Althouse: Can you do this fitness test (which supposedly indicates longevity)?

March 19, 2019

Can you do this fitness test (which supposedly indicates longevity)?

After the jump (because it autoplays):

75 comments:

Henry said...: I'm too old to have a twin.; 3/19/19, 2:22 PM
Lawrence Person said...: I thought it was 40 pushups.

I can do the sit and stand without using your hand thing, but I'm not sure how many times...; 3/19/19, 2:28 PM
BarrySanders20 said...: Failed. But I had a dachshund jump on me and lick my face when I sat down. Hard to while laughing.; 3/19/19, 2:32 PM
Jersey Fled said...: No way Jose'; 3/19/19, 2:45 PM
tcrosse said...: Actually, this was the proposed method of curtseying to President Hillary Clinton.; 3/19/19, 2:48 PM
StephenFearby said...: The assessment has been around for a while:

European Journal of Preventive
Cardiology (2012)

Ability to sit and rise from the floor as a predictor of all-cause mortality

https://geriatrictoolkit.missouri.edu/srff/deBrito-Floor-Rise-Mortality-2012..pdf

However, you can just forget about the test if you can still jump around like this at 84:

This 84-Year-Old Grandmother Is Still Pole Vaulting. What’s Your Excuse?
She first hit the track at age 60—and racked up a world record 20 years later.

https://www.runnersworld.com/runners-stories/a22160755/pole-vaulting-grandma/; 3/19/19, 2:48 PM
madAsHell said...: What's next?? The Ice Bucket Challenge?; 3/19/19, 2:49 PM
Ficta said...: Yes. Down was harder than up.; 3/19/19, 2:50 PM
Fernandinande said...: I can touch my knees without bending my toes.

OT: If you'll just come with me you'll see the beauty of Tuesday afternoon, Tuesday afternoon. Happy Tuesday.; 3/19/19, 2:50 PM
Will Cate said...: Yep. I've been able to do that forever, and at 58 I still can.; 3/19/19, 2:54 PM
mockturtle said...: Not without breaking something.; 3/19/19, 2:58 PM
Be said...: Couldn't get up without rolling onto my knees. Seems a good indicator of core / abdominal strength, which I assume would be a factor in longevity.; 3/19/19, 3:00 PM
Jessica said...: I remember this test. I couldn't do it in 8th grade! And I've been pretty healthy and problem free all my life! (Not obese, either.) I'll get my affairs in order....; 3/19/19, 3:00 PM
exhelodrvr1 said...: Yes, although I used a knee when getting up.; 3/19/19, 3:03 PM
Anonymous said...: I haven’t read the study but wonder if they controlled for weight.; 3/19/19, 3:09 PM
Skeptical Voter said...: I'm 75 with a bad knee and based on that test I'm probably dead already.; 3/19/19, 3:12 PM
wildswan said...: I could do half easily, half not at all; so I suppose I'm going into a decay process with a half-life of some unknown amount left. But being over seventy I suspected that was happening anyhow.; 3/19/19, 3:12 PM
Expat(ish) said...: Experts say....

-XC; 3/19/19, 3:13 PM
rehajm said...: Let's have all the Democratic candidates take this test- winners get a podium on the stage.; 3/19/19, 3:14 PM
AlbertAnonymous said...: Idk, that doesn’t look like RBGs workout. I was told that RBGs workout is really hard and makes you live forever.; 3/19/19, 3:26 PM
Anthony said...: I'm leg pressing 923 pounds these days and can't get back up in that test. I call BS.; 3/19/19, 3:27 PM
funsize said...: yes, even 8 mo pregnant I can do this.; 3/19/19, 3:33 PM
Curious George said...: Two hip replacements and a knee that still needs replacement....no. It hurts just to watch.; 3/19/19, 3:37 PM
Flat Tire said...: Yes, but not as gracefully as I'd hoped.; 3/19/19, 3:37 PM
JRoberts said...: "tcrosse said...
Actually, this was the proposed method of curtseying to President Hillary Clinton.
3/19/19, 2:48 PM"

With, or without a baton applied to the back of your knees?; 3/19/19, 3:54 PM
RigelDog said...: A better indicator, at least for those who are at least middle-aged if not older, may be whether or not you can get up from a seated position on the couch without having to use your arms. For example, I have the core strength and leg muscles to sit down and up as in the video, but my knees don't want to bend like that. But I can stand right up from the couch without having to use my arms to push.; 3/19/19, 3:57 PM
Sarcasticat said...: I did it but needed a chair under my butt.; 3/19/19, 3:58 PM
Paddy O said...: Easy enough. Not quite as easy as when I was in decent shape, but no problems, with just legs.

I'll show this to my doctor when he's concerned about my high blood pressure.; 3/19/19, 4:00 PM
Lyle Smith said...: If you want to do this, start doing yoga. Yoga is a cure all for all kinds of physical problems, from head to toe (the gut included).; 3/19/19, 4:02 PM
mockturtle said...: A better indicator, at least for those who are at least middle-aged if not older, may be whether or not you can get up from a seated position on the couch without having to use your arms. For example, I have the core strength and leg muscles to sit down and up as in the video, but my knees don't want to bend like that. But I can stand right up from the couch without having to use my arms to push.

Yes. My doctor suggested that and I'm able to do that easily twenty times.; 3/19/19, 4:03 PM
Deborah said...: I did it, but had to uncross my legs, side sit, get on both knees then rise from one knee using no hands whatsoever. Hope that makes sense. I couldn't get up from the sitting crossed ankle position.

Does that mean I'll live longer? Hope so! 😁; 3/19/19, 4:05 PM
reader said...: At 52 I can do this but getting up was ugly. I do much better getting up by uncrossing my feet planting them by my hips and pushing straight up.; 3/19/19, 4:26 PM
JHapp said...: It looks like yoga, which is a big turn off.; 3/19/19, 4:26 PM
traditionalguy said...: A balancing hand touching the floor is needed for me both ways. But that is still pretty good considering I've already died once for they say 11 minutes, but came back without permanent damage except the balance thingee.; 3/19/19, 4:37 PM
Inga...Allie Oop said...: “A better indicator, at least for those who are at least middle-aged if not older, may be whether or not you can get up from a seated position on the couch without having to use your arms. For example, I have the core strength and leg muscles to sit down and up as in the video, but my knees don't want to bend like that. But I can stand right up from the couch without having to use my arms to push.”

Oh thank God! I can do that, no problem. As for the floor trick, nope, too many years of nursing, dragging and lifting heavy people around in bed and off the floor did a number on my spine and other various joints.; 3/19/19, 4:45 PM
Unknown said...: My 78 year old brother is playing ice hockey 3 days a week.

I might live long because we share some of the same genes.

But maybe not, because I'm not fit like he is.; 3/19/19, 4:48 PM
Old and slow said...: Two years ago, no way. Then I started joining my sons for their Tae Kwon Do classes. Now it is easy for me. Plus I can do 100 perfect push-ups. Looks like I'm going to live forever... TKD is more fun than yoga, and you get to kick people (and be kicked); 3/19/19, 4:53 PM
Yancey Ward said...: I could get up from the crossed leg position without using my hands well into my early 40s, but I can't quite manage it today. I can get up from the seated position without using my hands, but I do have to roll onto a knee (the right one is easier than the left one)- then I can rise easily. 53 in July.; 3/19/19, 4:53 PM
Jersey Fled said...: That getting up from a chair thing seems like a good exercise for core strength.

At 72, I look for little things like that to do each day.; 3/19/19, 5:14 PM
Jersey Fled said...: But the real question is, can you get up from the floor without farting.; 3/19/19, 5:16 PM
Grant said...: I can do it, and I’m 56 with a BMI in the OMG range. I look like a hippo in distress, but they didn’t say you had to look good doing it.; 3/19/19, 5:21 PM
Anonymous said...: When I was a girl, my mother did this move, but with a very cool twist. As she stood and straightened her legs, her body rotated naturally so that she was facing the other way.

Mom was fit and limber. I couldn't do her trick as a kid, and I can't do it now.; 3/19/19, 5:21 PM
William said...: Wouldn't it be ironic if someone had an ischemic or cardiac event whilst performing this test and subsequently died. Ironic is probably not the right word.. Liability might work better........The one absolute plus of old age is that you can say with absolute assurance that you have not failed the longevity test. I've got a guaranteed C+ in the final exam, and I'm sticking around for extra credit.; 3/19/19, 5:29 PM
James K said...: My parents are 97 and 92. At 58 I do squats with more than my body weight. I doubt I can do the up and down as gracefully as the lady in the video, but I still like my odds for getting to 90.; 3/19/19, 5:32 PM
Focko Smitherman said...: Oh, snap.; 3/19/19, 5:38 PM
wild chicken said...: The knee doc would kill need (twisting).; 3/19/19, 5:49 PM
bagoh20 said...: I don't want to try it, becuase I don't want to know. If I fail, the anxiety will far outweigh the reassurance I would get from succeeding. Besides, how does this prevent one from being hit by a bus in the crosswalk?; 3/19/19, 5:53 PM
Ralph L said...: Petipa does not approve of any of these ballet positions, except for maybe the first person to get back up.; 3/19/19, 5:58 PM
Rosalyn C. said...: Yes, no problem getting down with crossed legs. Getting up was hard until I tried the open stance; I thought maybe I was cheating but then noticed others on the video did it. Is the crossed legs important? What exactly is longevity? Over 100?
My grandfather lived to 100, my father lived to 98.5 missing his goal to reach 100. My mother to 87 which was 15 years longer than her mother. So longevity is relative. I'm more concerned about the longevity of my cash.

BTW, do we have to keep proving we're not robots? Somebody mentioned he just hit "Publish Your Comment" and I tried it. Much better; 3/19/19, 6:00 PM
Ralph L said...: It helps to unsnap your trousers first.

I had a big step on the dismount, a tenth point deduction, but the second attempt was perfect, with a quarter turn.; 3/19/19, 6:10 PM
Anonymous said...: I have artificial knees, and I haven't been able to get up off the floor like that for decades. I have to move around (avoiding kneeling) to a front leaning rest position and then work my way up to downward facing dog, and work my way up from there. Needless to say, I avoid getting all the way down if I can.; 3/19/19, 7:20 PM
Achilles said...: Researchers make up tests for a lot of things.

This was just a waste of grant money.; 3/19/19, 7:42 PM
bagoh20 said...: "It helps to unsnap your trousers first."

If I had a nickle...; 3/19/19, 7:59 PM
Rockport Conservative said...: I didn't try it. I know my longevity will exceed 82, because I am already there.; 3/19/19, 8:09 PM
Charlie Currie said...: My mom, who passed away this past December at the age of 99 yrs, 7 mos and 10 days, was rarely ever on the floor for any reason. I don't remember ever seeing her get up without using her hands...at any age.

This is a learned movement, like any other physical activity. If you never learned to do it, you probably can't do it now. But you could learn.

I saw another program where subjects were told to stand, close their eyes and then lift one leg out to their side. Depending on how long you could hold the position without opening their eyes or falling over, was an indicator of longevity. So, try this one if you can't do the sit and stand.; 3/19/19, 8:18 PM
stonethrower said...: Better tests - Push ups for women and pull ups for men. (Not those so-called pull ups that Meade used to do. Really all the way down, boys.); 3/19/19, 8:46 PM
Tru said...: No one has ever died of good health.; 3/19/19, 9:17 PM
Trashcan O Man said...: Easy peasy.

I've been doing yoga for over three decades and I just turned 60. (I can't run or cycle) This doesn't seem an indicator of longevity, per se, but an indicator that you're less likely to fall and break your hip, which would reduce longevity.; 3/19/19, 10:10 PM
LA_Bob said...: RigelDog said, "A better indicator, at least for those who are at least middle-aged if not older, may be whether or not you can get up from a seated position on the couch without having to use your arms. For example, I have the core strength and leg muscles to sit down and up as in the video, but my knees don't want to bend like that. But I can stand right up from the couch without having to use my arms to push. "

I hadn't heard of this one, and it is no problem for me at 64. I could do the other one several years ago (and as someone noted above it is something of an acquired skill), but a few too many left-knee strains (probably a torn meniscus) means I ain't even gonna try anymore.

I can still go up and down stairs, skipping every other step on the upside.; 3/19/19, 10:33 PM
LA_Bob said...: Rockport Conservative said, "I didn't try it. I know my longevity will exceed 82, because I am already there."

Post a comment from time to time, and let us know you're still with us! Especially on or after your next birthday.; 3/19/19, 10:36 PM
SweatBee said...: Yep, I can. So can one of my parents. That parent's siblings can not even though they share genes and lifestyle habits.; 3/19/19, 11:31 PM
L Day said...: I'm not sure what this test really means. As I high school wrestler I could pass that test, using only one leg. I bet there are good number of people nearing 100 years of age that couldn't do that when they were 80, or even 70.; 3/20/19, 12:29 AM
L Day said...: Stonethrower, Back when I could do a lot of pull ups, I used to go all the way down to a dead hang. Figured I was doing good honest pull ups that way. No less an authority than Tommy Caldwell taught me to not do that, but to start back up when one has a bit of bend in the elbows. He said pulling up on straight arms is hard on the elbows. Made sense to me. Oh, Tommy was about 9 years old at the time.; 3/20/19, 12:35 AM
exhelodrvr1 said...: Is someone going to keep track of how much longer the "yesses" live? The last one to go gets to drink the bottle?; 3/20/19, 4:18 AM
West Texas Intermediate Crude said...: Is this why white people live longer than POCs?; 3/20/19, 5:48 AM
SeanF said...: I was able to do it fairly easily.

Unknown: Two years ago, no way. Then I started joining my sons for their Tae Kwon Do classes. Now it is easy for me. Plus I can do 100 perfect push-ups. Looks like I'm going to live forever... TKD is more fun than yoga, and you get to kick people (and be kicked)

Me, too! I started doing TKD six years ago at the age of 44 (my kids had been doing it for about a year at that point). I tested for my First Degree in 2016 (48) with my then-12-year-old daughter testing for her Junior Black Belt, and tested for my Second Dan last summer (50) with my then-12-year-old son testing for his Junior Black Belt. I'm one of the head instructors at our school now.

Stick with it - it continues to be fun. :); 3/20/19, 5:58 AM
tim in vermont said...: So if you are going to join a tontine, you should make everyone do this first before you make your decision.; 3/20/19, 7:09 AM
Curious George said...: "It helps to unsnap your trousers first."

That's what she said!; 3/20/19, 7:29 AM
Ralph L said...: They left the tontine out of the latest TV version of "4:50 from Paddington". In fact, they changed the motive for the murders from money to love. The Miss Marple couldn't compare to the perfect Joan Hickson, either.; 3/20/19, 7:47 AM
stonethrower said...: Larry Day, I trust the Navy Seals: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q5A9q2ddMwI

You advice, no matter its source, sounds a lot like the notion that squats are bad for your knees.; 3/20/19, 7:55 AM
L Day said...: Stonethrower, Sounds to me he's mostly describing proper form and training for an official "navy seal pull-up test". I doubt there's a Seal alive who's done as many real world (rock climbing in Tommy's case) pull ups as Mr. Caldwell. Avoiding overuse injuries are critical to cutting edge athletic performance. Tommy once free-climbed (not free solo) El Capitan twice in under 24 hours. That's 6,000' of vertical to overhanging granite.; 3/20/19, 8:19 AM
dbp said...: I can do it, but it became a lot easier the 2nd time when I took my socks off--the floor is very slippery.; 3/20/19, 8:25 AM
Ralph L said...: Tommy once free-climbed (not free solo) El Capitan twice in under 24 hours.

Yes, but can he do it after sitting down first and then not using his hands?; 3/20/19, 8:32 AM
JustSomeOldDude said...: It's just a weight distribution thing. When you're in the down position, your center of gravity has to be within the support base of your ankles in order to rise up. If it isn't then you aren't going to be able to do this no matter how fit you are.

Guys with large shoulder mass can shift their weight far forward with their arms and give a good shove to get up. Really thin guys and women (boobs don't weigh much) will have a much easier time with this.

There's a similar oddity that involves putting your back up against a wall and lifting a chair, and that's supposed to prove that women are super people because they can do it while men can't.; 3/20/19, 8:33 AM
Ralph L said...: Really thin guys and women (boobs don't weigh much) will have a much easier time with this.
A big gut in the middle doesn't help.; 3/20/19, 8:40 AM