Fitness Check-Up #2

Building off of last week’s post. Here is fitness check-up test #2.

Test #2) All-Cause Mortality Grip-Strength Test

Why this test?

Grip strength is not only a reflection of overall strength, but

research shows that it is also closely tied to longevity. A study by

Dr. Mark Pederson, published in the National Library of Medicine

in 2023, measured DNA age acceleration in conjunction with grip

strength. DNA age acceleration is a way to measure your DNA

to see if it matches your chronological age. The study found that

those with below-average grip strength had accelerated DNA,

meaning their DNA was showing that they were older than they

actually were.

For 25 years, the way that I have been testing and recording

grip strength is by having my clients dead hang from a bar. The

dead hang test considers more than just grip strength; it considers

body weight to grip strength ratio as you will be asked to hold your

body weight from a bar.

Purpose:

Test grip strength.

History and research:

Most grip strength studies use a hydraulic hand dynamometer, but

it’s not practical to expect everyone to be able to access that kind of

tool. The dead hang doesn’t have much clinical research history, so

I’ve had to rely on my experience and the experiences I’ve found in

communities that are thriving, healthy, and strong at our age. Since

there is little data on standards for the dead hang, you’ll notice that

I have adjusted the age-predicted dead hang times. I did this based

on a study from the National Library of Medicine in which 1,710

subjects’ grip strength was measured from the age of before 50 to

over 65 years old. The community that took part in the study was

from Tobago and had above-average hand-grip strength due to the

amount of physical activity in their daily lives. Up to age 50, par-

ticipants gained grip strength, and then at the age of 50, every 4.5

years they lost 2.2 percent of their grip strength up to the age of

65, at which point there was a 3.8 percent loss every 4.5 years. I am using a 2.2 percent deduction in your standards for each age

bracket. You will also note in the charts that men and women have

different standards. In most studies, men have a stronger grip

strength than women when using a dynamometer. In a study pub-

lished in the National Library of Medicine in 2022, men averaged

a grip force of 48 kg while women averaged 33 kg.20 I have applied

that difference to the scoring chart for dead hang standards.

Pros:

This test is not technical at all. Find a bar from which your feet

don’t touch the ground and hang as long as possible.

Cons:

Finding a bar to hang where your feet can’t touch the ground may

be challenging for those who don’t belong to a gym or have access

to playground equipment.

Protocol:

1. Using an overhand grip, hang from a bar where your feet don’t

touch the ground. Start a timer.

2. Hang as long as possible. You can release your grip once you

can no longer hang from the bar. Stop the timer.

What to watch for:

If the bar is too high to jump to, you can use a step to get the bar.

Let me know how you do.

See you in the gym,

Aaron Leventhal CSCS, ACSM- Cancer Specialist, PN1