do, difficult and measurable.
Bench press with your Body Weight
The bench press is a traditional test of strength and, because it is not one of the easiest things to replace outside the gym, it can be one of the first exercises we do when we return.
According to general strength parameters, doing bench presses with your body weight would put you at a level initiated with strength, depending on your weight.
Try and test your strength after the months of break. But remember to take proper care, use the right shape and warm up by gradually increasing your weight.
After you have tried the bench press, write down the results and set realistic goals to achieve in the future.
The Cooper Test
How fast can you run for 12 minutes? It’s time to find out.
Designed by Kenneth H. Cooper, the Cooper 12-minute running test was created in 1968. It measures a person’s cardiovascular health, as well as their maximum VO2 (maximum oxygen consumption).
The maximum VO2 is the maximum volume of oxygen that someone can use when exercising intensively, and the Cooper test measures this factor based on the distance you can travel in 12 minutes.
The results depend, on average, on gender and age, but, in general, 2.2 km is considered good for women aged 20 to 30, and 2.4 km is considered good for men. So, run for 12 minutes without stopping and then see the distance.
After a 12-minute run, you can calculate your VO2 with an online Cooper test calculator. It is a solid test of your fitness, with decades of use, and has even been used in some military tests, so it is undoubtedly a reliable fitness challenge.
American Air Force Fitness Test
The American Air Force fitness test is a simple and reliable way to compare your fitness with military level. As part of the test, you have to do 1 minute of push-ups, 1 minute of sit-ups and a 1.5-mile (2.41km) run.
These are the minimum requirements to pass the test for men:
- 45 push-ups in 1 minute
- 50 sit-ups in 1 minute
- Finish a 1.5 mile (2.41km) run in 11:57 minutes.
For women, the minimum requirements to pass are:
- 27 push-ups in 1 minute
- 50 sit-ups in 1 minute
- Finish a 1.5 mile (2.41km) run in 13:56 minutes.
Do you think you could join the United States Air Force? See how you leave!
Push-up Challenge
Many of us challenged friends to push-up contests when we were kids. And it’s time for us to do it again.
We may have gained the habit of doing push-ups at home, but they will always remain a classic fitness test, which allows us to test our strength. For a man in his 20s and 30s, 30 or more push ups at once is a good goal. For a woman the same age, 23 push-ups or more. If you want something different, try this flexion variation for an even greater challenge:
Vertical Jump Test
The idea of this challenge is to test the power of your legs – specifically the glutes, hamstrings and quadriceps. It’s also easy to prepare: you just need a wall, a tape measure and maybe a piece of chalk or someone else to help you measure the distance.
Stand up against a wall and touch the wall with your hand as high as possible. Mark or fix in memory the height of the wall you reach.
Then jump as high as possible, raising your hand, and mark the highest point you can touch. By measuring the distance between the two points, you know how high you can jump.
An excellent result for men would be around 71cm, and for girls, it would be around 61cm.
So, force on those legs!
This Yoga Position
Myprotein launches a challenge to all yoga experts who read us: this position. It can be a good way to see if you still have the same flexibility. Try the old positions, which you may not have done in a while, and put yourself back on the path of zen .
Final Message
Test your fitness level and try some challenges, to see if your shape has suffered in the last few months. With any luck, you won’t notice much of a difference. And don’t worry if you have lost any strength, stamina or cardiovascular capacity during confinement – after realizing it, it will be a matter of time before you can recover.
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