4 tests to check your health

According to Stuart Phillips, a professor of kinesiology at McMaster University in Canada, it's never too early to start training to keep up your physical health as you age. Because people naturally lose strength and muscle mass with age, getting a head start on physical training is "money in the bank," Phillips said.

Phillips also noted that it's never too late to improve your physical abilities. "We've got data showing that nonagenarians, so people in their 10th decade of life, or in their 90s, can make gains in strength and function with just a little bit of even light activity," he said.

To gauge where your physical abilities currently stand, try these four tests to assess your strength, power, cardiovascular fitness, and balance.

1. Sitting-rising test

The goal of this test is to go from standing to sitting on the floor and then back up again while using the least amount of support possible. The test is scored on a 10-point scale, with five points for sitting down and five points for standing up. For every hand, knee, or other body part you use to support yourself, you lose a point. If you're unsteady or lose your balance, you will lose half a point.

According to Claudio Gil Araújo, dean of research and education at the Exercise Medicine Clinic in Brazil who developed the sitting-rising test, adults in their 30s and 40s should aim for a perfect 10. He also noted that anyone over 60 who gets an eight is "in very good shape."

While the test evaluates strength, power, balance, and flexibility, it has also been shown to be a predictor of mortality. In one of Araújo's recent studies, he evaluated over 4,000 adults ages 46 to 75 and found that people who scored a four or below on the sitting-rising test had death rates that were almost four times higher than those who scored a 10 over a 12-year period. Those who scored low on the test had an increased risk of falls.

2. Walking speed assessment

How fast a person walks at their normal gait is "a very important indicator of functional ability and vitality," said Jennifer Brach, a professor of health and rehabilitation sciences at the University of Pittsburgh. "It is predictive of future decline, it's predictive of mortality, nursing home placement, disability, a whole host of different things."

To assess your walking speed, measure out four meters, or roughly 13 feet, on a straight, flat surface and then time how long it takes you to walk the distance. Be sure to walk at your normal speed instead of trying to go as fast as you can. Overall, people of all ages should aim to cover the distance in roughly three seconds, or 1.2 meters per second.

According to Brach, people should retest themselves every few months since "[i]f the value changes, that can be a warning sign." Walking requires the cardiovascular, musculoskeletal, vesicular, sensory, and nervous systems to all work properly. A slower walking speed could mean there is an issue in one or more of these systems that needs to be addressed.

Although there are no specific age-related norms for the farmer's carry, Afshar shared a few recommendations by age and sex. Men should be able to carry two 60-pound dumbbells at age 45, two 40-pound dumbbells at age 65, and two 25-pound dumbbells at age 85. For women at these ages, the target weights are 40 pounds, 25 pounds, and 15 pounds for each hand.

4. Single leg stand

Just like strength, balance also naturally declines with age, which can increase the risk for falls. Falls are a major of cause of injury and death in older adults.

To test your balance, see how long you can stand on one leg. Adults should aim for a minimum of 10 seconds on at least one side. To increase the difficulty, Afshar recommends attempting to stand on one leg with your eyes closed.

According to a 2022 study led by Araújo, 20% of adults ages 51 to 75 were unable to make it to 10 seconds. These individuals also had an 84% higher chance of dying in the next seven years, which might have been because they were unhealthier at the start of the study.

Although "[y]ou can't predict an individual's precise mortality" with these kinds of test, being below average on any of them suggests that your physical abilities will be worse later, Afshar said.

However, Afshar also noted that all the metrics measured by the test — strength, fitness, and balance — can be improved, which will then decrease your risk of dying. In general, routine strength, conditioning, and balance exercise can help improve your scores in each of these tests.