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You need a strong grip to remain functional as you get older, considering researchers link grip strength with healthy aging. But before you start practicing grip strength exercises every day, it’s important to know exactly how to spot a weak grip.
Here, two experts explain why grip strength should be a part of every person’s fitness regimen, considering its influence on your ability to complete activities like going for a bike ride and more. Plus, they explain how to test your grip strength so you know when to implement better exercises.
Why is grip strength important?
In general, improving your grip strength will help you on and off the bike. You need some degree of strength to squeeze your handlebars, of course, but you also need it to turn doorknobs, and complete various tasks like hammering a nail into a wall or mopping a floor, says Brad Hyatt, M.D., orthopedic hand surgeon and member of the American Society for Surgery of the Hand.
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Researchers also argue that grip strength is an indicator of overall strength and muscular endurance, and is an easy test for offering a full-body picture of strength. Grip strength can also serve as a way to monitor your overall health status, especially as you age. Therefore, doctors may test grip strength to indicate if someone is at risk for sarcopenia, osteoporosis, falls, or even disease status. One population-based study from 2015 even found that grip strength may indicate risk of all-cause mortality and cardiovascular disease.
“Grip strength is a marker for how healthy you are and how well you are able to get around,” says Hyatt.
Your grip strength is also important for riding. “You’re asking your hands to be a main contact point with the bike. You’re asking your hands to control the bike, and you’re asking them to do this job for sometimes hours and hours. It’s demanding, so they better be conditioned to do the job,” Greg Waggoner, B.S. in exercise science, cycling coach at Team Wilpers Coaching, and former mountain bike rider tells Bicycling. Whether you’re a road cyclist, mountain bike rider, gravel rider, or commuter, you’re going to need some degree of grip strength, but how much grip strength you need will depend on your training.
For example, a road cyclist will need a strong grip just in case they need to maneuver around a pothole or swerve out the way of an oncoming car, but road cycling doesn’t require as much grip strength as gravel riding or mountain biking, Waggoner says.
While riding over rocks and roots, a mountain biker will need to be able to switch between a relaxed and firm grip almost effortlessly and repetitively. So, the longer the ride, the more important grip strength is to prevent hand fatigue as you switch between those positions, Waggoner says.
Gravel riding won’t require as much strength as mountain biking, but there is a need. Riders will encounter a few bumps and dips on the road as they ride, so they also need grip strength to withstand the effort, Waggoner says.
How do you test for grip strength?
If you have a weak grip, you might notice you’re unable to complete the following tasks with the same amount of force as you normally would:
- Turning screwdriver
- Opening a jar
- Gripping a shovel
- Carrying a bucket or groceries
You may also notice that your hands fail before your legs or arms during strength training exercises.
Whether you’re noticing a decline in your strength or just interested in finding out if you need to improve your strength to avoid hand fatigue on your ride, here’s are two simple, more concrete ways to test grip stength at home:
Grab a Scale
How to do it: You will need an analog bathroom scale for this test. Start with arms by sides holding the scale with both hands and forming a 90 degree angle at elbows. Squeeze the scale as hard as possible with left hand only, hold for about 5 seconds then read the scale. Repeat on right side.
Use a Dynamometer
How to do it: You will need dynamometer, which measures force, torque, and power, to complete this test. Start holding the dynamometer in left hand with a left arm by side forming a 90 degree angle at the elbow, and right arm down by side. Squeeze the dynamometer as hard as possible and hold for about 5 seconds then read the scale. Repeat on right side.
Rather than compare your strength to a chart, Hyatt says it’s best to compare your left hand to your right hand, or before and after starting an exercise routine. “As a very general rule, [you want] the non-dominant side around 75 percent as strong as the dominant side,” he says. However, there are plenty exceptions to this rule, so a professional like your primary care physician can asses and recommend treatment plans or referrals based on a variety of factors.
The Best Ways to Improve Your Grip Strength
To improve your grip, you can practice exercises like the farmer’s carry, 90-degree kettlebell hold, or squeeze a resistance ball. “The best thing you can do for strength is resistance training, whether that’s with a barbell, elastic band, or resistance foam,” Hyatt says.
In general, “any activity that activates your forearm muscles—those on the same side as your palm—will cause your gripping muscles to do work, which will in turn maintain the muscle mass you have or lead to hypertrophy (muscle growth),” says Hyatt. That means not only will strength exercises build grip strength, but also you benefit from completing normal day-to-day activities like lifting groceries, gardening, and riding your bike.
Monique LeBrun joined the editorial staff in October 2021 as the associate health and fitness editor. She has a master’s degree in journalism and has previously worked for ABC news and Scholastic. She is an avid runner who loves spending time outside.
