Bodyweight Exercises After 55 To Test Strength

These exercises are a stellar test of real-world strength and fitness.

Let’s be honest: If you’re a workout enthusiast, you may wonder how you compare to other gym-goers when it comes to strength. It’s totally understandable to be curious—and actually good for you to know. Muscle strength—especially as you age—is essential, considering you naturally lose muscle each year after 30. Adding the right exercises to your routine is a must.

We’re here to tell you that you no longer have to guess how strong you are. Marwa Ahmed, NASM-Certified Personal Trainer & Running Coach, CEO of The BodyMind Coach, Toronto, who shares with us five bodyweight movements to do after 55. If you can master them, you’re stronger than most.

“Bodyweight exercises show how well you can move your own body. Machines can be useful for building strength, but they often support you in a fixed position, so they don’t challenge balance, coordination, or stability in the same way,” Ahmed tells us. “A person might leg press a lot on a machine and still struggle with a deep squat or getting up from the floor with good form, which is why bodyweight moves are often a better test of real-world fitness.”

Pushups

1. Start with a high plank with hands under your shoulders and your body straight.
2. Bend your elbows and lower your chest toward the floor.
3. Maintain a long, straight body as you lower.
4. Press back up, straightening your arms.

Bodyweight Squats

1. Stand tall with your feet shoulder-width apart on the floor.
2. Extend your arms ahead of you or place your hands on your hips.
3. Bend at the knees and hips as you lower into a squat.
4. Descend until your thighs are parallel to the floor.
5. Press through your heels to rise back up to standing.

Lunges

1. Stand tall with your feet hip-width apart and hands on your hips.
2. Step one foot forward.
3. Engage your core as you bend your knees, lowering to form 90-degree bends in both legs.
4. Keep your upper body straight.
5. Press through your front heel and the ball of your back foot to rise back up.

Planks

1. Place your hands under your shoulders.
2. Press into the pads of your fingers and hug your inner arm toward your armpit.
3. Walk your feet out to hip-width.
4. Engage your abs, squeeze your buttocks, and pull upward through your quads.
5. Hold the position for the prescribed time.

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Single-Leg Balance

1. Stand tall and take a deep breath in.
2. As you exhale, shift your body weight onto one leg.
3. Press that foot firmly into the floor while elongating your torso.
4. Once your “free” leg is light, lift that foot and draw your knee in as high up as you’re able to.
5. Breathe in and slightly release.
6. Exhale and repeat.
7. Perform the same test on the other side.

Alexa Mellardo