Psychologists from the University of Northumbria used 3D motion-capture technology and biomechanical analyses to examine the extent to which a man’s dancing gives clues about his physical strength and fitness, the Daily Mail reported.

The findings suggest that male observers can pick up on the strength of a potential rival from merely watching the way he danced.

The team filmed 30 males, aged 19-37, while they danced to a basic drum rhythm and got them to take part in a fitness test hat included assessments of upper and lower body strength.

The researchers then fed the clips through 3D motion-capture technology to transform the volunteers into virtual characters, masking their visual appearance.

Men and women were then asked to rate the virtual dancers on their perceived dance and physical qualities.

The results showed that both sexes found significant positive associations between an individual’s hand grip strength and the perceived quality of their moves.