Home Fitness Assessment

We all want to be physically fit, not only for our general health but for our appearance as well.  But how can you determine if you are actually fit?  The best way is to conduct a fitness assessment.  Remarkably, you can conduct such an assessment yourself, in the privacy of your own home.  All you need is a pen, some paper, and a cloth measuring tape, and you’ll be ready to assess!

Basic Measurements

To begin with, it is important that you get an accurate measurement of your height and weight.  In order to determine your height, take your shoes and socks off and stand against a wall with your feet together.  Put your shoulders back and look straight ahead.  Then place a book on your head as a marker.  After that, all you’ll need to do is to measure from the bottom of the book to the floor.

You should realize that weight is not an accurate measure of how much excess fat you carry.  In essence, weight is only a measure of gravity.  Still, you should try to measure your weight every few weeks.  You’ll need to stand on the scale in your bare feet with your weight evenly distributed over both feet. 

Resting Heart Rate

Another important measurement you’ll need is your resting heart rate.  This refers to the number of times your heart beats per minute when you are totally at rest.  It’s best to take this measurement when you first wake up.   Sit on a chair and use the first two fingers of your left hand to feel for your pulse on your right wrist.  Then count how many beats you have in 60 seconds.  If your heart is healthy, your heartbeat will be below 80 beats a minute.  As you become more fit, your resting heart rate will decrease.

Girth

Yet another important measurement is of your girth.  Be sure to measure your waist, stomach, and hips.  By keeping the tape measure firm, you should be able to get an accurate measurement.   It’s important to know just how large you are, so you will have an idea how much you’ll need to reduce. 

Body Mass Index

Increasingly, fitness experts are relying on body mass index in order to gauge an individual’s fitness.  This basically gives you an indication of how fat you really are.  The measurement is derived from your weight in kilograms/height in meters x height in meters.  Therefore, if your height is 1.73 meters and your weight is 90 kilograms, you would multiply 1.73 and 1.73, which would give you a figure of 2.99.  Then, you would divide 2.99 into your weight (90).  The end result would be 30.1.   If you have a BMI above 30, you are considered obese.  This significantly increases your risks for a wide range of diseases, including heart disease, diabetes, stroke, osteoarthritis, and gall bladder disease.