Muscle Power vs Strength: A Surprising Predictor of Longevity
- Alastair Hunt
- 22 hours ago
- 8 min read
Updated: 12 minutes ago
A new study in Mayo Clinic Proceedings has highlighted a crucial, and perhaps under-appreciated, factor in ageing well: muscle power. Often overshadowed by the more familiar idea of muscle strength, power - defined as strength combined with speed - emerged in this research as a significantly stronger predictor of mortality in people aged 46 to 75. In short, it’s not just how strong you are, but how quickly you can move that may influence how long you live.
As ever, please talk to your doctor or medical practitioner most familiar with your medical history before implementing any changes in diet, exercise or lifestyle, especially if you are under treatment. Links to studies at bottom of page.
What Is Muscle Power, and Why Does It Matter?
Muscle power is the ability to exert force rapidly - for example, quickly standing up from a chair, catching yourself from a stumble, or lifting a bag of shopping swiftly. In contrast, muscle strength refers to the maximum force you can exert, such as holding a heavy item or performing a slow lift. Power is what allows us to respond quickly to life’s physical demands. It’s not only vital in sports but also in daily life, particularly as we age. You might have heard about sarcopenia - age related muscle loss, powerpenia is a term that is now increasingly discussed.
This study compared these two measures directly, asking whether testing muscle power - using a specific rowing-like movement - could predict lifespan better than the more common handgrip strength test. The results were striking.
The Study and Its Findings
The study followed 3,889 participants aged 46 to 75 over an average of 11 years. Muscle power and strength were measured in the upper body and adjusted for body weight to allow for fair comparisons across individuals. During the follow-up period, 12.4% of participants died. The researchers found that:
Men with the lowest relative muscle power were almost 6 times more likely to die than those with the highest.
Women in the lowest power group had a 7 times higher risk of death than those in the top tier.
In contrast, muscle strength (as measured by handgrip) showed only a 60 to 70% higher risk in the lowest group - and this result was not statistically significant.
These results remained robust even after adjusting for health status and risk factors like age, obesity, hypertension, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.
Why Might Power Be So Important?
While strength supports general movement and posture, it’s power that enables us to react- to recover from a loss of balance, to rise quickly from the floor, or to avoid a fall. These are all movements where both force and speed matter, and they are often critical for maintaining independence.
Importantly, power declines more steeply with age than strength. This is largely because power relies not just on muscle mass but also on the speed of muscle contraction - something that decreases with age due to natural changes in the nervous system and muscle composition. Specifically, fast-twitch muscle fibres, which are essential for quick and explosive movements, tend to shrink and lose function earlier than slow-twitch fibres. This decline can begin in the 40s, particularly in those who are inactive. Without regular use, the body reduces its capacity for rapid movement, further accelerating the loss of muscle power.
The fact that muscle power shows such a strong link with mortality suggests it may act as an early indicator of declining neuromuscular health and overall resilience - potentially before other visible signs of frailty or loss of function appear.
How Power Was Measured
Unlike handgrip strength - which is commonly used in clinical and research settings - muscle power was measured here using a rowing motion on a pulley device, where participants were asked to move a weight as quickly as possible. This method directly captures the speed component of movement that strength tests miss.
Dr Araujo advises that "maximal power - the best possible combination of force and velocity - is typically obtained at about 30-65% of maximal force. So, for best results in power training the loads should be moderate to high rather than lighter. As a practical tip, to "calibrate" the load in a given exercise or movement, the individual will only be able to perform six to eight repetitions before speed of execution drops. If the individual is able to perform 10 or more "as fast as possible" repetitions indicates that the load is too light."
Importantly, both power and strength tests focused on the upper body, removing potential bias from comparing upper vs lower body function. This allowed for a cleaner analysis and stronger conclusions.
The Power Set - Taking Action
Says Araujo"Our typical prescription for power training is 2 to 3 sets of 6 to 8 reps as fast as possible (load previously selected as I said before). Only 15 - 30 seconds are needed of interval between two consecutive sets. This makes one exercise lasts less than two minutes to be completed...
15-second exercise, 15–30-second rest
15-second exercise (2nd set), 15–30-second rest
and 15-second exercise (3rd set)
This is incredibly useful in reducing the full resistance training session time and could favorably impact the adherence."
Practical Implications
These findings don’t mean that muscle strength is unimportant - but they do suggest that clinicians and health practitioners might need to rethink how they assess muscle function, especially in older adults.
For the general reader, the message is clear: physical capability isn’t just about being strong - it’s about being quick. Everyday movements like climbing stairs, getting out of a chair, or reacting to a trip rely on power. The ability to perform these swiftly and confidently may indicate much more about our health than we realised.
To support power and overall muscle health:
Maintain a physically active lifestyle with regular walking, stair climbing, and dynamic movement. These help preserve coordination, balance, and lower-limb power.
Continue resistance training if you already do it, and consider incorporating elements of speed and control. The study emphasised velocity-based or power-focused repetitions- this means performing the lifting (or pushing) phase of an exercise as fast as possible, then lowering or returning more slowly. This can be applied safely to exercises like resistance band pulls, light dumbbell rows, or sit-to-stand drills.
Focus on function-based movement that reflects daily challenges. Practice rising from a chair without using your hands, getting up from the floor smoothly, or performing a quick row with a light resistance. In the study, power was assessed using a rowing-type movement, where participants lifted a stack of weights quickly using a cable system. You can mimic this motion at home or in the gym with resistance bands or light cable machines.
Use moderate loads that allow speed: The study used a protocol where weights were increased gradually until speed declined. You can adapt this principle by starting with lighter weights and focusing on quick, controlled lifts for a few repetitions - ideally under guidance if you’re new to this type of training.
It’s not necessary to train like an athlete. Small additions to your routine - done with intention and speed - can make a significant difference to power, independence and potentially, longevity. The sitting-rising test was also developed by this study's lead author Dr. Gil Araújo.
Final Thoughts
This study offers compelling evidence that muscle power - not just strength - can serve as a powerful predictor of longevity in middle-aged and older adults. The difference is significant: those in the lowest power group had a 6 to 7 times higher risk of death than their most powerful peers. These results suggest it may be time to broaden our understanding of physical fitness in ageing, and to place more emphasis on movement quality and speed - not just muscle mass or lifting ability.
Incorporating this knowledge into everyday life and health assessments could help us not only live longer but move better as we do.
Changing health for the better is about progress, not perfection, and even small changes can make a meaningful difference over time. For most people, improving health is about finding motivation and prioritising self-care - with an ultimate goal of taking action. If you want to take effective and targeted steps that fit into your unique lifestyle and circumstances, The Whole Health Practice is here to help.
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Stay Healthy,
Alastair
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Related Studies
Claudio Gil S. Araújo, MD, PhDa cgaraujo@iis.com.br ∙ Setor K. Kunutsor, MD, PhDb,c ∙ Thijs M.H. Eijsvogels, PhDd ∙ Jonathan Myers, PhDe ∙ Jari A. Laukkanen, MD, PhDf,g ∙ Dusan Hamar, MD, PhDh ∙ Josef Niebauer, MD, PhD, MBAi ∙ Atanu Bhattacharjee, PhDj ∙ Christina G. de Souza e Silva, MD, PhDa ∙ João Felipe Franca, MDa ∙ Claudia Lucia B. Castro, MD, MSca Muscle Power Versus Strength as a Predictor of Mortality in Middle-Aged and Older Men and Women, Mayo Clinic Proceedings, April 30, 2025 DOI: 10.1016/j.mayocp.2025.02.015
Other
Araujo, C.G.S. & Tou, N.X. Muscle Matters: Bridging the Gap Between Terminology of Age Related Muscle Loss and Exercise Interventions. J Aging Phys Act, 1-3 (2024). https://journals.humankinetics.com/view/journals/japa/aop/article10.1123japa.20240111/article-10.1123-japa.2024-0111.xml
Araujo, C.G.S., et al. Reduced Body Flexibility Is Associated With Poor Survival in MiddleAged Men and Women: A Prospective Cohort Study. Scand J Med Sci Sports 34, e14708 (2024). https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/sms.14708
Bornhöft L, Arvidsson D, Bergenheim A, Börjesson M, Fridolfsson J, Hellgren M, Nordeman L, Larsson MEH. Function-based risk reduction intervention for lifestyle-related disorders among inactive 40-year-old people: a pilot randomised controlled trial. BMC Public Health. 2024 Oct 13;24(1):2799. doi: 10.1186/s12889-024-20301-6. PMID: 39396984; PMCID: PMC11479533.
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Araujo CG, de Souza E Silva CG, Laukkanen JA, Fiatarone Singh M, Kunutsor SK, Myers J, Franca JF, Castro CL. Successful 10-second one-legged stance performance predicts survival in middle-aged and older individuals. Br J Sports Med. 2022 Sep;56(17):975-980. doi: 10.1136/bjsports-2021-105360. Epub 2022 Jun 21. PMID: 35728834.
Brito LB, Ricardo DR, Araújo DS, Ramos PS, Myers J, Araújo CG. Ability to sit and rise from the floor as a predictor of all-cause mortality. Eur J Prev Cardiol. 2014 Jul;21(7):892-8. doi: 10.1177/2047487312471759. Epub 2012 Dec 13. PMID: 23242910.
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