If there was to be a single, across the board, test that would quickly reveal how strong, fit and healthy you are and how long you are likely to remain like this in your lifespan, then the grip strength test is exactly that test.

Studies show that grip strength is a strong biomarker for a whole range of health and fitness attributes and conditions: Fitness and health for older adults, premature ageing, cardiovascular health and resistance to cancer, healthspan, heart health and prevalence of hypertension and diabetes.

The reason grip strength is such a powerful indicator of such a large cross section of our health, lies in the nature and number of the forearm and hand muscles that make them the proverbial canary in the coal mine. For instance, there are 19 muscles in the forearm. Eleven are classified as extensor muscles and eight belong to the flexor group, and there are over 30 muscles in the hand, working together in a highly complex way. If there is something wrong with us that will lead to weakness, disease and earlier than expected mortality the early symptoms are a weaker than expected grip.

Chronic injuries such as tendonitis and general inflammation in tendons and muscles along the shoulder-elbow-wrist line also produce muscular weakness by undermining the ability of muscles to generate sufficient force when gripping an object. Finally, age-related conditions such as peripheral neuropathy, when they occur, also contribute to an overall reduction in strength and a weaker than expected, grip.

A metanalysis review of several different studies concluded that hand grip strength is also indicative of diseases such as Parkinson’s that can take a long time to be diagnosed and which, by the time they can be diagnosed, have already caused significant weakness to occur in the body’s skeletal muscle and the signals of the body’s central nervous system (CNS).

How Long Should You Be Able To Hang For?

One of the easiest ways to measure grip strength is by doing a dead hang where you hand from a pull up bar, supporting your entire body weight for as long as you can. The time you can dead hang for depends on age and weight and, obviously your own fitness level and what sports you do. However, as a rule of thumb the average dead hang times are:

• 10 seconds – beginner level
• 20 to 30 seconds – intermediate level
• 45 seconds or more – advanced level

Grip Strength Can Be Improved Through Exercise

The good news is that grip strength is a fitness attribute we can all work on and improve regardless of age. Simple hand exercises such as rapidly opening and closing the fingers of our hand with arms extended, can help us train the tendons of the hand and wrist and improve the functional ability of the forearm muscles.

Our collection of hand workouts provides a number of basic workouts that form a great foundation to build better grip strength. Additional ways to improve grip strength are:

• Pick up and hold for as long as possible a dumbbell or another similar weight.
• Practice doing farmer’s walk with dumbbells or another, similar weight.
• Hang from a chin up bar for as long as possible.
• Pick up a dumbbell, hold it so your wrist looks upwards. Now practice bringing your hand, as you hold it, closer to your elbow joint by flexing the forearm muscles only.

All of these are activities that help develop stronger forearm and wrist muscles and tendons. Improvements in grip strength then mirror improvements in other aspects of the body’s health.

Summary

While grip strength is something that is often overlooked when exercising, it is an important biomarker of many of the body’s underlying health systems. Improving it through exercise that targets grip strength, specifically, helps improve many other areas of health and fitness.