Maybe your interest in longevity is entrepreneurial, since one of the largest addressable markets is people who want to live longer, healthier lives. (I’ve never heard anyone say, “Yeah, I hope I check out sooner rather than later.”)

More likely, your interest in longevity is personal. But how can you know if you’re at greater risk of dying sooner — and more importantly, what you can do to extend your lifespan?

One way is to take a biological age test that assesses DNA methylation patterns and blood markers. Problem is, they’re expensive; the costs range from around $100 to $500 or more. For another, the jury is still out on their accuracy. Generally speaking, epigenetic clocks are more accurate than single-marker tests, but even then studies show the results can vary greatly. (A friend who took a number of different tests got results ranging from three years younger than his chronological age, to seven years older.)

That’s why I prefer simpler tests you can do yourself — tests that are backed by research, that provide an instant indication of your health and fitness, and that indicate an obvious path to improvement.

But there’s a problem with those kinds of tests as well. Standards tend to fall into one of two basic camps: targets that only seem suitable for professional athletes, or targets appropriate for people in the lowest percentiles of health and fitness. Most of us fall somewhere in between. What about us?

That’s a question Michael Easter set out to answer in his latest newsletter. For each of the tests below (some of which I’ve written about before), Easter came up with targets that, if met, can create a solid base of fitness for long-term health.

We’ll check the tests out in a moment, but first, a disclaimer. The following tests — just like epigenetic tests, telomere length tests, biomarker tests, etc. — are indicative, not absolute. Passing any test is never a guarantee of decreased mortality risk, nor is failing a test a guarantee of decreased longevity. For example, a decade ago I was in exceptionally good cardiovascular shape and still had a heart attack. Yep: indicative, not absolute.

So with all that said… on to the tests. 4 flights-of-stairs test

One way to measure cardiovascular fitness is through Metabolic Equivalents of a Task (METs). Sitting on a couch equals one MET. Walking four miles an hour equals 6 METs.

Why do METs matter? A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that every MET you can add to your threshold drops your risk of death by 13 percent, and your risk of heart attack by 15 percent. A great goal is 10 METs; while more is better, the health and longevity gains start to become incremental rather than substantial. (As Easter says, think of 10 METs as a great bang-for-buck standard.)

A science-backed way to measure your MET threshold is to do a stair test: climb four flights of stairs (60 steps) as quickly as you can. Then assess your results:

Poor: 90 seconds or longer. That’s cause for concern, and for getting more exercise. (And maybe talking to your doctor.)
Good: 60 seconds or less.
Great: 45 seconds or less, or the equivalent of 10 METs.

Want to improve your score? Simple. Start walking more. Or jogging. Or add stair climbs to your daily routine. Anything you do that improves your cardiovascular fitness and leg strength will boost your stair climb results. 6-minute walk test

According to a study published in American Journal of Preventive Medicine, fast walking for little as 15 minutes a day is associated with a nearly 20 percent reduction in total mortality. (Walking the dog, walking at work, moving around the house, etc. is considered “slow walking.” “Fast” basically equates to a fitness-related pace: increased heart rate, increased breathing rate, walking quickly enough that conversation is possible but slightly difficult.)

While 15 minutes of fast walking might not sound like much, it’s enough to improve cardiac output, increases oxygen delivery, and enhances the efficiency of the heart’s pumping action, all of which lead to better overall cardiovascular health. Plus, regular fast walking helps control body weight and composition, reducing obesity and related risks like hypertension and elevated levels of cholesterol.

The test is simple. Set a timer, walk on a flat surface for six minutes, simple: set a timer and walk on a flat surface for six minutes, and track the distance you travel.

Poor: less than .23 miles. According to a study published in Journal of Aging Health, adults with this score had a 1.5 times greater risk of mortality.
Good: over .3 miles.
Great: over .37 miles: Best. While a Respiratory Research study found this was roughly the average for healthy adults up to age 78, the study shows maintaining or exceeding this distance is a great bang-for-effort target.

Want to improve your score? Figure out what holds you back, and work on it. If it’s flexibility, stretch more. If it’s balance, work on improving yours. If it’s just a lack of activity, get out and walk more, and spend a little of that time working to improve your pace. 3. Sit-and-stand test

This test is a good gauge of balance and lower body strength.

And your risk of falling: poor performance predicts future falls, disability, falls, and decreased muscle mass.

To perform the test, get a chair that doesn’t have arm rests. Cross your arms over your chest, and have someone time you while you stand and sit 5 times as quickly (and safely) as you can; up and down counts as one. (Here’s a video showing how.)

Then check your results:

Poor: over 12 seconds.
Good: 10.1 to 12 seconds.
Great: Less than 10 seconds.

Remember, the test measures strength and balance. If you struggle to stay in control as you sit and stand — if, for example, you sometimes have to uncross your arms to maintain your balance — that’s cause for concern.

To improve your score, start doing bodyweight squats. You can also double-dip on longevity by doing some balance work; a study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine found that people 50-years-old and up who couldn’t stand on one leg for 10 seconds had a higher risk of dying (from any cause) over the next 10 years. 4. Sit-and-rise test

A study published in European Journal of Preventive Cardiology found that how well you can go from a standing to sitting to standing position indicates whether you’re at greater risk of mortality.

Stand barefoot on a non-slick floor with plenty of open space around you. Cross one leg over the other, and lower yourself to a sitting position. Then try to stand back up. (Here’s a video showing how.)

The goal is to do it without touching the floor with your hands, knees, elbows, forearms, or the sides of your legs.

Now score yourself. Start with 10 points, and subtract half a point for each time you needed to use your hand, or knee, or forearm, or shift onto the side of one leg before levering yourself up. Also subtract half a point if you lost balance.

Then check your results (instead of using “poor,” “good,” and “great,” we’ll look at relative mortality risk from a study that tracked older people across a 12-year period):

0-4 points: 42.1 percent of participants died.
4-8 points: 20.4 percent died.
8-9 points: 11 percent died.
10 points: 3.7 percent died.

Want to improve your results on the sit-and-rise test? Here’s a great place to start. Grip strength test

A study published in British Medical Journal found handgrip strength serves as a proxy for measuring overall body strength and muscle mass. More to the point, handgrip strength is “strongly associated with a wide range of adverse health outcomes. Lower grip strength correlated with higher incidence of cardiovascular disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and various types of cancer.”

One way to test your handgrip strength is to use a dynamometer. (They look like this.) If you have one, here’s a chart you can use to evaluate your results.

Since you probably don’t have a dynamometer (I don’t), another way to evaluate grip strength is to hang from a pull-up bar for as long as you can. I like this one, if only because I can hang for a really long time. All you have to do is loosen up, take a few deep breaths, and start hanging.

For men, consider 60 seconds a good target. For women, 30. But in some ways the initial target is irrelevant. The researchers found that a 6-pound decrease in grip strength for women, and 11 pounds for men, correlates with a 16 percent higher risk of dying from any cause.

Do a little math and that means if you’re a woman and can only hang for 20 seconds, or a man who can do only 30, your mortality risk is likely higher.

Easter recommends different grip strength test, one where you carry a quarter of your bodyweight in each hand and walk 100 feet, or roughly 35-50 steps. If, like me, you weigh 170 pounds pounds, you’ll carry a 45-pound (I always like to round up) dumbbell or kettlebell in each hand.

If you can make it 100 feet, your grip strength is solid. If not, you have some work to do. Squeeze-y trainers are relatively inexpensive. Or you can hang from a pull-up bar every other day. And if you get bored with that, start doing one-armed hangs. (And mix in a few pull-ups while you’re at it.) Or you can start lifting free weights; grip strength is a natural outcome of exercises like curls, rows, dead lifts, kettle bell swings, etc.

Grip strength typically increases as functional strength increases.

And one more… Recovery test

Your heart rate naturally increases when you exercise, but how quickly your heart rate drops after you exercise says a lot about your health. According to a study published in The New England Journal of Medicine, if your heart rate doesn’t recover quickly after exercise, your odds of dying are significantly higher.

What’s “quickly”? Let’s find out. Exercise vigorously so your heart rate elevates. Shoot for at least 110 to 120 beats per minute. Stop, note your heart rate, wait one minute, and check your heart rate again. (It’s easy if you have a fitness tracker with a heart rate monitor; taking your heart rate manually could skew the results.)

A good goal is for your heart rate to drop at least 12 beats per minute after one minute of rest. Bigger drops are better, though: if your heart rate drops by 20 or more beats, you’re in excellent shape.

If your heart rate doesn’t drop at least 12 bpm? Your mortality risk is higher.

Improving your results is simple, if not easy. Improving your cardiovascular conditioning improves your cardiovascular efficiency, which increases your rate of recovery.

Brisk walking, cycling, jogging, elliptical trainers… there are plenty of ways to improve your cardiovascular fitness. Research published in Progress in Cardiovascular Diseases says jogging is the best form of exercise for increasing your lifespan, lowering the risk of dying from any disease by 40 percent.

“Best” is great, but the best form of exercise is the one you’ll do consistently. As with most things, consistency is everything — so find ways to exercise that you’ll be willing to do regularly.