If You Can Do The 'Sit-Rise' Test Without Support, You're In Amazing Shape

It's for adults of any age.

Balance and strength can be good indicators of overall health, but the "sitting and rising" test looks specifically at musculoskeletal movement as a way to predict mortality.



How to do the test:

(Don't try it with knee or hip injuries.)

Step 1:

Stand straight and barefooted. Without leaning or using support, lower yourself onto the floor into the sitting position with legs crossed. 

Step 2: 

Stand back up without any support.

Here's how to score yourself:

Everyone starts out with 10 points: 

Five points for sitting and another five points for standing without any support

Here's how you lose points:

Subtract one point each time you use a hand, forearm, knee or side of the leg.
Subtract one half of a point if you lose your balance.

The results:

Good: the 8-10 range mean you've got the greatest life expectancy. Yay!

Fair:the 3.5-7.5 range means you've got a problem. You may be twice as likely to die than those in the good range.

Poor: 0-3 is a warning that, according to the test, you're five times more likely to die in the next six years than those in the good range.

The good news is that you can improve your score.

Every point you move up the scale reduces your risk of death by 21 percent, according to Araújo's study. So get moving and exercising. 

Take the test along with fitness expert Dan Reynen in the video below to find out your score.

Share the sitting and rising test with the people you care about in your life. We should all know our scores. 

