You can lift the weights, or you can get the walker. Sooner or later, we're all going to get one or the other.
I know that sounds a little in your face. It's meant to be - it's in mine too. Because most of us have a pretty fuzzy idea of where our health and fitness actually stand. We know we "should" do better. We just don't know where we're starting from.
And here's the thing: we can't improve what we don't know. If we never measure anything, we have no idea if we're getting better or not.
Numbers and capacity are two different things
Your numbers are things like your waist, your resting heart rate and your blood pressure. Your capacity is what your body can actually do - get up out of a chair, push, walk, balance, hold yourself steady. The everyday stuff. Living out your day without help.
You want to know both. Somebody can have decent numbers and not much capacity, or the other way around. And being strong doesn't mean you don't have a health condition hiding somewhere.
Knowledge isn't power, by the way. The application of knowledge is power. So don't just read this - go do the reps.
Quick but important: I'm not a doctor. Everything here is optional. Respect any restrictions you have, talk to your healthcare provider before you test anything you're not sure about, and take ownership of what you choose to do.
Your numbers: three you can take at home
Waist. Not where your belt goes - that's cheating, and we all know it. Find the spot halfway between the bottom of your ribs and your hip bone. Yep, right where the love handles live. Keep the tape level and snug, don't suck in, and measure after a normal breath. Write it down next to your height, both in inches.
Resting heart rate. The truest number is right when you wake up, before you get moving. If you wear a watch, it's probably already tracking it. If not, sit quiet and relaxed for at least five minutes and count your pulse for a full minute. One day doesn't tell you much. Seven days starts to show you a pattern.
Blood pressure. If you have a home cuff, sit for five minutes, feet flat, arm resting at about heart level, no talking. Take a couple of readings about a minute apart and write them down. If anything looks alarming, don't wait on it - go see your doctor.
Your capacity: a five-part fitness test
Pick a day, grab a notebook, and see where you are.
- Chair rise. Sit tall, feet on the floor, and stand all the way up without using your arms, then sit back down under control. How many in 30 seconds? Need your arms a little? That's fine. Write that down too.
- Pushups. Against a wall, from your knees or from your toes - wherever you are. Elbows at about 45 degrees, tight core, full range of motion. Half reps don't count, y'all. I once watched a guy crank out a whole minute of half pushups and he asked me how many he did. I told him one.
- Walk. Pick a time - six minutes is the standard, but two or four is fine. Walk at a pace where you can talk but couldn't sing. How far did you get? Then watch how long it takes your heart rate to settle back down afterward.
- Balance. Stand on one foot for 30 seconds, then the other. Keep a hand near a table if you need it. It's harder than you think - and balance is one of the first things we lose as we get older.
- Plank. On your elbows, from your knees or your toes. Can you hold it 30 to 60 seconds without your back sagging? Fifteen seconds is a baseline. So is two minutes.
That's it. Nothing fancy. Do it again in 30 days the same way and you'll know if you're moving forward.
No beating yourself up
Here's where the mental side comes in. If you take these numbers and use them to beat yourself up every morning, that isn't serving you. Be grateful for what you can do today. Don't focus on what you can't.
Eric Potterat, who created the mental toughness curriculum for the Navy SEALs and wrote Learned Excellence, makes the case that mental toughness has to be trained on purpose, not just left as a byproduct of the physical. Same for us. Navy SEAL Chad Wright carries a mantra I think about a lot: "For those who can't."
And I think of Nick Vujicic, born with no arms and no legs, who swims and speaks to crowds as a motivational speaker. When I watch him, I'm like - man, what's my excuse? I may not be good at something, but I'm not going to quit.
I'll be honest with you, I'm not the poster child here either. My sleep isn't great and my hydration right now is horrible. So I'm in this with you.
Your body is something to steward
This is a faith-based piece of it for me. I don't see spiritual fitness as one of five boxes to check. It's in all of them - including how we take care of the body God gave us. We were made in His image, one of one. Scripture says to "rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances" (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18), and I'm still working on all three. And James reminds us that faith shows up in what we do (James 2:24). I'm not a pastor, so I won't pretend to explain it all. I just know stewardship isn't only about money and talents. It's this, too.
And people are watching you. Your kids, your grandkids, your coworkers, that friend who's quietly struggling. When somebody who's never worked out a day in their life starts showing up at the gym, people notice. Your test becomes your testimony.
I love that commercial with the grandpa swinging a kettlebell that weighs the same as his grandkid, just so he can lift that kid up to the top of the Christmas tree. That's a pretty powerful why.
Your One More Rep
Pick one number and track it for the next seven days. Maybe it's your resting heart rate every morning. Maybe it's a six-minute walk every day. Just one.
Then tell somebody. Share it with a friend who'll hold you to it. That's how we keep the promises we make to ourselves.
You are worth it, and you have what it takes. Go do something hard today. Let's grow!
