Key numbers
415 feet
The Systematic calibration distance the references are scaled from
280 feet
Systematic reference distance, men 80 to 99
403 feet
Systematic reference distance, women 40 to 49
What Systematic recommends
Where to start
- Hold one equal weight in each hand, suggested load approximately 5–15 pounds in each hand, stand with your feet about hip-width apart with heels in contact with the wall.
- Keep the midline stable and aligned throughout the hold, maintain contact with the wall through the Heels, Butt, Back, Back of the head, stack the pelvis and ribcage in a neutral position and breathe smoothly and effortlessly while maintaining the stacked, rigid midline.
- Hold the position for 30 seconds, rest for 30 seconds, repeat for 3 total cycles.
Condensed from the published Development Pathway (Farmer's Carry: Wall-Supported Posture Pack). This is a starting point, not a training program or medical advice.
Why walking speed is used for scaling
Comfortable walking speed changes with age and sex. A 2011 meta-analysis by Bohannon and Williams Andrews pooled 41 studies and 23,111 healthy adults and published comfortable speeds for each decade, for men and women separately. A 2023 systematic review of 51,248 apparently healthy adults confirmed the same pattern.
Those age- and sex-specific speeds give a published way to adjust a walking-based reference from one group to another. The gait papers themselves do not supply Farmer's Carry cutoffs.
How the reference distances are built
The starting point is a 415-foot carry observed on the exact Systematic protocol. It is matched to men aged 50 to 59, whose published mean comfortable walking speed is 143.3 centimeters per second (the meta-analysis reports speed in metric units).
Each group's reference distance is 415 feet multiplied by that group's comfortable walking speed and divided by 143.3. Where a group walks more slowly on average, its reference distance is lower: the reference is 415 feet for men aged 30 to 39, 403 feet for women aged 40 to 49, and 280 feet for men aged 80 to 99.
Scoring then compares your carry distance with the reference distance for your age and sex.
What the reference distances are and are not
These are Systematic provisional reference distances for this course, built from one calibration carry plus published walking-speed data. They are not published Farmer's Carry norms, and red, yellow and green are Systematic standards.
What the carry measures
Walking speed only scales the reference. The distance you carry reflects how much controlled loaded walking you sustained, not walking speed, grip strength or trunk bracing on its own.
The evidence
Each cited source is labeled according to how it supports the particular claim on this page. Direct test evidence, underlying-capacity findings and population reference values are distinguished from Systematic-defined protocols and standards. Historical development notes are retained internally rather than presented as public evidence. A study of an underlying capacity is never presented as validation of the Systematic test itself.
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Normative/reference evidence
Bohannon et al. (2011). Normal walking speed: a descriptive meta-analysis. Physiotherapy.
What it found. Pooled 41 studies and 23,111 healthy adults and published comfortable walking speeds by decade and sex.
What it does not show. It does not supply Farmer's Carry cutoffs; Systematic uses it only to scale references by age and sex.
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Normative/reference evidence
Andrews et al. (2023). Normal gait speed varies by age and sex but not by geographical region: a systematic review. Journal of Physiotherapy.
What it found. In 51,248 apparently healthy adults, normal walking speed varied by age and sex.
What it does not show. It does not provide Farmer's Carry norms or cutoffs.
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Underlying-capacity evidence
Studenski (2011). Gait Speed and Survival in Older Adults. JAMA.
What it found. Studied walking speed and survival in older adults.
What it does not show. It concerns walking speed as a health marker, not a loaded-carry norm, and it is not used to set the carry references.
The Systematic Healthspan Assessment is a physical baseline. It is not a diagnosis, and it does not estimate a biological age, a disease risk or a lifespan.