Park Han-byeol, in her 40s, “Physical age in her 20s?”… I heard that only young bodies can do ‘this move’. Should I try it?

Park Han-byul, who recently returned through her YouTube channel, shared a video of her successfully performing the ‘movement that only makes her physically age in her 20s.’

On his YouTube channel, Park Han-byul succeeded in standing up while kneeling on one knee, holding on to the other foot and applying strength. Park Han-byul, who also succeeded in the opposite movement, was happy as she made a V towards the camera.

He then tried lying down and getting up without holding on to anything. The first attempt failed, but the second attempt was easily successful. You can see Park Han-byul rejoicing, saying, ‘I’m in my 20s.’

This movement was popular not only in Park Han-byul but also in overseas videos as it was said to be able to measure body age. In fact, the movement that Park Han-byeol challenged is a highly difficult physical test that requires strength, flexibility, sense of balance, and nervous system integration ability. Being able to do this successfully usually means a young and healthy body. However, it is difficult to medically confirm that “the person’s physical age is in their 20s” simply based on this.

Physical age is different from normal biological age or chronological age (the amount of time that has passed since birth). In general, physical age can be determined based on strength, muscle mass, flexibility, sense of balance, and cardiopulmonary function. The movements performed by Park Han-byul can be used as important indicators to evaluate the above factors, especially strength, flexibility, balance, and neuro-muscular coordination. Let’s look at the indicators that the two actions mean.

Movement 1 Stand up holding one leg
This movement, which is done by holding one leg while kneeling and applying strength with the other leg, may seem simple, but requires quite a lot of physical elements. In particular, this movement requires strong strength from the thigh muscles (quadriceps) and butt muscles (glutes). The thigh muscles support the body and serve as the center of power, while the hip muscles play an important role in maintaining balance and posture.

As aging progresses, sarcopenia, a decrease in muscle mass, occurs. In particular, lower body muscles can quickly weaken with age. However, if you can successfully perform this movement, it means that your lower body muscle mass and strength are well maintained. This can be seen as an indicator that reflects a young and healthy physical condition.

A sense of balance is also very important because this movement requires you to balance while supporting your body with only one leg. Since the center of gravity must be adjusted to prevent the body from tilting or swaying, this process requires the coordination of the nervous system, the vestibular system (the balance organ inside the ear), and the cerebellum (the part of the brain responsible for coordination of movements). Only when these two systems function normally can the body perform movements without shaking. As we age, our sense of balance naturally tends to decline, but being able to successfully perform these movements shows that our sense of balance remains youthful and healthy.

During the movement, the knee and hip joints must also move flexibly and stably. Joint flexibility determines range of movement, and joint stability protects joints from excessive shaking or damage while performing movements. As we age, the flexibility and stability of joints decrease along with the degeneration of joint cartilage. Being able to perform this movement means that your knee and hip joints are in good health, and the muscles and ligaments around the joints are sufficiently strengthened.

Movement 2: Sit or lie down and get up without holding on to anything.
Park Han-byul did it while sitting, but this motion is similar to the motion of getting up without using your hands while lying down. It is a highly difficult movement that requires overall body strength, flexibility, and coordination of the upper and lower body. Although it may seem like a simple act of raising your body, performing this movement requires abdominal core strength, spine and hip flexibility, and coordination of the nervous and muscular systems.

The most important roles in this movement are the abdominal and lower back muscles (erector spinae). As you get older, your abdominal and back muscles tend to gradually weaken. If this movement comes naturally to you, it means that your abdominal and back muscles are strong and youthful. Stronger core muscles increase overall body stability and reduce the risk of injury.

Movements that occur while lying down require coordination between the upper and lower body. Since the upper and lower body must move simultaneously and in harmony, this requires smooth communication between the nervous and muscular systems. The movement of the body is not achieved simply through muscle strength. As we age, this ability to integrate nerves and muscles weakens, so if you can successfully perform this movement, it can be seen as a sign that your nervous and muscular systems are healthy.

In fact, according to a study published in Brazil in 2012, the Sitting-Rising Test (SRT) is effective in assessing the association between mortality and physical function. People who were better at sitting up and getting up without using their hands had a lower mortality rate and a younger physical age.