A fit 40-year-old man should be able to do about 20 or more full push-ups, have a grip of roughly 50 kg (the median for his age), and reach a VO2 max near 38 ml/kg/min or higher, which is around the middle for men in their 40s. Those are research-based benchmarks. For gym lifts there are no reliable age norms, so this page also gives practical coaching targets you can work toward.
Research-based fitness benchmarks for men in their 40s
| Test | Median for men 40–49 | Strong | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grip strength (dynamometer, best hand) | About 49–50 kg | 56 kg or more (75th centile) | Dodds et al., 2014 |
| VO2 max (treadmill, measured) | 37.8 ml/kg/min | 45 or more (75th percentile) | Kaminsky et al., 2015 |
| Push-ups, continuous | No published median for this group | More than 40 (top group in a firefighter study) | Yang et al., 2019 |
| Five chair rises, arms crossed | No published median for this group | Well under 15 seconds | Cruz-Jentoft et al., 2019 |
The grip numbers come from more than 49,000 people in 12 British studies. Men’s median grip peaked at 51 kg between about 29 and 39 and then declined slowly, to about 50 kg at 40, 49 at 45 and 48 at 50 (Dodds et al., 2014). There’s more detail in grip strength by age.
The VO2 max figures are from the US FRIEND registry of measured treadmill tests. For men 40 to 49, the 25th, 50th and 75th percentiles were 31.9, 37.8 and 45.0 ml/kg/min (Kaminsky et al., 2015). The VO2 max guide explains how to estimate yours and raise it.
Why push-ups are worth testing
Push-ups aren’t just a strength test. In a 10-year study of 1,104 male firefighters with an average age of about 40, those who could complete more than 40 push-ups had a much lower risk of cardiovascular events than those who did fewer than 10 (Yang et al., 2019). It was an observational study of active men, so it shows an association, not that push-ups protect your heart. But it makes push-up capacity a useful, free gauge of overall fitness.
How to test: hands under shoulders, body straight, chest to a fist-height object, full lockout. Count continuous reps with good form; stop when your hips sag or you need a rest.
Practical strength targets for men over 40
Population norms for gym lifts barely exist, because results depend on technique, equipment and training history. These are coaching targets for a healthy man over 40 after about a year of consistent training, not research norms. Treat them as direction, not a pass mark.
| Lift | Solid after a year | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Goblet squat | Heaviest dumbbell you can hold for 8 deep reps, roughly a third of body weight | Depth before load |
| Trap bar deadlift | About body weight for 5 reps | Often the friendliest heavy lift for backs |
| Dumbbell bench press | Each dumbbell about a quarter of body weight, 8 reps | Shoulder-friendly alternative to the barbell |
| Pull-up | 1 to start; 5–8 strict is strong | See the first pull-up guide |
| Plank | 60 seconds with a flat back | Beyond 2 minutes adds little |
| Farmer’s carry | Body weight split across two hands, 30 m | Also trains grip |
How to use these numbers
- Test, don’t guess. Run the fitness test for men over 40 to get your baseline.
- Pick the weakest area. If your push-ups are strong but your aerobic fitness is in the bottom quarter, more lifting won’t fix that.
- Retest every 8 to 12 weeks, same time of day, same equipment.
- Compare yourself to yourself. A man who moves from the 25th to the 50th percentile in a year has done more for his health than one who stays at the 75th.
The bottom line
The research gives you three solid markers for a man in his 40s: push-ups, grip strength and VO2 max. Get to the median on each, then push toward the top quarter. If you’d like a coach to test you, find your weak link and build the plan around it, weekly 1:1 coaching starts from $99 a week.
Questions people also ask
How many push-ups should a 40-year-old man be able to do?
Twenty or more continuous, full-range push-ups is a solid level for a man in his 40s. In a study of firefighters averaging about 40 years old, men who could do more than 40 had far fewer cardiovascular events over 10 years than men who managed fewer than 10.
What is a good grip strength for a man in his 40s?
The median for British men around age 40 to 45 was about 49 to 50 kg on a hand dynamometer. Anything above the median is good; below about 42 to 44 kg puts you in the bottom quarter for your age.
How many pull-ups should a 40-year-old man do?
There's no solid population norm. As a practical target, one clean pull-up is a meaningful first milestone, and five to eight strict reps is a strong level for a man over 40.
How do I test my fitness at home?
Do a max set of push-ups, time five chair rises with arms crossed, time a plank, and note how long a brisk 2.4 km walk takes. Repeat every 8 to 12 weeks under the same conditions.
Sources
- Yang et al. (2019), Association between push-up exercise capacity and future cardiovascular events among active adult men, JAMA Netw Open
- Dodds et al. (2014), Grip strength across the life course: normative data from twelve British studies, PLoS One
- Kaminsky et al. (2015), Reference standards for cardiorespiratory fitness measured with cardiopulmonary exercise testing (FRIEND), Mayo Clin Proc
- Cruz-Jentoft et al. (2019), Sarcopenia: revised European consensus on definition and diagnosis, Age Ageing