3/21/2017 Seven Tests of True Strength

FITNESS (/FITNESS) | FITNESS (/TAGS/FITNESS)

Seven Tests of True Strength

Are you Men's Health Fit? Prove it—or improve
BY ANDREW HEFFERNAN, C.S.C.S. (/AUTHOR/ANDREW-HEFFERNAN-CSCS)
December 18, 2012

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THE TEST 
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2. SQUAT, CURL, AND PUSH PRESS 20
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THE TEST 
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Use dumbbells that total roughly 30 percent of
your body weight (that's a pair of 30­pounders if
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you weigh 200) and hold them by your sides with
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%20 INCREASE YOUR MUSCULAR STAMINA 
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THE SCORECARD  
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Above average: Halfway down 
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ove
Mobility is a quality great athletes hone but most
%20i regular guys ignore. That's a mistake: "The more
mobile you are, the better you can move your
t%E2 joints through their full range of motion and the
less likely you are to be injured," says kinesiologist
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and rehab expert Dean Somerset, C.S.C.S. This
test, he says, "will expose limitations in your
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ankles, hips, neck, and upper back—places where
or%2 most men are bound up." A lot of people fail this
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0impr ankles.  
 
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THE TEST 
Stand facing a wall with your feet shoulder­width
apart and toes 2 inches from the baseboard and
turned slightly out. Keeping your feet flat, chest up,
and back naturally arched, see how far you can
lower your body without touching the wall or
falling backward.  
 
BOOST YOUR MOBILITY 
Loosen your back with self­massage. Lie on your
   
back with a foam roller placed perpendicular to
your spine just below your shoulder blades. Bend
your knees so your feet are flat on the floor.
Support your head with your hands, and move
your head, neck, and upper back forward and
backward over the foam roller four to six times. To
loosen tight ankles and calves, try the ankle

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mobility lunge. Stand in a split stance with your
front foot about 6 inches from a wall. Now bend
your front knee to touch the wall without letting
your front heel leave the floor. Do this 8 to 10
times. Switch legs and repeat. 
 

4/7

 
4. SCORE LEVEL 12 ON THE BEEP TEST 
 
THE SCORECARD 
Men's Health Fit: Level 12 
  Above average: Level 11   
Ordinary: Level 9 
 
Cardiovascular endurance isn't just a sign of your
10­K potential; it's an indicator of how long you'll
last in any athletic endeavor, from a 48­minute
basketball game to an afternoon of backyard
football. And people who play aerobic endurance
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sports have a higher life expectancy than those
who do not, according to a recent German study
review.  
 
THE TEST Download the Beep Test app for your
iPhone (Beep Test Solo, $1) or Android device
(Beep Test, $2.50). Place two cones 20 meters
apart on a track or field, hit the start button on the
app, and run from one cone to the other. When you
hear the beep, run back. Continue until you can't
reach the opposite cone before the next beep
sounds. (The time between beeps will shorten as
you progress through the test.) Then hit the
"record score" button. "This is the best way to test
aerobic endurance," says Alwyn Cosgrove, C.S.C.S.,
owner of Results Fitness in Santa Clarita,
California. Its escalating intensity is a good
measure of your body's ability to deliver oxygen to
working muscles—your "peak aerobic capacity." 
 
IMPROVE YOUR ENDURANCE 
Repeat the beep test once a week. Just repeating
the drill can help boost your peak aerobic capacity,
says Cosgrove. On two other days each week, do
sprint intervals. Sprint at 85 percent of your
maximum effort for 1 minute and then rest for 2
minutes. Do that 5 to 8 times total. "Over and over,
intervals have been shown to be the fastest way to
improve your VO2 max, the maximum amount of
oxygen your body can process at once, which is a
powerful indicator of your aerobic fitness level,"
  says Cosgrove.   
 

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5/7

 
5. DEADLIFT 1.75 TIMES YOUR BODY
WEIGHT 
 
THE SCORECARD 
Men's Health Fit: 1.75 × body weight 
Above average: 1.5 × body weight 
Ordinary: Body weight 
 
The muscles of your posterior chain provide the
power behind many of the most important skills in
sports—consider them your "go" muscles. These
include your lower back, glutes, hamstrings, and
calves—lots of muscles that may not be visible in
the mirror but are vital to overall fitness. And no
  exercise hits them harder than the deadlift does.
 
"It's arguably the purest test of strength there is,"
says Robertson. Your goal: Lift just a little bit less
than twice your body weight. 
 
THE TEST 
Load a barbell with the maximum amount of
weight you can lift once, and bring the bar close to
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your shins. Bend at your hips and knees and grab
the bar using an overhand grip that's just beyond
shoulder width. Keeping your lower back naturally
arched, pull your torso back and up, squeeze your
glutes, thrust your hips forward, and stand up with
the barbell. Reverse the movement to lower the bar
to the floor, keeping it as close to your body as
possible. 
 
PULL MORE WEIGHT 
Add the deadlift to your weekly routine using a
weight that allows you to do 3 sets of 5 reps. That's
right, only 5 reps each set. "Keeping the rep count
low allows you to do two things: concentrate on
form and go heavy," says Robertson. When you can
complete 2 extra repetitions in your last set for two
consecutive workouts, move up in weight. Retest
your 1­rep max every 2 to 3 months. 
 

   

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6/7

 
6. DO 10 CLAPPING PUSHUPS  
 
THE SCORECARD 
Men's Health Fit: 10 clapping pushups 
Above average: 5 clapping pushups 
Ordinary: No clap 
 
A powerful upper body doesn't just look good
shirtless; it helps transfer force to the world
around you. "And that gives you an edge in most
   
sports, whether you're trying to stiff­arm an
opponent in football or spring off the mat in
jujitsu," says David Dellanave, owner of the
Movement Minneapolis gym and a world­record­
holding all­around weightlifter. The clapping
pushup—which requires explosiveness as well as
strength—is an old­school move that many still
consider the ultimate test of upper­body pushing
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power (thanks in no small part to Rocky). 
 
THE TEST 
Assume a pushup position, with your body straight
from head to ankles. Lower yourself until your
chest is 3 inches from the floor. Push yourself back
up explosively so your hands leave the floor.
Maintain a straight body as you clap in midair and
land back in the starting position. 
 
PUSH HARDER 
Can't clap? Add the exercise to your weekly routine
but perform it with your hands elevated on an
aerobics step, which reduces the load. Shoot for 3
sets of 5 reps, lowering the step as the exercise
becomes easier. For an even greater power boost,
also do kneeling medicine ball throws: Kneel
facing a wall and hold a medicine ball against your
chest; throw it directly forward against the wall.
Catch it on the rebound and repeat, doing 3 sets of
10 reps. "The goal is maximum power," says
Dellanave, "so start with a ball you can throw at
least 12 feet." 
 
For an even stronger upper body, try the Big Bench
Workout
(http://mhpersonaltrainer.mhpersonaltrainer.com
/56616?cm_mmc=print­_­poster­_­56616­
_­220911&keycode=220911 ). You'll add 30­plus
pounds to your bench in just one month. 

   

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7/7

 
7. HOLD A PLANK FOR MORE THAN 3
MINUTES 
 
THE SCORECARD 
Men's Health Fit: More than 3 minute 
Above average: 2 to 3 minutes 
Ordinary: 1 minute or less 
 
A chiseled core makes you stronger in everything
you do, from carrying groceries to mastering the
deadlift. It enables you to "produce, stabilize, and
transmit force throughout the body," says Angelo
Poli, owner of Whole Body Fitness in Chico,
California. But that armada of muscles is "on"
  whenever you're upright, so stamina is key. 
 
 
THE TEST 
Assume a pushup position but with your weight on
your forearms instead of your hands. This is plank
position. Your body should form a straight line
from shoulders to ankles. Brace your core by
contracting your abs as if you were about to be
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punched, and hold the position for as long as you
can. When your hips sag or your knees touch the
floor, it's over. 
 
INCREASE YOUR CORE ENDURANCE 
Fall short? No problem. "You can more than
double your score in a matter of weeks," says Poli.
Alternate among these three exercises during the
course of a week. 1 Three­point tennis ball toss:
Hold the top position of a single­arm pushup (feet
slightly beyond hip width, body straight from head
to heels, weight supported on one hand) and
bounce a tennis ball off a wall. Catch the ball and
immediately bounce it back against the wall. Do 2
sets of 15 reps each arm. 2 Plank push/pull:
Assume a plank position with a weight plate
between your forearms. Lift your right arm, push
the plate forward as far as possible, and then pull it
back. Do 2 sets of 10 reps with each arm. 3 Swiss
ball "stir the pot": Assume a plank position with
your forearms on a Swiss ball. Make small circles
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