Unfortunately, aging involves more than just graying hair and aching joints. It is also reflected in your body’s ability to carry out basic physical activities. After the age of 40, these activities can significantly indicate your mobility, strength, endurance, and balance. While regular health check-ups and blood tests are crucial, your capacity to move effortlessly is an excellent indicator of your biological age and overall fitness level.

Consider these assessments as your own fitness report card. They are quick, easy, and provide candid feedback. The outcomes can either highlight your strengths or point out where time and lifestyle choices have potentially diminished your fitness.

If you can excel at these four assessments, you are likely performing better than many people in your age group. If you find them challenging, the results are not final. Instead, they act as a useful prompt to modify your training, lifestyle, or recovery practices.

Here are the four bodyweight tests that reveal if your body is aging faster than your years after 40, plus how to improve your scores.

4 Bodyweight Tests That Reveal Your Fitness Age

The Sit-to-Stand Test

This test measures lower-body strength, hip mobility, and balance. Being able to rise from the floor without using your hands connects directly to independence as you age. If you lose this skill, everyday activities like getting off the couch or climbing stairs become tougher. A poor score here points to early signs of declining strength and stability.

How to Do It:

1. Sit on the floor with your legs crossed.
2. Cross your arms over your chest.
3. Stand up without using your hands, knees, or elbows for support.
4. Lower back down the same way.
5. Perform this multiple times to get your best effort.

Ranking Scores:

• 10 points: Stand up and sit down without assistance.
• 8–9 points: Use one hand or knee for support.
• 6–7 points: Use two points of support.
• 5 or below: Rely on multiple supports or struggle to complete.

How to Improve Your Score:

• Train bodyweight squats and lunges.
• Add single-leg exercises like step-ups.
• Stretch your hips daily to improve mobility.
• Practice the sit-to-stand movement regularly to ingrain it.

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Push-Up Test

Push-ups measure upper body strength, core stability, and endurance. They also give insight into cardiovascular health. Research shows push-up performance correlates with a lower risk of heart problems. If you can push your body away from the ground repeatedly with good form, it shows your muscles and heart are working together efficiently.

How to Do It:

1. Place your hands under your shoulders.
2. Extend your legs behind you and brace your core.
3. Lower your chest toward the ground by bending your elbows.
4. Keep your body in a straight line.
5. Press back to the starting position.
6. Perform as many reps as possible without compromising your form.

Ranking Scores (Men over 40):

• Excellent: 30+ reps
• Good: 20–29 reps
• Average: 10–19 reps
• Below Average: Under 10 reps

Ranking Scores (Women over 40):

• Excellent: 20+ reps
• Good: 12–19 reps
• Average: 6–11 reps
• Below Average: Under 6 reps

How to Improve Your Score:

• Perform push-ups daily, even in smaller sets, to maintain your strength.
• Add incline push-ups on a bench if standard push-ups are too difficult.
• Train supporting muscles with planks and triceps dips.
• Focus on slow, controlled reps to build endurance.

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Plank Hold

The plank shows your core endurance and spine stability. A weak plank score often signals poor posture, low back issues, or reduced athletic ability. Core strength isn’t just about abs—it protects your spine, powers your movement, and even influences your breathing patterns.

How to Do It:

1. Place your forearms on the floor with elbows under your shoulders.
2. Extend your legs behind you and balance on your toes.
3. Keep your body in a straight line from head to heels.
4. Brace your abs and glutes.
5. Hold as long as possible without sagging or lifting your hips.

Ranking Scores:

• Excellent: 2+ minutes
• Good: 90–120 seconds
• Average: 60–89 seconds
• Below Average: Under 60 seconds

How to Improve Your Score:

• Add short plank holds daily, gradually increasing time.
• Mix in side planks to strengthen obliques.
• Train anti-rotation movements, such as bird dogs or dead bugs.
• Maintain proper breathing during planks to build endurance.

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Single-Leg Balance Test

Balance declines with age, and it’s one of the most significant predictors of falls and injuries. Standing on one leg reveals coordination, lower body stability, and neurological sharpness. A poor score here often connects to weak stabilizer muscles and slowed reflexes.

How to Do It:

1. Stand tall with feet together and arms at your sides.
2. Lift one foot off the ground and hold it a few inches in front of you.
3. Keep your eyes open and fix them on a point ahead.
4. How long can you balance without touching down?
5. Switch legs and repeat.

Ranking Scores:

• Excellent: 45+ seconds per leg
• Good: 30–44 seconds
• Average: 15–29 seconds
• Below Average: Under 15 seconds

How to Improve Your Score:

• Practice balancing daily on each leg.
• Add exercises like single-leg deadlifts or step-ups to your routine.
• Incorporate yoga or tai chi for stability.
• Train barefoot occasionally to strengthen foot muscles.

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How Often to Retest

You should treat these bodyweight tests as checkpoints, not one-time challenges. A good rhythm is to retest every 8 to 12 weeks. That window gives you enough time to train, recover, and build measurable improvements without letting too much time slip by. Retesting also keeps you accountable because it provides results to compare against. If your scores go up, your program is working. If they plateau, you know it’s time to adjust your training or recovery habits. Regular retesting keeps your progress honest and ensures you’re moving toward a stronger, younger-feeling body.

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Best Tips for Improving Strength and Balance Past 40

Strength and balance are the foundations of healthy aging. Once you pass 40, they begin to erode if you don’t deliberately train them. The good news is that consistent effort reverses the slide. You don’t need to train like a professional athlete, but you do need structure, progression, and variety in your training. These tips will give you the tools to maintain strength, sharpen coordination, and keep your body resilient for years to come.

• Prioritize compound bodyweight moves: Squats, push-ups, lunges, and planks deliver the most significant return on your investment because they train multiple joints and muscles at once.
• Train single-leg stability: Add step-ups, single-leg deadlifts, or balance holds. These challenge your nervous system and force your stabilizers to work harder.
• Mix in tempo training: Slowing down your reps improves muscle control and reduces the risk of injury while creating more time under tension for strength gains.
• Use mobility drills daily: As you age, your hips, shoulders, and ankles tend to tighten. A few minutes of dynamic stretching each day keeps your body moving freely.
• Build core endurance, not just strength: Strong abs matter, but endurance keeps your spine safe during daily tasks. Train with planks, carries, and anti-rotation exercises to strengthen your core.
• Practice balance under fatigue: Life rarely challenges you when you’re at your best. Incorporate balance work after strength sets to simulate real-world conditions.
• Recover smarter, not harder: Rest, sleep, and proper nutrition repair your muscles and nervous system. Without them, your training won’t stick.

Jarrod Nobbe, MA, CSCS