Though he may not have known it, Tom Waits had it right when he sang, "Oh, you got to hold on, hold on. You gotta hold on."

Multiple studies have shown that grip strength is both an indicator of good or failing health and a way to protect yourself from the dangers of overweightness and obesity.

The most recent study on grip strength published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism looked at data on more than 93,000 people with a follow-up of around 13 years. It found that if you have excess body fat (but aren't yet obese or contending with obesity-related chronic conditions), you can protect yourself from progressing to obesity — along with heart, liver, and kidney woes — if you increase your grip strength.

An earlier study found that people who have poor grip strength are at a greater risk of developing Type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure than those who have strong hand muscles.

The Cleveland Clinic says a weak grip strength at ages 55 to 65 is less than 57 pounds for men and less than 35 pounds for women.

The good news is that you can improve your grip with strength-building workouts (two to three times weekly) and by doing specific hand exercises such as:

• Wrist flexion and extension while holding a 2-pound hand weight

• Towel wringing and gripping

• Squeezing a squash ball in the palm of your hand twice a day for 10 minutes.