Test your fitness at any age with these simple exercises

A headline that reads “Are you fit for your age? Try our New Year’s tune-up to find out.” There are five illustrated characters around the headline: a person balancing on a board, a person in a squatting position, a person in a plank position, a person running, and a person with oversized wavy arms flexing.

Want to know if you’re as fit as most people your age?

We asked top exercise experts for easy, D.I.Y. ways to test five of the most essential elements of fitness.

These elements are noteworthy because each has been linked to longevity, meaning our balance, mobility, grip strength, stamina and overall fitness could influence just how long and well we live.

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Try these five simple tests now and see how you measure up against a benchmark of what’s healthy for your age group. Don’t fret if your results fall a bit short. We’ll also give you easy exercises to help you fine-tune every aspect of your fitness and make 2024 your fittest year yet.

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1. Balance

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How wobbly are you?

For most otherwise healthy people, balance declines precipitously “after about age 50,” said Jay Hertel, chair of the kinesiology department at the University of Virginia, who’s long studied balance. It can be iffy in younger people, too, contributing to falls and other injuries.

Test it

Test your Balance

How long can you stand on one foot?

Drag the slider to mark your answer
and get your fitness result

Tune up your balance

Heel-toe walk: Find a long board in the floor or lay down a strip of colored tape. Walk its length with the toe of one foot butting the heel of the other.” class=”wpds-c-hcZlgz wpds-c-hcZlgz-bkfjoi-font-georgia wpds-c-hcZlgz-jDmrXh-width-mdCenter wpds-c-hcZlgz-ibdLmgo-css”>Heel-toe walk: Find a long board in the floor or lay down a strip of colored tape. Walk its length with the toe of one foot butting the heel of the other.

2. Mobility

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How well can you stand and move?

Test it

Test your Mobility

How did you do?

Drag the slider to mark your answer
and get your fitness result

Tune up your mobility

World’s greatest stretch: The name is arguable, but this move should improve range of motion in joints needed for mobility. Get into a plank position on the ground, arms straight. Step your right foot forward until it rests near your right hand. Swing your right arm up and out and twist your core to that side, gazing at your outstretched hand. Switch to the other side and repeat until you tire.” class=”wpds-c-hcZlgz wpds-c-hcZlgz-bkfjoi-font-georgia wpds-c-hcZlgz-jDmrXh-width-mdCenter wpds-c-hcZlgz-ibdLmgo-css”>World’s greatest stretch: The name is arguable, but this move should improve range of motion in joints needed for mobility. Get into a plank position on the ground, arms straight. Step your right foot forward until it rests near your right hand. Swing your right arm up and out and twist your core to that side, gazing at your outstretched hand. Switch to the other side and repeat until you tire.

3. Stamina

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How’s your endurance?

Test it

Test your Stamina

How fast can you finish a mile?

RunWalk

Drag the slider to mark your answer
and get your fitness result

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Tune up your stamina

They can also be fun, especially the 30-20-10 version of intervals. To start: Pick your exercise: walk, cycle, swim or run. Warm-up. Then do the exercise easily for 30 seconds. Pick up the pace for 20 seconds. Really push yourself for 10 seconds.

The 30 seconds should feel like about a 3 on a 10-point scale of effort; the 20 seconds at about a 5; and the 10 seconds at a 7, 8 or higher. Repeat this one-minute sequence three to five times, and try to fit in at least one session of intervals each week, upping your reps or speed as you get better. “The amount of training should be progressively increased,” Bangsbo said

4. Grip Strength

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How strong and healthy are your muscles?

Test it

The number below represents a reasonable goal for healthy people your age.

Test your Grip Strength

How long can you hang?

Drag the slider to mark your answer
and get your fitness result

Tune up your strength

Farmer’s carry: From the ground, heft in each hand a dumbbell or kettlebell that’s about as heavy as you can hold. (Large, filled water bottles or gallon containers work, too.) Hold the weight steady, slightly away from your body, and walk around a room or hallway. Slowly increase the weight or walking time.” class=”wpds-c-hcZlgz wpds-c-hcZlgz-bkfjoi-font-georgia wpds-c-hcZlgz-jDmrXh-width-mdCenter wpds-c-hcZlgz-ibdLmgo-css”>Farmer’s carry: From the ground, heft in each hand a dumbbell or kettlebell that’s about as heavy as you can hold. (Large, filled water bottles or gallon containers work, too.) Hold the weight steady, slightly away from your body, and walk around a room or hallway. Slowly increase the weight or walking time.

5. Overall Fitness

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How is your overall fitness?

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Test your Overall Fitness

How many burpees can you do?

Drag the slider to mark your answer
and get your fitness result

Tune up your overall fitness

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