[erinaceousjones]

I'd been getting a touch of RSI pain this year / last year, and I'm still pretty young (mid-twenties).

Taking up bouldering / rock climbing and doing that once or twice a week has improved my grip strength a lot, with the added bonus that I don't remember having any more RSI pain since I started doing it regularly.

So I definitely agree with the original post that environment makes a huge difference, and with this comment about strength training. And I'll say that rock climbing is awesome for improving your grip strength.

Edit: With that comes the caveat that pro rock climbers are more likely to develop arthritis earlier than the average person.. You have to be careful with how you load different parts of your body, and I'd argue it's easier to injure yourself than e.g. doing weights in the gym, if you're not careful.