I
was never much for physical activity when I was young. Don’t get me wrong. I
tried. I was just always behind my PE classes. My muscles would not respond to
being pushed. I was lucky if I came out at the average according to the numbers
on this chart, courtesy of Physical Living- http://physicalliving.com/how-many-pushups-should-i-be-able-to-do/
Push Up Test
Norms For Men
|
Age
|
17-19
|
20-29
|
30-39
|
40-49
|
50-59
|
60-65
|
|
Excellent
|
> 56
|
> 47
|
> 41
|
> 34
|
> 31
|
> 30
|
|
Good
|
47-56
|
39-47
|
34-41
|
28-34
|
25-31
|
24-30
|
|
Above
average
|
35-46
|
30-39
|
25-33
|
21-28
|
18-24
|
17-23
|
|
Average
|
19-34
|
17-29
|
13-24
|
11-20
|
9-17
|
6-16
|
|
Below
average
|
11-18
|
10-16
|
8-12
|
6-10
|
5-8
|
3-5
|
|
Poor
|
4-10
|
4-9
|
2-7
|
1-5
|
1-4
|
1-2
|
|
Very
Poor
|
< 4
|
< 4
|
< 2
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
Push Up Test
Norms for Women
|
Age
|
17-19
|
20-29
|
30-39
|
40-49
|
50-59
|
60-65
|
|
Excellent
|
> 35
|
> 36
|
> 37
|
> 31
|
> 25
|
> 23
|
|
Good
|
27-35
|
30-36
|
30-37
|
25-31
|
21-25
|
19-23
|
|
Above
Average
|
21-27
|
23-29
|
22-30
|
18-24
|
15-20
|
13-18
|
|
Average
|
11-20
|
12-22
|
10-21
|
8-17
|
7-14
|
5-12
|
|
Below
average
|
6-10
|
7-11
|
5-9
|
4-7
|
3-6
|
2-4
|
|
Poor
|
2-5
|
2-6
|
1-4
|
1-3
|
1-2
|
1
|
|
Very
Poor
|
0-1
|
0-1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
You
know what? If I had seen this information before I started my return of
strength recently, I may not have pushed it as fast, or as far as I have. My muscles,
I knew, were not very good at responding to exercise. As it is, it took a number
of months of daily exercise to get a response that would have been in the
consistently “Good” range for a 60-65 year old male. Now, at 50 twice a day, I am
close to “Excellent” for a 17-19 year old and way above “Excellent” for my age.
My
goal for now? No limit. I will keep doing pushups as long as my body allows me
to. My appetite is way better than it has been. My stamina is increasing for
the first time is years. And my weight is increasing. Why limit it?
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