To examine the risk factors for developing diabetes on its 3-year outcome in an elderly population with impaired fasting glucose (IFG). We selected the 328 elderly with impaired fasting glucose in Binhai new area of Tianjin as the research object. All subjects participated in objective examinations such as physical activity ability tests, blood tests and anthropometric examinations, and completed the questionnaire survey. Between baseline and 3-year outcome, 56 of the subjects with IFG at baseline have developed diabetes. After multivariate adjustments, we found that higher incidence of diabetes was associated with higher fasting plasma glucose (OR=9.30, 95%CI 2.84-30.48, P<0.01) and reduced grip strength/weight (OR=0.88, 95%CI 0.82-0.94, P<0.01). Moreover, the combination of higher fasting plasma glucose and lower grip strength/weight would lead to higher incidence of diabetes compared with higher fasting plasma glucose or lower grip strength/weight alone (P<0.05). In this study, high fasting plasma glucose and low muscle strength were associated with blood glucose worsening in three years in IFG patients. In addition to blood glucose levels, physical activity is also a risk factor for diabetes in older adults.