What Can Grip Strength and Getting Up From the Floor Tell Us About Our Health?

25 Aug

By Dennis H | Former Gym Manager | Qualified Personal Trainer | Longtime Student of Evidence-Based Health and Healthy Ageing

Grip strength and the ability to sit down on the floor and rise again have attracted considerable attention as simple signs of health. Research has found that people who perform well on these measures often have better health outcomes and a lower risk of early death. That can make them sound like remarkable tests of longevity.

They are useful, but they are not crystal balls. Neither test reveals how long an individual will live, and neither should be treated as a judgement on someone’s health or vitality. Their value lies in the amount of information they can gather from several parts of physical function at once. Even then, technique, familiarity and individual circumstances can greatly affect the result.

Who this article applies to
This discussion is primarily about people whose hands, arms, hips, knees and legs function normally enough to perform these tasks. An injury, arthritis, neurological condition, limb difference, disability or other physical limitation can affect the result independently of general health. For those people, these tests may be inappropriate or misleading, and other assessments may be far more relevant.

Why grip strength attracts so much attention

Grip can be measured quickly with a handheld device called a dynamometer. The person squeezes the handle as firmly as possible, and the device records the force produced. Because the test is simple, inexpensive and easy to repeat, it has been used in large studies around the world.

In the international PURE study, which followed nearly 140,000 adults from 17 countries, weaker grip strength was associated with a higher risk of death from any cause, cardiovascular death and several other adverse outcomes. Grip strength was a stronger predictor of death than systolic blood pressure within that study, although it did not predict every cardiovascular event.

This does not mean that squeezing harder directly prevents a heart attack or guarantees a longer life. Grip strength appears to act as a broad marker. It can reflect overall muscle strength, nervous-system function, nutritional status, activity levels, illness and the gradual loss of physical reserve.

Grip strength is not simply about the hands

A strong grip depends on the muscles of the hand and forearm, but producing force also requires functioning nerves, healthy joints and the ability of the brain and muscles to work together. People who remain physically active and maintain muscle throughout the body often retain more grip strength as well.

That is why grip strength can reveal more than whether someone can open a jar or carry shopping bags. Those are familiar examples for people with two normally functioning hands, but they are not universal measures of health or independence. Someone with an injured or impaired hand may have excellent leg strength, aerobic fitness and metabolic health while recording a low grip score on that side.

Practical gripping is also partly a skill. Opening a tight jar, holding an awkward object or catching a rail involves hand position, leverage, timing and friction as well as raw force. A smaller or apparently weaker person may outperform a stronger person because they have discovered a better technique. That does not suddenly make them healthier or more vital.

Body size, sex, age, hand size, testing position and technique also influence a dynamometer result. A single number should therefore be compared with appropriate reference values and interpreted in context, preferably by someone trained to administer the test.

What does getting up from the floor measure?

Rising from the floor without using the hands is a different challenge. It requires enough leg and hip strength to lift the body, sufficient joint mobility to move through the required positions, balance to control the transition, and coordination to organise the movement. Body proportions and body composition can also influence how easy it feels.

Researchers have studied this using the sitting-rising test. A person is asked to sit on the floor and stand again, with points deducted when a hand, knee or other support is used or when balance is lost. A 2025 study followed 4,282 adults aged 46 to 75 for a median of just over 12 years. Lower scores were strongly associated with higher natural and cardiovascular mortality after adjustment for several relevant factors.

Importantly, the study excluded people with locomotor or musculoskeletal problems and anyone with a clinical restriction that could impair the test. That limitation matters. The findings cannot simply be applied to someone who needs a hand because of a painful knee, an injured wrist, reduced sensation, a disability or another specific physical constraint.

Getting up from the floor is also a learned skill

Many adults rarely sit on the floor and may never have tried to stand from it without using their hands. On a first attempt, they may struggle simply because the movement is unfamiliar. There are several ways to position the feet, shift the body’s weight and use momentum efficiently. Finding a technique that suits the person can turn an unsuccessful attempt into a successful one even though their strength, health and vitality have not changed in the few minutes between attempts.

This does not make the test worthless. It means the result is a mixture of physical capacity and movement skill. A standardised research test can identify associations across a large group, but an unpractised attempt at home is much less informative. Familiarity, coaching and the particular technique used should all be considered before interpreting the result.

Why are these abilities associated with health?

Both measures provide a glimpse of physical reserve. Reserve is the capacity available beyond what is needed for an ordinary task. A person who can produce reasonable force and move confidently through different levels generally has more capacity available when life becomes demanding, such as during illness, after a period of inactivity or when recovering from surgery.

The floor-rise test also combines several qualities that support everyday independence. Leg strength helps with stairs and chairs. Mobility allows the hips, knees and ankles to move freely enough for daily tasks. Balance and coordination reduce unnecessary instability. These qualities may make it easier to remain active, and regular activity supports cardiovascular, metabolic and musculoskeletal health.

Association is not destiny

Headlines often turn these findings into statements such as ‘this test predicts how long you will live’. That goes beyond what the research can tell us. The studies identify statistical associations across groups of people. They do not determine the future of a particular person.

Someone may struggle to rise from the floor because of a longstanding knee injury or because they have never learned an effective technique, while otherwise being fit and healthy. Another person may perform the movement easily despite having risk factors that the test cannot detect. Grip and floor-rising ability do not replace blood tests, medical assessment, cardiovascular fitness measures or an understanding of the person’s health history.

They are better viewed as useful clues. A noticeable decline in an ability that was previously easy may justify looking at what has changed, particularly if it is accompanied by unexplained weight loss, weakness, pain, poor balance or difficulty with ordinary activities.

What can these tests say about vitality?

Vitality is broader than performance on a single physical task. It includes energy, strength, mobility, resilience, enthusiasm, adaptability and the capacity to participate in life. A person who has good grip strength or can rise smoothly from the floor may possess some of the physical qualities that contribute to vitality, but the test cannot establish how vital that person is overall.

The cautious conclusion is that these abilities may be signs of useful physical reserve. They can contribute one piece of information about vitality when the test suits the person and the result is interpreted alongside health, activity, function and changes over time. They are evidence to consider, not proof and certainly not a ranking of one person’s vitality against another’s.

Can these abilities be improved?

In many people, yes. General resistance training can improve strength throughout the body. Exercises that involve pulling, carrying, holding and controlled gripping can contribute to hand and forearm strength when both arms and hands can be used safely. The best choice will be different for someone with pain, altered sensation or a limb impairment, and the affected area should not simply be forced through an unsuitable exercise.

Improving the ability to get up from the floor usually requires more than repeatedly attempting the full movement. Leg and hip strength, ankle and hip mobility, balance and familiarity with safe movement patterns may all need attention. Chair squats, step-ups, supported split squats, balance practice and carefully controlled transitions between standing, kneeling and sitting can build the necessary components progressively.

People who are unsteady, have significant joint pain, osteoporosis, a recent operation, cardiovascular symptoms or difficulty getting up once on the floor should not test themselves alone. A physiotherapist, exercise physiologist or appropriately qualified trainer can assess safer starting points and suitable alternatives.

What matters more than achieving a perfect score

The real goal is not to pass an internet challenge. It is to preserve as much useful strength, mobility, balance, vitality and independence as your circumstances allow. For someone with normally functioning limbs, grip strength and floor-rising ability may provide convenient signs of whether some of those qualities are being maintained. For someone with a physical limitation, a different task may show progress more fairly, such as standing from a chair, climbing a step, walking a set distance or completing a movement adapted to the person’s abilities.

Progress over time is often more informative than comparison with a stranger, particularly when the same technique and conditions are used. If grip strength, balance or the ability to rise from the floor is gradually declining, the useful question is not ‘What does this say about my lifespan?’ It is ‘What is limiting me, and is there something reasonable I can do about it?’

The broader picture

Grip strength and getting up from the floor are interesting because they compress several aspects of physical function into simple tasks. They can help researchers identify patterns and can give health professionals useful information when the tests are suitable for the person being assessed. In an individual, however, technique and previous experience can make a substantial difference.

They should not be treated as universal health tests, and they should never be used to dismiss the abilities of people whose limbs do not function in the way the tests assume. Used sensibly, they may offer a clue about some of the physical qualities that support vitality. More importantly, they remind us that maintaining strength, mobility, balance and physical reserve helps preserve capability and independence throughout life.

Disclaimer

This article is for general information and educational purposes only. It is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease and should not replace advice from a qualified healthcare professional. If you have concerns about your health, medications or ability to exercise safely, speak with your doctor or another appropriately qualified health professional.

Published by Vitality Hub
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Dennis Houghton