Essentials: How to Assess & Improve All Aspects of Your Fitness | Dr. Andy Galpin

Movement Skill [01:58]

• Prioritize injury prevention and longevity through proper movement patterns.
• Assess symmetry, stability, awareness, and range of motion in major joints (shoulders, hips, knees, etc.) during exercises like squats, push-ups, and deadlifts.
• Self-assessment involves recording front and side views, looking for asymmetries or instabilities, and ensuring joints move through a full range of motion.

  "So what you want to look for are those four things, symmetry, stability, awareness, and range of motion through each joint, through each movement."

Speed and Power [03:48]

• Pure speed is generally not a critical metric for most individuals unless they are high-performance athletes.
• Power, defined as speed multiplied by force, can be assessed with a simple broad jump.
• A benchmark for power is the ability to broad jump your own height, with a slight adjustment for females (approx. 15% less).

  "The cost-free version here is a simple broad jump. So this is stand, you know, normal position, jump out as far in front of you as you possibly can and measure the distance between where you started and the back of your heel where it lands."

Strength [04:35]

• Assess grip strength using a dynamometer (minimum 40kg for men, 35kg for women) or a dead hang (minimum 30 seconds).
• Evaluate lower body strength by aiming to perform a leg extension with body weight, adjusting for age.
• A goblet squat hold with half body weight for 45 seconds also indicates core and lower back stability.

  "You want to look for something like a minimum score here of 40 kilograms. Ideally, you're up past 60."

Hypertrophy (Muscle Size) [07:45]

• Hypertrophy relates to muscle size and appearance, but a sufficient amount is crucial for health.
• Assess muscle mass using body composition tests like DEXA scans to calculate Fat-Free Mass Index (FFMI).
• Target FFMI scores are generally 20+ for men and 18+ for women, assuming a healthy body fat percentage.

  "So a number you want to look for in general is something like if you're a man, your FFMI should be something like 20 or higher."

Muscular Endurance [09:04]

• This measures the ability to perform repetitive movements.
• Tests include holding a front plank for 60 seconds, a side plank for 45 seconds, and performing 25+ push-ups (men) or 15+ (women).
• Alternatively, perform 8+ repetitions at 75% of your one-rep max strength test load.

  "Can you hold a front plank for 60 seconds? Can you hold a side plank for 45 seconds?"

Anaerobic Capacity [10:15]

• This refers to the ability to perform maximal work for short durations (30-120 seconds).
• Assess through maximal effort sprints, air bike, or rower tests, focusing on reaching near-maximal heart rate.
• Heart rate recovery is a key metric: aim for approximately half a beat recovery per second (e.g., 30 beats in 60 seconds).

  "You want to think about can you get close to your predicted maximum heart rate?"

Maximal Aerobic Capacity (VO2 Max) [11:14]

• This measures the body's ability to utilize oxygen during sustained exercise (8-15 minutes).
• Accessible tests include the Cooper 12-minute test (maximum distance covered) or the Rockport 1-mile walk test.
• Minimum VO2 max targets are 35 ml/kg/min for men and 30 ml/kg/min for women, with higher scores indicating better fitness.

  "So that is a 12-minute sprint? 12-minute sprint. Maximum distance you can cover in 12 minutes."

Long Duration Endurance [12:42]

• This is the ability to sustain sub-maximal work for extended periods (20+ minutes) without breaks.
• Choose an activity you can maintain consistently, ideally at a pace that challenges you beyond a casual walk.
• Nasal breathing only can be an added challenge to gauge efficiency.

  "Show me you can maintain minimum of 20 minutes of work with no breaks, no intervals, no downtime."

Assessment Frequency and Order [13:37]

• Conduct a full battery of tests once a year, ideally over three days.
• Perform non-fatiguing tests like body composition (FFMI) and movement assessments first, after adequate rest (48 hours).
• Prioritize skill, maximum strength, and power tests at the beginning of a testing day, followed by fatiguing tests.

  "I generally like to do that though as your very first activity."

Interpreting Results [15:06]

• The goal isn't to be optimal in all nine areas but to identify and address "performance anchors" or severe limitations.
• Improve areas of weakness to a sufficient or concerning level to prevent them from hindering overall progress and health.
• The ultimate aim is to maintain training enjoyment and pursue specific fitness passions.

  "You just want to make sure again, there's no severe performance anchors. This is what we call them, right? We don't want any of these severe constraints because you're going to get limited by that thing."

VO2 Max Metrics Revisited [15:55]

• Reiterating VO2 max targets: minimum 35 ml/kg/min for men and 30 ml/kg/min for women.
• Higher desirable scores are above 50 for men and 50+ for women, with 55+ being excellent for men.
• These metrics help gauge cardiovascular health and endurance potential.

  "In general, for men, a minimum number we want to look at here is 35 milliliters per kilogram per minute. And for women, that'd be about 30."