The Key to Longevity: Grip Strength

[Woodznutz]

I've picked up my 80 year old neighbor off of the ground 4 times. She refuses to go to assisted living and only wears her life alert when she feels like it. I'm really not looking forward to finding her dead.

An older overweight tenant of mine fell and was lodged in a corner. I called the paramedics to get her up and they even had a hard time. Shortly after that her family moved her to a nursing home. She died a few months later.

 

[MarathonMike]

An older overweight tenant of mine fell and was lodged in a corner. I called the paramedics to get her up and they even had a hard time. Shortly after that her family moved her to a nursing home. She died a few months later.

My one surviving Aunt fell between two parked cars. She couldn't get herself up. Neighbors found her a couple hours later and got her up. Thankfully she is in assisted living now.

 

[Woodznutz]

My one surviving Aunt fell between two parked cars. She couldn't get herself up. Neighbors found her a couple hours later and got her up. Thankfully she is in assisted living now.

My balance has suffered lately so I have to be extra careful. It's amazing how small things can trip you.

 

[Seymour Flops]

There was a study in 2015 that found grip strength was a better indicator of longevity than blood pressure. Pretty amazing.

You don't need a gym, you don't even need weights, just find something that will support your weight and start doing free hangs for as long as you can. Eventually move your way up to chin ups. Then you start adding weight lifting to the mix. This will increase your grip strength. Free hangs, active hangs, pushups, chin-ups, and other body weight exercises are an excellent start.

Is Your Grip Strength More Important Than Your Blood Pressure? | Certified Functional Strength Coach

A number of studies have come out recently showing that grip strength is a dependable predictor of overall health

www.certifiedfsc.com

Grip strength: The test for your chances of living to 100

Grip strength is associated with a range of health outcomes, from type 2 diabetes to depression. Here’s how to check yours.

www.bbc.com

Midlife muscle strength and human longevity up to age 100 years: a 44-year prospective study among a decedent cohort - PubMed

We studied prospectively the midlife handgrip strength, living habits, and parents' longevity as predictors of length of life up to becoming a centenarian. The participants were 2,239 men from the Honolulu Heart Program/Honolulu-Asia Aging Study who were born before the end of June 1909 and who...

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

I'm a male in my sixties so longevity is obviously something I am concerned about. I'll read your links with interest and I thank you for them.

One thing that I'll be carefully reading for is whether grip strength is not simply a valid proxy for overall fitness and strength. In otehr words, do people with more grip strenth live longer because there is something inherent in grip strength as an isolated variable that leads to more longevity, or because people with good overall health tend to have better grip strength than people with with poor health.

If the latter, that does not detract from the point that being in better shape physically promotes longevity. I started the year with a strength training resolution that I have stuck with so far.

 

[odanny]

I'm a male in my sixties so longevity is obviously something I am concerned about. I'll read your links with interest and I thank you for them.

One thing that I'll be carefully reading for is whether grip strength is not simply a valid proxy for overall fitness and strength. In otehr words, do people with more grip strenth live longer because there is something inherent in grip strength as an isolated variable that leads to more longevity, or because people with good overall health tend to have better grip strength than people with with poor health.

If the latter, that does not detract from the point that being in better shape physically promotes longevity. I started the year with a strength training resolution that I have stuck with so far.

Grip strength is, in my estimation, simply one part of the greater whole, and the greater whole is overall strength. I doubt scientists can pinpoint exactly which factors lead to longevity, which is entirely understandable, because there are so many variables in play that lead to this outcome.

In other words, it is not just grip strength, it is overall muscularity, but grip strength is a quick and easy thing to measure, you're (probably) not going to ask granny how much she can bench or deadlift. If you want better health in old age start strength training.

You don't even need to join a health club, body weight exercises are very effective. Chin ups and hangs can be done just about anywhere, as can push ups, sit ups, and a whole range of exercises.

 

[Unkotare]

Also, not getting hit by a train helps.