The everyday movements that may reveal your longevity, according to a mobility coach

You lift weights at the gym and walk several miles for exercise, but how easily can you get up from the floor? What about rising from a low chair without pushing off with your hands?

These ordinary movements can reveal aspects of fitness that aren’t always obvious during a workout. Changing levels by getting up and sitting down requires your muscles, joints and nervous system to coordinate strength, mobility and balance while controlling your body weight.

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Why reaction-time training should be part of your exercise routine as you get older

With more than 1 in 4 adults 65 and older in the United States reporting falling each year , having that combination of physical coordination becomes increasingly important with age. Falls are the leading cause of injury and injury-related death in this age group, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

But everyday movement skills aren’t just for older adults. Strengthening and maintaining these moves early on can help you stay functionally active for decades to come .

Standing from a chair requires a stable base, enough ankle and hip mobility to shift your weight forward, lower body and core strength to lift yourself, and balance to keep you steady .

Because this action requires all those abilities to work together, clinicians regularly use chair rises when assessing for functional limitations. And that’s why the CDC includes a 30-second chair stand in its fall-risk assessment.

The same movement also gives you a practical way to train. Standing up and lowering back down with control challenges the strength, mobility and coordination you depend on every day. If you don’t regularly use and train these muscles and motor skills, your capacity to get up and down can decline, which can lead to increased risk of injury.

Your ability to get down to the floor and back up can help predict your longevity, even in midlife, according to a 2025 study of more than 4,000 adults ages 46 to 75. Researchers used a sitting-rising test to investigate whether the ability to get down to the floor and back up was associated with the risk of dying from natural or cardiovascular causes.

Participants earned up to five points for sitting and five for rising with points deducted for losing balance or using a hand, knee, forearm or side of the leg for support. A perfect score of 10 meant completing both movements without support or unsteadiness.

During a median follow-up of 12.3 years, adults who scored zero to four had nearly four times the risk of dying from natural causes and about six times the risk of dying from cardiovascular disease compared with those who scored a perfect 10.

Too often, aging adults accept mobility limitations , including increasing difficulty getting up and down off the floor, and mistakenly assume they are an unavoidable reality of aging. But that doesn’t have to be the case.

Moving between the floor and standing is a skill you can and should practice. Below are three ways you can start today.

Note: Before beginning this or any exercise program, consult your doctor or physical therapist.

Sit toward the front of a sturdy chair with your feet about hip-width apart. Lean forward slightly from your hips, press through your feet and stand without using your hands if you can do so safely. Pause at the top, then push your hips back and slowly lower yourself to the chair with control.

Modify : Have a chair back or counter in front of you that you can hold for support while rising and descending.

Progress: Stand with your weight on one leg only and lower to sitting and back up to standing with control and balance. As you train to do this, use a chair back or counter in front of you for support as needed.

Perform 5 to 10 repetitions of whichever variation is appropriate for you.

Why it works: Moving from sitting to standing and vice versa builds core and lower body strength and balance.

If simply getting down onto the floor and getting back up presents a challenge, practice this supported sequence.

Place a sturdy chair nearby. Rest your left hand on the chair seat as you come down into a kneeling lunge on your right knee. Then lower your left knee and both hands, bringing yourself to hands and knees. Shift your weight to your right hip and find a seated position on the floor.

Reverse the sequence to come back up: Shift to hands and knees, tall kneeling and then a supported kneeling lunge. Next, use your hand on the chair to help push back up to standing.

Practice 3 to 5 repetitions on each side.

Why it works: Moving from the floor requires hip and leg strength, joint mobility, balance, and coordination through multiple positions. Using support lets you practice the movement safely while gradually reducing assistance as your ability improves.

Sit cross-legged on the floor. Lift both knees and slide your feet toward each other to place the soles of your feet down with your legs still crossed. Exhale as you push through your feet and use core and glute strength — without using your hands — to lift yourself to standing. Lower back down with crossed legs and repeat for 3 to 5 repetitions.

Modify: Wrap a band around a solid support, such as a training rack or support pole, and place a pad or folded blanket on the floor to provide soft elevation. Repeat the same steps as above but hold the band for assistance and sit on the pad or blanket.

Progress: Do the same exercise as noted above, with or without the modification, with your feet together and uncrossed.

Why it works: Sitting on the floor and rising without support, as outlined above, represents a 10 out of 10 score on the sitting-rising test.

Make ‘couch time’ more productive. Do this workout while you watch TV

Your fitness program should focus on more than simply how much weight you can lift or how far you can walk. An exercise regimen is also about having enough strength, mobility, balance and control to meet the demands of everyday life.

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Strength training for seniors is crucial. This is the equipment you need (Courtesy CNN Underscored)

If getting out of a chair, lowering toward the floor or standing back up has become noticeably harder, don’t simply stop doing it.

The movements that help you navigate daily life are worth training. Safely practice these skills at levels you can control and build from there.

Dana Santas, known as the “ Mobility Maker ,” is a certified strength and conditioning specialist and mind-body coach in professional sports, and is the author of the book “Practical Solutions for Back Pain Relief.”

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你在健身房举重，也步行数英里锻炼，但你能轻松地从地板上站起来吗？不用手撑地从矮椅子上站起来呢？

这些看似平常的动作可以揭示一些在锻炼过程中不易察觉的体能特征。通过起身和坐下来改变运动强度，需要肌肉、关节和神经系统协调力量、灵活性和平衡性，同时还要控制身体重量。

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随着年龄增长，为什么反应时间训练应该成为你日常锻炼的一部分

在美国，超过四分之一的65岁及以上成年人每年都会发生跌倒事件，因此，随着年龄的增长，保持良好的身体协调能力变得越来越重要。据美国疾病控制与预防中心统计，跌倒是该年龄段人群受伤和因伤死亡的主要原因。

但日常运动技能并非老年人的专属。尽早加强和保持这些动作，可以帮助你在未来几十年保持良好的身体机能和活动能力。

从椅子上站起来需要稳定的支撑，足够的脚踝和髋关节活动度来将重心前移，下肢和核心力量来抬起身体，以及保持平衡的能力。

由于这一动作需要所有这些能力协同运作，临床医生在评估功能障碍时经常会进行起立测试。这也是美国疾病控制与预防中心（CDC）将30秒的起立测试纳入跌倒风险评估的原因。

同样的动作也提供了一种实用的训练方法。有控制地站起和坐下可以锻炼你日常生活中依赖的力量、灵活性和协调性。如果你不经常使用和训练这些肌肉和运动技能，你的起身和坐下能力就会下降，从而增加受伤的风险。

一项针对4000多名年龄在46岁至75岁之间的成年人的2025年研究表明，即使在中年时期，你能否从地板上坐下并重新站起来也能帮助预测你的寿命。研究人员使用坐立测试来调查从地板上坐下并重新站起来的能力是否与死于自然原因或心血管疾病的风险有关。

参与者坐下和站起各得5分，失去平衡或用手、膝盖、前臂或腿侧支撑身体都会被扣分。满分10分意味着在不借助任何支撑或保持稳定的情况下完成这两个动作。

在平均 12.3 年的随访期间，得分 0 到 4 分的成年人死于自然原因的风险几乎是得分 10 分的成年人的四倍，死于心血管疾病的风险大约是得分 10 分的成年人的六倍。

很多时候，老年人会默默接受行动不便的现实，例如越来越难以从地板上站起来或坐下，并错误地认为这是衰老不可避免的必然结果。但事实并非如此。

在地板和站立之间转换是一个你可以也应该练习的技能。以下三种方法你可以从今天开始练习。

注意：在开始这项或任何其他锻炼计划之前，请咨询您的医生或理疗师。

坐在结实椅子的前部，双脚与肩同宽。从臀部略微前倾，双脚用力蹬地，如果安全的话，尽量不用手站立。在最高点稍作停留，然后将臀部向后推，缓慢控制地回到椅子上。

修改方法：在面前放一个椅背或柜台，以便在起身和坐下时可以扶住以保持平衡。

进阶练习：单腿站立，重心仅靠一条腿支撑，然后逐渐下蹲坐下，再起身回到站立姿势，保持控制和平衡。练习过程中，必要时可借助椅背或面前的台面支撑。

选择适合你的动作，重复 5 到 10 次。

其原理：从坐姿到站姿再到坐姿的转换可以增强核心肌群和下肢的力量和平衡能力。

如果仅仅是趴在地上再站起来就对你来说很困难，那就练习这个有辅助的动作序列。

在附近放一把结实的椅子。下蹲时，左手放在椅面上，右膝跪地，呈弓步姿势。然后放下左膝和双手，回到四肢着地的姿势。将重心移到右髋，在地板上找到一个坐姿。

反向重复以上步骤即可起身：先呈四肢着地姿势，然后是高跪姿，接着是支撑跪姿弓步。最后，用手扶住椅子，帮助自己站起来。

每侧练习 3 至 5 次。

原理：从地面起身需要髋部和腿部力量、关节灵活性、平衡能力以及在多种姿势下的协调性。借助支撑物可以让你安全地练习这个动作，并随着能力的提高逐步减少辅助。

盘腿坐在地板上。抬起双膝，双脚向内滑动，脚底着地，双腿保持交叉。呼气，用脚蹬地，同时运用核心肌群和臀部力量（不要用手支撑）将身体抬起至站立姿势。然后双腿交叉，慢慢坐下，重复3至5次。

改良版：将弹力带缠绕在稳固的支撑物上，例如训练架或支撑杆，并在地板上放置垫子或折叠的毯子以提供柔软的垫高。重复上述步骤，但这次需要握住弹力带以作辅助，并坐在垫子或毯子上。

进阶练习：按照上述方法进行练习，可以进行调整，也可以不进行调整，双脚并拢，不要交叉。

其原理：如上所述，坐在地板上无需支撑即可站起，在坐立测试中获得了 10 分（满分 10 分）。

让“沙发时光”更有意义。一边看电视一边做这套锻炼。

你的健身计划不应仅仅关注你能举起多重的重量或走多远。一套完善的锻炼方案还应包括拥有足够的体力、灵活性、平衡性和控制力，以应对日常生活中的各种需求。

萨默·卡特赖特/CNN Underscored

老年人进行力量训练至关重要。以下是您需要的器材（图片由 CNN Underscored 提供）。

如果从椅子上站起来、蹲下或站起来变得明显困难，不要就此停止。

日常生活中那些帮助你应对各种情况的动作都值得训练。在你能控制的范围内安全地练习这些技能，并逐步提升。

达纳·桑塔斯（Dana Santas），被称为“运动能力提升专家”，是一位获得认证的力量和体能训练专家和职业体育身心教练，也是《缓解背痛的实用解决方案》一书的作者。

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