Posted Feb 16, 2011
Sit-up capacity stood out as a significant predictor of mortality in one large observational study. Researchers tested muscular fitness in more than 8,000 Canadian women and men and tracked their survival for 13 years. Those with the lowest sit-up scores were more than twice as likely to die as those able to do the most sit-ups. It’s not entirely clear why, according to lead author Peter Katzmarzyk, now a professor at Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Baton Rouge, La. But it may be that sit-up capacity is a good overall indicator of muscular strength and fitness. Many studies suggest that people with greater muscle strength are less likely to develop heart disease, diabetes, and cancer than people with untrained muscles.
Test yourself: Lie on your back with your knees bent at a right angle, your feet flat on the floor, and your arms at your sides with palms down. Keep your lower back pressed to the ground and curl up your shoulders so your fingers slide forward about 3.5 inches. Return your shoulders to the floor, then repeat. (You can stick tape on the floor to mark finger start and end positions.) Count the number of these half sit-ups you can complete in one minute.
Averages for women: 25 for women age 40 to 49; 31 for those 50 to 59; and 12 for those 60 to 69.
Averages for men: 33 for men age 40-49; 39 for those 50 to 59; and 18 for those 60 to 69.
If your performance is below average, more strength training would do you good.
— Joe Rojas-Burke; follow him on Twitter
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