What is a normal grip strength?

It varies with age and sex, but the most widely used clinical threshold for low strength is the AWGS 2019 cut-off: below 28 kg for men and below 18 kg for women. Below that level is a recognised sign of sarcopenia, the age-related loss of muscle. AWGS is the Asian reference, which makes it the right benchmark in Singapore.

Why does grip strength predict longevity?

Grip is a proxy for whole-body strength and neuromuscular health. In the large international PURE study (Leong et al., 2015), lower grip strength predicted higher all-cause and cardiovascular mortality, independent of other risk factors. It is cheap to measure and hard to fake, which is why doctors and researchers use it.

How do I measure my grip strength?

Use a hand dynamometer, available cheaply online or at most clinics and gyms. Sit with your elbow at 90 degrees, squeeze as hard as you can for a few seconds, take the best of two attempts on each hand, and use your stronger hand's result here.

Strength

Grip Strength Test by Age and Sex

Low grip strength is a marker of sarcopenia and predicts all-cause mortality. The Asian Working Group cut-off is 28 kg for men and 18 kg for women; below that signals low muscle strength worth acting on. Grip is a fast proxy for whole-body strength, one of the four healthspan pillars we measure.

Grip strength is one of the cheapest and most reliable predictors of how well you will age. We check yours against the AWGS 2019 cut-off, the Asian reference standard for low muscle strength.

Why grip strength matters

Your hands are the window onto your whole-body strength. As muscle declines with age, a process called sarcopenia, grip is one of the first places it shows up, and one of the easiest to measure. That is why grip strength below the AWGS threshold is used as a screening signal for sarcopenia, and why lower grip strength is linked to higher mortality in large studies. The encouraging part: strength responds to training at any age. A below-threshold result is a reason to start, not a verdict.

Grip strength reference (AWGS threshold)

The Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia (AWGS 2019) low muscle-strength cut-offs, the reference Singapore clinicians use. A handgrip below the cut-off for your sex is a recognised sarcopenia signal. Source: AWGS 2019 (Chen et al., J Am Med Dir Assoc).

Sex	Low-strength cut-off	Healthy
Men	below 28 kg	28 kg or above
Women	below 18 kg	18 kg or above

Grip strength, common questions

What is a normal grip strength?: It varies with age and sex, but the most widely used clinical threshold for low strength is the AWGS 2019 cut-off: below 28 kg for men and below 18 kg for women. Below that level is a recognised sign of sarcopenia, the age-related loss of muscle. AWGS is the Asian reference, which makes it the right benchmark in Singapore.
Why does grip strength predict longevity?: Grip is a proxy for whole-body strength and neuromuscular health. In the large international PURE study (Leong et al., 2015), lower grip strength predicted higher all-cause and cardiovascular mortality, independent of other risk factors. It is cheap to measure and hard to fake, which is why doctors and researchers use it.
How do I measure my grip strength?: Use a hand dynamometer, available cheaply online or at most clinics and gyms. Sit with your elbow at 90 degrees, squeeze as hard as you can for a few seconds, take the best of two attempts on each hand, and use your stronger hand's result here.

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