Look to the hand — it might reveal just how athletic you are

Not all of us are athletically gifted. Some of us can pass a puck, sink a basket or hit a homer with the greatest of ease while the rest of us shudder at the very idea and would much rather prefer to lie out in the sun. Certainly peak athletic performance is a result of hard work, practice and determination, but (as any basketball scout will tell you) genetics also play a huge role. In fact, these genetics may provide physical cues that can help us predict just how athletic an individual is. And, according to recent research, that athleticism may be in your fingers.

A new study from a professor at the University Of North Dakota (in tandem with his son) has found a link between finger length and athleticism in adolescent boys. The study examined 57 boys while also testing their muscular strength through a grip exercise. The results showed that there was a noticeable relationship between athleticism in the boys and the length ratio of their fourth digit (ring finger).

Typically, in males, the ring finger is longer than the index finger, while they are often the same length in females. The longer the ring finger, the higher the handgrip strength amongst tested participants. The researchers then extrapolated grip strength as a sign of muscular strength, which is a key ingredient in most athletic performances as well as an indicator of greater overall health.

This finger/athleticism relationship is not merely coincidence, researchers believe what causes the finger length is also what enhances strength and athleticism; testosterone. The study draws on previous research which claims finger length is regulated by the individual's output of testosterone while in the fetal state. So the finger length is a byproduct of higher testosterone levels, which directly lead to better overall athletic performance. The next logical step might be to study the athleticism over time, different types of athleticism and in females — research under the same professor has begun to find a relationship between finger length and performance in female basketball players.

This study is another in a long list that looks to the characteristics of our hands for more information about ourselves.  A long ring finger may also correlate to the success of male financial traders, according to another study, which may also play into the dynamics of higher testosterone. In a larger sense, findings like these also play into nature versus nurture, what's already inside us compared to what we can become. Genetics and the chemicals it exposes our systems to play an ever-increasing role in many different facets of life. The athletic edge is an obvious one; it's been discovered that Olympic athletes have just the right genes for their sport. But beyond the physically exceptional, studies have shown that genetics can play a role in everything from how you handle high altitudes, to even your leadership skills. And, of course, genetics can also point to other, more serious factors; a study at McMaster University compiled 79 genetic causes of obesity. Because they're responsible for so much, scientists are on a never-ending quest for gene editing, which could potentially unlock a new universe of well being. But in the meantime, we can only work with what nature gave us.