Baseline Testing and Warm-up

When you start any strength and conditioning program you want to chart your progress – number one to make sure you are gaining strength and improving and that the program you are doing is producing the results you want, and secondly because being able to see your gains is great motivation toward pushing yourself harder and farther every time you work out.

One way to chart your progress is by using a baseline test (which also happens to be a pretty good workout by itself). You’ll find a good baseline test below with links to descriptions of some of the exercises you may not be familiar with. Do this before you do anything else and record your results. Come back to this test every few weeks to see how your numbers are improving.

The other way to chart your progress is to keep a daily record or diary of your workouts and add on to them as necessary if what you are doing becomes too easy (that’s the goal, but once they get easier make sure to keep challenging yourself!).

Before doing any testing or workout program, make sure that you perform a dynamic warm-up/stretch.

Examples of warm-up movements:

• 30 jumping jacks
• jogging in place or slow jogging
• high-knees walking/running with arm swing or arm pump
• walking lunges (backward and forward), core tight, back straight, twist before after each
• high-knees skipping with exaggerated arm swing
• long-stride bounding with exaggerated arm swing
• large arm circles
• small arm circles
• single-leg hip circles 10-12 each side
• zombie squat arms straight out, reach through legs and stand back up 10-12 reps
• mountain climbers

There are many more options. Feel free to do whatever gets your heart rate up, loosens most joints and muscle groups and gets a little bit of a sweat started. If you have a treadmill or stationary bike you can warm up using those as well, but make sure you get all body parts moving and warm before starting any workout. Your warm-up should last 5-6 minutes.

Baseline Test

This baseline test is brought to you courtesy of Brandon Huggins, an NCAA Division I strength and conditioning coach. For more information or customized workouts, please feel free to contact Brandon:

Brandon Huggins

Strength & Conditioning Coach/Owner

Top Athlete Training

IG: @thetopathlete

EMAIL: topathleteus@gmail.com

860-940-4530

1. Max Push-ups until fatigue/rest 10 seconds, max push-ups to fatigue/rest 20 seconds/max pushups to fatigue (record all three numbers)
2. 1-leg broad jump for distance (tape measure needed) – both legs
3. Max Burpees in 60 seconds (no push-up)
4. Max Y-Handcuffs without rest
5. 1-leg Hip Bridge HOLD – max time (90-second limit each side)
6. Side Plank Leg Raise HOLD  - max time (90-second limit each side)

Remember to record your results and come back to this test occasionally to see how you are progressing.

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