Day 3 Overview: The Fitness Assesment

Obviously, this isn't Day 3 of my 1000-Day-Challenge, it's Day 9. These updates will not be daily, as life (and all the exercise!) gets in the way. However, I do need to include a Day 3 post because it was important: Day 3 is the Fitness Assessment.

You can do this in different ways, depending on your time, exercise philosophy and what your goal is. Me, I started simple: weight, waist measurement, and my current baseline in a few key exercise areas.

I wasn't expecting great numbers, but I have to admit that I was disappointed with my performance:

Weight: 269.9 lbs – Not surprised. It's actually down from my all-time high of 284.4, so I'll take it.

Waist: 51.5 inches – Again, not surprised, and down from my largest.

Push-ups: 11 – Yep, that's all I managed. My upper body strength is not impressive.

Sit-ups: 8 – Even worse! My six-pack isn't even a keg, it's a water bag.

Inclined pull-up: 16 – This is where your feet are on the ground and your body is at about a 45° angle. I have now idea you good sixteen is, but seeing as how I can't do even one regular pull-up I'm assuming it isn't that good.

Walking: I measured this a little differently. I discovered I'm able to walk for 20 minutes in normal terrain before the first signs of fatigue and a full hour before getting too tired to really continue without hurting myself. Again, not great.

Let's remember, however, that this was an assessment, not a judgment. The point was not to pull great numbers, but to know where I'm starting from. The way I see it, starting so low just means that reaching my goal will be that much more impressive.

Next post: My first week of exercise (Days 3-9) and how it went. See you then!