New Month, New Goals: Kick Off November With This Fit Test

As we enter November – officially the holiday season (aka the time of year when schedules get crazy and planned workouts go awry) – we’ll continue to offer you 30-minute workouts to have at your disposal every day. If we’ve provided you with some consistency and a means to work up a sweat amidst your busy daily routine – especially in the thick of holiday craziness – then we’ve done our job.

After the many October workouts we threw at you, we also wanted to give you the means to test your skills at the beginning and the end of the month to see how simply putting in 30 minutes of work every day will make you stronger. It doesn’t take much – just set the intention that you’re going to keep it up – and we hope this fit test will help keep you accountable in whatever way you see fit.

Today’s 30-minute workout is that fit test. It might not take you the full 30 minutes, so feel free to throw on another workout on top if you so desire. You can come back to this fit test on November 30 to see how far you’ve come over the course of the month.

After all, little shifts make big change in the long run. Grab a timer, a set of dumbbells and have some fun while you’re at it!

Here’s the fit test:

For each exercise, set your timer for 60 seconds and complete as many reps as you can of that one exercise. Record your reps somewhere – maybe in a calendar invitation to repeat the workout November 30. At the end of the month, you can perform this same test to measure how many more reps you can accomplish in the same period of time (or if you’re able to perform a more complex variation of the move/heavier weight during the set.)

These are the exercises:

  • Push-ups
  • Pull-ups (trx, pull-up bar)
  • Squats
  • Lunges (right)
  • Lunges (left)
  • Chest Press
  • Overhead Press
  • Burpees
  • Sit-ups
  • Step-ups

Optional addition: 

  • Timed mile
  • Timed 100-meter sprint (For this, have a friend time how long it takes you to get from Point A to Point B. It doesn’t have to be exactly 100 meters, but at the end of the month make sure you measure the same distance.)
  • Plank hold (time how long you can hold a plank position either on your forearms or palms)

Here are the moves:

Push-ups: With your hands under your shoulders and your body in a straight line, bend your elbows to lower down, leading with your chest. Press back up to your plank. At some point in this set, you may need to drop down to your knees. Just be sure to keep your knees, hips and shoulders in a straight line when you’re on your knees.
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Pull-ups: Standing on a bench or from standing on the floor, take hold of the bar with fingertips away from you (traditional pull-up variation) or towards you for a chin-up variation. Engage your core as you pull your chin above the bar. To make it easier, use a band if available at your gym or do a negative pull-up, as described in this workout.
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Squats: Start with your feet slightly wider than hips-width, toes angled out to a natural degree. As you inhale, sit your butt back and bend your knees, lowering down to a squatted position. Make sure to keep your chest lifted and weight in heels. Exhale as you stand back up.
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Lunges: With one foot forward and the other back, keep your legs at least hips-width apart (i.e. not on a tightrope). Inhale as you bend both knees to 90 degrees, keeping your front knee tracking over toes without going past them. Stay grounded through your front heel. Exhale as you rise to stand. Do 60 seconds of lunges with your right leg forward and then switch to your left leg for 60 more seconds of lunges. Count your reps on each leg.
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Chest Press: In supine position, hold your dumbbells with your palms facing forward and your elbows on the floor near your ribs. Plant your feet. Press your weights up keeping your palms facing forward and lower back down to your starting position.
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Overhead Press: Start with weights at your chest, raise them up to your shoulders safely, then bring them out so that your palms face forward and elbows are in line with shoulders and your elbows are bent at 90 degrees. From there, exhale as you drive the weights straight over head, keeping wrists and elbows straight. Inhale as you lower the weights back down to “field goal” position, elbows in line with shoulder. Maintain control as you descend each time.
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Burpees: Squat down, touching the floor and jump back into a plank. Lower down to the floor, allowing your chest to touch the floor, staying in control. Push back up, jump forward into your squat position again and jump into the air.
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Sit-ups: Plant your feet on the ground. Keeping your hands behind your head and elbows out wide, exhale as you lift your shoulders off of the floor, using your core to sit all the way up. Keep your feet grounded the whole time.
asweatlife_fittest_situp1 asweatlife_fittest_situp2

Step-ups: Locate either a box or step. First step your right foot on top of the box or step, then left. Then return back to the floor with the right and then the left foot. In 60 seconds, count how many full step-ups you complete (stepping up all the way and stepping back down all the way = 1). You can also test your heart rate here by first measuring your resting heart rate before beginning the exercise, then measuring how long it takes your heart rate to get back to a resting rate after the 60-second round.  asweatlife_fittest_stepup1
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(Disclaimer: This workout is not intended for the treatment or prevention of disease, nor is it a replacement for seeking medical treatment or professional nutrition advice. Do not start any nutrition or physical activity program without first consulting your physician.)

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About Maggie Umberger

Maggie moved to Chicago from North Carolina in 2014 with a degree in Journalism and Spanish, a 200-hour yoga certification, a group fitness cert and a passion to teach and to sweat. It wasn't until she found aSweatLife that she really started to feel at home. Here, she's incorporated her passion for health and wellness into her career as she helps to build the network of Ambassadors, trainers and fitness enthusiasts that exist within the aSweatLife ecosystem. You can also find her coaching at CrossTown Fitness and teaching yoga classes at Bare Feet Power Yoga, Yoga Six and exhale.