Chapter 5
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There are ways to tell when it's time to move
ahead in your activities, and we have mentioned some of them in the preceding chapter. For example,
when you can lift a weight more than 15 times, you know it's time to add more weight in your strength
exercises. And when endurance activities no longer feel somewhat hard to you, it's time to exercise a
little longer, then to add a little more difficulty, like walking up steeper hills.
As you progress, you can do some simple tests, shown in this chapter, that will tell you just
how far you have come. These tests also can help you assess how fit you are right now, before you
have started exercising. After that, try them again every month. Record your scores each time, so
you can compare them and see your improvement the next time you test yourself.
You might be interested in doing these tests for at least a couple of reasons. For one, most
people make rapid progress soon after they start exercising, and you might find the improvement you
see in your scores after just a month encouraging.
For another, these tests are a good way of letting you know if you really are progressing.
Although it's normal for your improvement to slow down at times, your test scores should get better
overall (unless you have reached your goal and are maintaining your current level).
If you are not in condition to do these tests right now, keep working on your current exercises
and activities until you are. Whether you are testing or actually exercising, your pace should never
make you feel dizzy, lightheaded, or nauseated, and you shouldn't feel pain. If you have a chronic
medical condition, or are at risk of developing one, follow the guidelines in Chapter 2 before testing
yourself.
1. Endurance
2. Lower-Body Power
3. Strength
4. Balance
See how far you can walk in exactly 6 minutes. Write down how far you walked (in feet, blocks, laps,
miles, number of times you walked up and down a long hallway, or whatever is convenient for you).
Do this test every month. As your endurance improves, you should find that you can walk farther in
6 minutes.
This test measures your progress in lower-body power. Time yourself as you walk up a flight of stairs
(at least 10 steps) as fast as you safely can. Record your score. Repeat the test, using the same
stairs, 1 month later. It should take you less time.
In the back of this book, you will find a chart for recording how much weight you lift, and how many
times you lift that weight, each time you do your strength exercises. We have provided another chart
that helps you see how you are progressing in your strength. It shows how much more weight you can
lift, and how many more times you can lift it, compared to the amount you could lift a month ago.
Time yourself as you stand on one foot, without support, for as long as possible (stand near something
sturdy to hold onto, in case you lose your balance). Record your score. Repeat the test while
standing on the other foot. Test yourself again in one month. The amount of time you can stand on
one foot should increase.
Chapter Summary
Some of you might not be able to complete the tests shown in this chapter at first. That means you aren't ready to take them yet. Try again after a month of exercises and physical activities.
This chapter describes simple tests you can give yourself to see how you are progressing.
The tests measure endurance, lower-body power, strength, and balance. Do the tests before you begin increasing your
physical activity, to establish a baseline measurement. Repeat the tests each month. If you do
them more often, you are not likely to see improvement, and that may discourage you. On the other
hand, watching your scores improve every month can be very encouraging.
Be sure to use the safety guidelines listed for the exercises shown in Chapters 2 and 4 when you do these tests.
Until he was 48 years old, Ron Ekovich, of Leesville, South Carolina, smoked a pack of cigarettes every day. Looking to the future had made him decide to quit.
"I figured I had to make some changes in my life if I was going to enjoy my retirement," he told us recently.
Needless to say, Mr. Ekovich, who is now 61 years old, no longer smokes. He works out with strength-building equipment 3 days a week, and he carries his own bag of clubs on the 3 days a week that he plays golf.
And he stretches. "If I had to choose the most important thing you can do as you get older,
it would be stretching. It helps you keep you self-sufficient," he said. Mr. Ekovich was
only half-joking when he gave an example: When his back itches, he said, he's able to just
reach back and stratch it. 
This example might seem funny...unless you aren't able to
stratch your own back.
"The more physical activity you get the better you feel. The achievement makes you feel great emotionally, and it makes you feel good physically," he said.
Mr. Ekovich also cites a person's outlook as an important component of physical activity and exercise. "The only thing that limits people's ability to achieve their goals is themselves," he said. He recently finished shoveling about 10 tons of earth - that's 20,000 pounds - to make a new garden for his wife.