30-Second Chair Stand
How many times you can stand up from a chair and sit back down in 30 seconds, arms crossed. It measures leg strength and power — the strength you use to get out of a chair, climb stairs and catch yourself.
How to do the 30-Second Chair Stand at home
- Use a sturdy chair with a straight back and no arms, seat about 17 inches high, placed against a wall.
- Sit in the middle of the seat, feet flat and shoulder-width apart, arms crossed at the wrists and held to the chest.
- On 'go', rise to a full stand and sit back down fully. Repeat as many times as you can in 30 seconds.
- Count only full stands. If you must use your arms to stand, record 0 and use the chair track.
Norms by age
| Age | Men — below average if fewer than | Women — below average if fewer than |
|---|---|---|
| 60–64 | 14 | 12 |
| 65–69 | 12 | 11 |
| 70–74 | 12 | 10 |
| 75–79 | 11 | 10 |
| 80–84 | 10 | 9 |
| 85–89 | 8 | 8 |
| 90–94 | 7 | 4 |
Source: CDC STEADI 30-Second Chair Stand assessment, "below average" (fall-risk) thresholds by age and sex, ages 60–94. Scoring below the threshold for your age flags higher fall risk in the STEADI algorithm. Validation of the test: Jones, Rikli & Beam 1999, PMID 10380242; criterion standards for independence: Rikli & Jones 2013, PMID 22613940.
Why it predicts survival
In a meta-analysis of five cohorts (28,036 people), the slowest quarter on chair-rise timing carried roughly double the mortality risk of the fastest quarter, and people unable to rise at all about four times, PMID 20829298. The Cleveland Clinic and veterans cohorts on the evidence page show the same gradient for fitness overall.
What a real improvement looks like
+2 stands or more. Day-to-day scores wobble; the program counts an improvement only when it clears a published threshold for change (chair stand +2.0–2.6 reps and TUG 0.8–1.4 s from an anchor-based physiotherapy trial, PMID 21335930; gait speed 0.10 m/s "substantial change", PMID 16696738). Single-leg stance uses a program convention of +5 seconds because no published threshold exists.
Twelve weeks of the right training moves these numbers: aerobic training raised VO2max by 3.78 mL/kg/min in a meta-analysis of sedentary older adults, PMID 25901000; resistance training raised leg-press strength by about 29% in adults over 50, PMID 20385254; balance training improved balance measures with the best results at 11–12 weeks and three sessions a week, PMID 26325622.
Train the number
Stronger for Longer is a free 12-week walking, strength and balance program that tests this measure at weeks 0, 6 and 12. No supplements, nothing to buy.