Essentials: How to Assess & Improve All Aspects of Your Fitness | Dr. Andy Galpin
Essentials: How to Assess & Improve All Aspects of Your Fitness | Dr. Andy Galpin  
Podcast: Huberman Lab
Published On: Thu Sep 17 2026
Description: In this Huberman Lab Essentials episode, my guest is Dr. Andy Galpin, PhD, an exercise physiologist. We revisit the first episode of his Huberman Lab Guest Series to discuss the nine major components of physical fitness and how to assess your abilities. We explain practical tests for movement quality, power, strength, muscle mass and endurance, including grip strength, push-ups and VO2 max. We also discuss how to organize fitness testing, track progress and identify which areas to prioritize in your training to support long-term health and performance. Read the episode show notes at hubermanlab.com. Thank you to our sponsors AG1: https://drinkag1.com/huberman Eight Sleep: https://eightsleep.com/huberman David: https://davidprotein.com/huberman Timestamps (00:00:00) Andy Galpin (00:00:44) Fitness Goals, Appearance & Performance (00:02:32) Nine Components of Physical Fitness (00:05:54) Sponsor: Eight Sleep (00:07:21) Movement Skill, Tool: Assessing Movement Quality (00:11:11) Speed Testing (00:11:34) Power, Tool: Standing Broad Jump (00:12:55) Grip Strength, Dynamometers & Dead Hangs (00:14:51) Sponsor: AG1 (00:16:12) Lower Body Strength, Leg Extensions & Squat Holds (00:18:47) Safe Testing, Technique & Consistent Warm-Ups (00:19:45) Muscle Mass, Body Composition & Fat-Free Mass Index (00:21:51) Muscular Endurance, Planks & Push-Ups (00:23:21) Anaerobic Capacity, Maximum Effort Tests (00:24:55) Maximum Heart Rate & Heart Rate Recovery (00:26:10) VO2 Max, Running & Walking Tests (00:27:52) Sponsor: David (00:29:15) Long-Duration Endurance, Steady-State Exercise & Nasal Breathing (00:30:16) Testing Frequency, Test Order & Training Priorities (00:34:34) Acknowledgements Disclaimer & Disclosures Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices