What's Your Fitness Flaw?

Photo: rumble1973, Flickr

Everyone has at least one fitness flaw -- even those buff, six-pack types hocking late night TV ab gadgets. By taking the Outside Challenge over at Outside Magazine, you can identify those deficiencies, then apply your stellar fitness track record to transform each weakness into a powerful, new asset. Sound good? Great, let's give it a go.

Inspired by a visit to the Michael Johnson Performance Center in Dallas, Outside presents test exercises to measure five dimensions to shake out those flaws -- Flexibility, Stability, Power, Strength and Recovery. Beyond test exercises with graphics, each dimension offers a terrific set of remedial exercises to get you on the right track toward a passing grade. Here are test moves to measure an oft-forgotten skill -- Functional Flexibility:

In-Line Lunge. Grab a towel and a two-by-four and see if you can do an in-line lunge. Stand on the board with right foot several feet ahead of the left. Hold that towel in your left hand and let it hang behind your head down your back. With the right hand, reach behind and grab the loose end of the towel. Lower into a lunge until left knee touches the board while right heel stays down. Slowly rise. Switch and repeat. A passing score lunge means front heel remains down with no wobbles.

Depth Squat. Tape an intersecting line in a doorway, one foot away from the doorjamb. Standing with toes at the line and feet shoulder width apart, hold a ski pole or broomstick in both hands and straighten arms above head as you drop into a squat. Keep those heels glued to the floor and knees above your toes (not forward) without the pole smacking the door frame. You'll need perfection for a passing score.

Remedial Exercises. Can't nail either the above? Then add Raised-Arm Walking Lunges, Assisted Pistols and Body-Weight Squat Sets twice a week -- you should pass in no time.

At the very least, testing yourself across each dimension is a fantastic new workout. But climbing out of your fitness rut and working toward five straight As is where the real difference lies, along with a new, athletic you.