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FILE – A participant uses light weights during a class for older adults at the Dale Turner Family YMCA in Shoreline, Wash., April 30, 2026.<\/p>\n
Lindsey Wasson\/AP Photo\/Lindsey Wasson<\/p>\n
Hand grip strength. Balance tests. Standing up from a seated position on the floor. These physical challenges are often touted as measurements of healthy aging and even predictors of longevity.<\/p>\n
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They can provide valuable indications of your stamina and strength. They can estimate the risk of falls, which increase older adults ‘ risk of death. And they’re useful to doctors who work to address aging or people with injuries.<\/p>\n
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But they’re no crystal ball.<\/p>\n
\u201cA poor or declining result is a reason for a health professional to investigate why function is changing, rather than gauging how long someone will live,\u201d said Auriel Willette, an expert on brain aging at Rutgers University.<\/p>\n
Here’s a look at what mobility tests entail and how to apply the results to your health.<\/p>\n
A sit-to-stand test goes viral, but what does it really show?<\/p>\n
\u201cSit-to-stand\u201d tests come in several forms. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s 30-second chair-stand test<\/a> is designed for patients older than 60, to see how many times they can stand up in that time period.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Another test, popularized on social media, asks someone to move from standing, to sitting cross-legged on the ground, and then back up to standing. Making your way down to the floor is worth 5 points, as is standing up, for a total score of 10. You lose a point for each support you use (such as a hand or knee) and half a point if you’re unsteady. The score is zero if you’re unable to sit or stand without external help.<\/p>\n Doctors said they haven\u2019t seen the test used with older U.S. adults, but researchers in Brazil published studies in 2020<\/a> and 2025<\/a> that concluded middle-aged people who scored higher were less likely to die within about a decade.<\/p>\n Many American doctors use a test called \u201cTimed Up and Go,\u201d or TUG. It requires the patient to get up from a chair, walk 10 feet (3 meters) and come back to their seat. That allows doctors to evaluate a person’s balance, mobility and lower extremity strength all at once.<\/p>\n Dr. George Hennawi, who treats older adults at MedStar Health in Baltimore, said all the tests are meant to pinpoint specific weaknesses and narrow down their underlying cause, whether that’s knee pain, slow reflexes, poor balance or feeling winded or dizzy because of cardiovascular issues.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n \u201cThe key to react to it is to understand where did we not do well,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n A full picture of a person’s health is important<\/p>\n Tests like the viral sit-to-stand one are what doctors call screening tools. They’re helpful in narrowing down issues, but they don’t provide enough information for a full diagnosis.<\/p>\n Other popular tests for a person’s \u201cphysiological age,\u201d or how your body is aging, include tests of grip strength, walking speed, gait steadiness and balance. Such tests look at how hard your hand can squeeze something, whether you favor one side while walking, how long and well can you stand on one leg and how far forward can you reach without becoming unsteady.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Many doctors also use these challenges to understand a person\u2019s risk for \u201cfrailty,\u201d a medical condition that means the body is less able to handle strain from illness or injury.<\/p>\n