Free tool
Flexibility and mobility self-check
This flexibility test at home has five quick self-checks: sit and reach, a shoulder reach behind the back, a deep squat, the ankle knee-to-wall test and a hip flexor check. Enter what you see, and the tool lists your areas to work on and builds a 14-day stretch plan you can print, share and retest.
Flexibility and Mobility Self-Check
Test 1 of 5
Sit and reach
- Warm up for a few minutes, for example with an easy walk and some marching on the spot.
- Sit on the floor, shoes off, legs straight, soles flat against a box or a step with a ruler on top. Line up the 26 cm mark with your soles.
- Put one hand on top of the other and breathe out as you slide your fingertips forward along the ruler. Keep the knees straight and do not bounce.
- Hold the furthest point for two seconds. Rest, try once more and keep the better reach.
Rated with the CSEP norms for ages 20 to 69 when you give your sex and age. Otherwise the tool only checks whether you reached past your feet.
Sit and reach norms: Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology. The Canadian Physical Activity, Fitness & Lifestyle Approach: CSEP-Health & Fitness Program's Health-Related Appraisal and Counseling. 3rd ed. Ottawa: CSEP, 2003. Reproduced as Table 4-15, Fitness Categories by Age Groups for Trunk Forward Flexion Using a Sit-and-Reach Box (cm), LSU Health Sciences Center Wellness. Source table. The other four checks use no norms.
How does the self-check work?
The tool takes you through five tests, one screen at a time. Each has numbered steps and a small diagram. Enter what you measured or saw, or press Skip if a test does not suit you today. At the end you get:
- Areas to work on, such as hamstrings and lower back, shoulders, ankles and calves, hips, hip flexors or quads.
- A results table with what you entered for each test and whether it flagged an area.
- Stretch moves for each area, taken from our stretching routines.
- A 14-day plan built on the 14-day flexibility plan, with the days that match your areas marked and two short extra moves a day for them.
Press Print plan for a clean printout of the results and plan, or Copy share link to send them to a friend or teacher.
The five tests
1. Sit and reach. The classic test of the hamstrings and lower back. Sit with straight legs, feet against a box with the 26 cm mark at your soles, and slide your hands forward. This is the only test rated against published norms: the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology bands for ages 20 to 69, the same ones the sit and reach test uses. Fair or Needs improvement flags the hamstrings.
2. Shoulder reach behind the back. One hand reaches down from over the shoulder, the other up from below, and you measure the gap between the fingertips or the overlap. A gap on either side flags the shoulders, and a difference of 2 cm or more between sides is noted.
3. Deep squat. Sit the hips down between the heels. Heels that lift point to the ankles and calves; hips that stay above the knees point to the hips. Hold a doorframe if you like, and skip it if the knees complain.
4. Ankle knee-to-wall. In a lunge facing a wall, find the furthest your toes can be from the wall while the knee still touches it with the heel down. Under 5 cm, or a difference of 2 cm or more between sides, flags the ankles.
5. Hip flexor check. Lying on the edge of a firm bed with one knee hugged in, let the other leg hang. If the thigh lifts off the bed, the hip flexors are flagged; if the knee stays straighter than a right angle, the quads are.
The cut-offs in tests 2 to 5 are our own rules of thumb for picking a focus. They are not published norms and they do not rate you against anyone else.
How is the 14-day plan built?
The plan keeps the shape of the 14-day flexibility plan: one session a day, 12 to 25 minutes, each day on one area. The tool marks the days that match your areas, then adds two gentle stretch moves a day for them, taking turns between areas so each comes round several times. Days 1 and 14 stay as written, so the check-in on day 14 compares like with like. If no area is flagged, you get the program as written.
Retesting and comparing
Your results are saved in this browser with the date. Do the check again after the two weeks, under the same conditions, and the results page shows then and now side by side, marking where you had more or less range. To delete them, open “Saved on this device” and press Delete saved results.
Limits
This is a general self-check, not a medical or physiotherapy assessment. Limb length, the time of day and how warm you are all change the numbers, so compare yourself mainly with your own earlier results. For single areas, the flexibility exercises routine and the pose finder are good next steps.
What this tool draws on
Each test in the check points to the routine that trains that range. These are the pages behind the results.
It is one of 28 free tools on the site, and none of them needs a sign-up.
The 14-day plan the results build on
Without JavaScript, or to see it before you test: the days of the 14-day flexibility plan. After the self-check, the tool marks the days that match your areas to work on and adds two short stretch moves a day for them.
Sources: Mayo Clinic, Fitness program: 5 steps to get started; NCCIH (US National Institutes of Health), Yoga: Effectiveness and Safety; NHS, Knee pain. Last reviewed 2 October 2026.
Questions
What do you need for the five-part flexibility self-check?
A tape measure or ruler, a box or a sturdy step for the sit and reach, a clear bit of wall, and a firm bed or table for the hip flexor check. A friend helps with the shoulder measurement. The whole check takes about 15 minutes.
Why does the self-check give areas to work on instead of a score?
Only the sit and reach test has published norms for adults, so a single combined score would be made up. Instead each test either flags an area or does not, and the plan focuses on the areas it flags.
How do I retest and compare with my last flexibility check?
Do the check again after the 14 days, at the same time of day and after the same warm-up. Your earlier results are saved in this browser with the date, and the results page shows a side-by-side table of then and now.
Is my flexibility check data sent anywhere?
No. Results stay in your browser. The share link carries your answers in the address itself, so whoever opens it sees the same results, and nothing is stored on our side.
What are the signs of poor flexibility?
Common signs show up in simple checks: fingertips well short of the toes in a sit and reach, a gap between the hands behind the back, heels that lift in a deep squat, or a thigh that lifts off the bed in the hip flexor check. They point to areas to work on, not a diagnosis.
Can a stiff body become more flexible?
Yes, for most people, with patient practice. Short, gentle stretching sessions on most days tend to help more than occasional long ones, which is why the tool builds a 14-day plan and suggests retesting under the same conditions. Limb length and the shape of your joints set some limits, so compare yourself with your own earlier results.
Updated