SpineFitYoga
MuscleTest
Test, score, and track total body strength,
stamina, and speed in 3 minutes.
3 Warnings
Warning 1 of 3: if you’re “out of shape”
While this test is for all levels of fitness. If you are very weak, injured, or well above ideal weight, the safe way of taking the test may be to NOT “physically” take the test. You still get a score, it’s just zero, for now.
So, if you look at the three parts below and have anxiety about taking the test, good enough, you took the test. You scored a zero. While that’s a bad score, it’s a good thing to know. If the challenge is accepted, it’s all up from here. If my experience as a physical therapist taught me anything, it’s that zero is not uncommon, nor is it all that hard to move up. And down from zero, while possible, isn’t cute.
The good news is that while the MuscleTest is derived from Levels-2 and 3 of SpineFitYoga’s M5 program, the program has a Level-1 designed to safely and effectively get virtually everyone scoring positively. More good news is the “5” in M5 means it’s only 5 minutes. More info…
Warning 2 of 3: if you’re in reasonable shape
If you are in at least modest shape, you’ve read the descriptions, watched the demos, and think you can safely take the test, I encourage you to try, but I would caution you to ease into it at first. You get as many tries as you want to work up a better score later. The MuscleTest is NOT all or none. If you look at the three parts and think you can do some Lunges and/or Pushups, but maybe not Pullups, doing what you can will get you on the board, likely progressing to, or near mid tier before Pullups come into play. As you gain experience, fitness, and self-awareness with the exercises you should know when you can safely give it your all. Likewise as overall fitness improves the more difficult or impossible aspects will become easier/possible.
If you’re in this group and your score isn’t as high as you would like, becoming a member and doing M5 will almost certainly level up you up your build in the most efficient way possible. But by all means feel free to use the MuscleTest to measure and compare progress with any other exercise program. Or even test your trainer, that’s always fun.
Warning 3 of 3: to all
The L3-Lunges are harder than EVERYONE thinks. Knee-to-floor-jump-lunges to failure is taking things to an entirely different level from what most expect. Unlike the Pushups and Pullups they are not something most of us have prior experience with. Though faster than L2-Lunges, they are easily 3-4 times more difficult. Attempting L3-Lunges without having scored a >35 L2-Lunges in 1-minute first, makes it fairly likely you will strain something. I’ve witnessed people literally collapse, during or right after the exercise. You have been warned. That said, L2-Lunges are not fast enough to score at the top of the MuscleTest, and with proper preparation L3s are both safe and awesome.
The test
3 tests, 60 seconds each, for a total of 3 minutes. Rest as long as you want (even days) in between.
Part 1: Lunges
KNEE-TO-FLOOR: (count the number of full reps in 1 minute)
Option: Choose either L2 or L3 (L2 at first please).
L3-Lunges are advanced and high risk unless you are strong enough to score a >35 on L2-Lunges. Most people will initially score better with L2, because even though L3s are faster, they are ~3.5 times harder, causing most to fatigue that much quicker.
If L2-Lunges are too difficult, M5, has L1, which are as easy as you want to make them, and will progress you to L2.
L2-Lunges (time: 1 minute)
Or
L3-Lunges (time: 1 minute)
Part 2: Pushups
Off feet, CHEST TO FLOOR at bottom and FULLY STRAIGHTEN ELBOWS at top (count the number of FULL reps you in 1 minute)
Did I emphasize the point of going ALL THE WAY UP, and ALL THE WAY DOWN enough? If not let me do so again because almost everybody cheats their pushups, and have been since childhood. While it’s generally unintentional, it costs you, muscle.
If these are too difficult M5 has and L1 and L2 version to work you up.
L3-Pushups (time: 1 minute)
Part 3: Pullups
(count the number of FULL reps in 1 minute)
Like pushups, people tend to cheat these by not going all the way down. Watching my own videos, I’m judging myself as marginal at best. Still a good exercise.
Again, if these are too difficult, and they probably will be for most adults, SpineFitYoga’s M5 program has L1 and L2 to progress you.
Attaining ideal weight, whether up or down will almost certainly raise you tier. Intermittent fasting being my favorite way of attaining ideal weight if you are heavy.
L3-Pullups (time: 1 minute)
Notes
One minute each is plenty for the test. Once you can go 60 seconds without a pause, you’ll find increasing your rep speed, so as to increase their number inside 60 seconds, increases intensity considerably. You are allowed as much rest between tests as you want. Doing them on different days is OK. If you are already doing M5, you need not test in addition to the workout, rather just keep your timer in view and make a mental note of your reps as you hit your 60 second split time where applicable.
100% score for men is 200 reps total: 110 Lunges + 60 Pushups, + 30 Pullups in 1 minute each = 200 reps total. Greater than 100% is possible, with each percent of total equalling degrees of S Tier. For example 3% over would be “3rd degree S Tier” much like a 3rd degree black belt in martial arts.
Number of reps or absolute percent is what matters most (i.e. adding one more rep to your lunges, or moving up from a 56% to a 59%, and then 60, 61…). However, broken down into levels of rank, or tiers, is as follows:
- >90% = S Tier (superior)
- 80%-89.9 = A Tier (upper tier)
- 60-79.9% = B Tier (better than average)
- 40-59.9% = C Tier (mid tier)
- 20-39.9% = D Tier (below average)
- <20% = F Tier (injured/unranked)
100% score for women is 150 reps total: 100 Lunges + 35 Pushups + 15 Pullups = 150 total. Greater than 100% is possible, with each percent of total equalling degrees of S Tier. For example 3% over would be “3rd degree S Tier” much like a 3rd degree black belt in martial arts.
Number of reps or absolute percent is what matters most (i.e. adding one more rep to your lunges, or moving up from a 56% to a 59%, and then 60, 61…). However, broken down into levels, or tiers is as follows:
- >90% = S Tier (superior)
- 80%-89.9 = A Tier (upper tier)
- 60-79.9% = B Tier (better than average)
- 40-59.9% = C Tier (mid tier)
- 20-39.9% = D Tier (below average)
- <20% = F Tier (injured/unranked)