The Sit-Stand Test: Are You Prepared?

I first heard about this neat fitness test from my sister, who likes to hit the gym several times a week. Quite frankly, that is not my style. I like to get my exercise out in nature or doing chores. However, when she shared this test with me and what it can mean for health and well-being, she got my attention. That is because I saw immediate applications for my preparedness.

When she first shared it with me, I tried it and couldn’t do it completely. However, several months later, we all tried again during a recent family visit: Myself (56), my sister (54), and my mother (82.5). I had improved! Don’t worry, I will share my secret on how I made that improvement before the end of this article.  

What the heck is a sit-stand test?

Sometimes called the sit-stand test, or stand-sit test or sit to stand test, it is pretty much what it sounds like. In the original research study in Brazil that this is based on, a group of over 2000 volunteers aged 51 to 80 who were followed for over six years. At the beginning of the study, they were asked to stand up from a cross-legged sitting position using as little support (knees, hands) as possible. Then, once they had stood up, they were asked to sit back down using a little support as possible. 

Why would this matter? While heart health is a well-recognized measure of longevity, the researchers had a theory that musculoskeletal health was also important, especially as a person ages. When you see how right they were, you might be surprised.

How Do You Mark It?

In order to make the test fair, there was a standard way to mark it. On each trip (standing up or sitting down), participants were given five points. Each time they used a support, whether knee or hand, they were docked one point. For example, if you need to get up with both your knees and one hand, you lose three points from your five, getting a score of 2. The same goes for the trip back down. Looks count in this test, too! If you look wobbly as you do it, you lose half a point on that trip. Add up your scores from both trips, and it is a score out of ten. If you can get up and down without using any supports at all, you score a perfect ten. 

I personally think it’s fair to do this with a bit a cushion, so head for the carpet or your yoga mat and give it a try! It’s OK….I’ll wait here for ya.

What Your Results Could Mean

How was it? You don’t have to tell me your score. Turns out that these researchers were right! Once they did their analysis of all the data they collected, they found that people with higher scores were much less likely to die during the six-year time period of the study. 159 people died during the study. Of those, only two of them had scores of 10! 

In terms of risk, the researchers found that folks with scores of 8 to 10 had a lower risk of death. Compared to the high-scoring folks, those with a score of zero to 3 were a staggering 6.5 times more likely to die. For those in the middle range of scores, from 3.5 to 5.5 were almost 4 times as likely to die. And those in the mid to high range, with scores of 6 to 7.4 were still twice as likely to die as those high scoring folks with scores from 8 to 10. 

What does this all mean? Well, one of the authors of the study, Claudio Gil Soares de Araújo, a professor at Gama Filho University in Rio de Janeiro, explains that the study “shows that maintaining high levels of body flexibility, muscle strength, and coordination…has a favorable influence on life expectancy.”  So, it’s not just all about cardio, folks. 

If you haven’t been moved yet to try it, I hope you will now.

Don’t Despair! How to Improve

Now, I think you all know me well enough to know that I wouldn’t write an article intended to depress you. So, don’t despair if your score is lower than you would like. Even back when I was taking Ju Jitsu before my back injury, we were encouraged to do a roll to a standing position. I just couldn’t, even though I was doing all those push-ups with the guys on the base back then. The first time I tried to get up, I needed at least one support (or two). I think it’s fair to say that a bit of practice is OK. 

How I improved my score is actually after watching a documentary about the Blue Zones: places where people live ridiculously long. How do they do it? Well, in an area of Japan, it was found that (you guessed it!) getting up and down all day on those low tatami mats was good for you. I had always liked the simplicity of the Japanese sitting areas, so (in the absence of a couple of grand to order some real tatami mats from Japan) I sort of made up my own Japanese sitting area and started sitting on my dense foam kitchen mats to meditate and eat.  (Here’s a knockoff from Amazon to give you another option.)

Was this easy??? Heck no! In fact, when I first started. I could not sit down on the ground for five minutes. So, I set a timer and tried for three minutes. Then, I tried a bit more. Now, many months later, I sit effortlessly for my 30-minute morning meditation, then sit back down to eat my breakfast. 

 When my sister was showing off recently (oops!) — I mean demonstrating how she can get up and down with no hands, she was trying to prove how valuable all her gym time is, I think. I told her, “I’ll try the move, but I won’t be able to do it.” I think we were all astonished that, in fact, I could! I was able to roll up directly into a squat from a sitting position! Quite frankly, I couldn’t believe it. However, I recalled that I do feel a lot of activation in my abs as I sit arrow straight for meditation. How cool is that? It doesn’t have to be all about the gym. I discovered a way to improve my health doing something that I value and love. 

If you want some more staged, practical tips on how to get better at the stand-sit, check out this article here.

What Does This Have to Do with Preparedness, Anyhow???

I always try to share my most valuable lessons with y’all. This is a free, completely off-grid way to assess your musculoskeletal health. If you’re in an all-out SHTF, there probably aren’t going to be a lot of gerontologists around to consult. If you have an aging member in your group, you could have them do this test and then encourage them to try the exercises from the article above. Heck, if my grandmother were still alive, I would make her do it and give her some tips. My sister and I made our mother do it. And she learned from it, recognizing that she needed to work more on her strength. 

If my 82 and a half year old mother can try it, why can’t you? Heck, this could be an eye-opener that gets you more prepared for anything by adding a bit of muscle training to the mix. Or, you can sit in meditation and improve your abs the Japanese way! No matter what, knowledge is power in the prepperverse. I hope that this gem is good for you. 

PS: There are modified sit-stand tests for people who are handicapped or disabled. Here’s one example. ~ Daisy

A Low-Tech Fitness Test

Sit. Stand. Rinse and Repeat. This is a very simple way to check your musculoskeletal strength. Are you willing to give it a try? Have you tried it before? What did you learn from this simple test? Please tell us in the comments section.

About Rowan

Rowan O’Malley is a fourth-generation Irish American who loves all things green: plants (especially shamrocks), trees, herbs, and weeds! She challenges herself daily to live her best life and to be as fit, healthy, and prepared as possible.

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