Power Grip

What Does Power Grip Mean?

A power grip is any carrying or grasping task where the fingers flex toward the palm. For example, carrying a suitcase or grasping a hammer handle involve the fingers wrapping around an object and pulling inward toward the palm. A power grip is important for many workplaces involving manual tasks and is the most forceful grip available to the human hand.

WorkplaceTesting Explains Power Grip

A power grip can be used to describe any of several gripping positions where the fingers flex toward the palm. These include a hook grip (carrying a bucket or suitcase by the handle, whereby the handle rests across the flexed fingers), cylinder grip (holding a drinking glass), and fist grip (wrapping the fingers and thumb around an object, such as grasping a hammer handle or a tennis racket handle). A power grip is stronger than and differs from a pinch grip (fingers flexing toward the tip of the thumb) and a key grip (thumb flexing toward side of first finger).

Because a power grip is the strongest human grip, fit for work testing involves the use of a grip dynamometer that tests a candidate's power grip force. Grip strength is correlated with upper body strength.