Weightlifting is not measured as one standardized activity in major surveys. The statistics below therefore use broader measures—muscle-strengthening activity, fitness-facility modality use and modeled emergency-department injuries—to describe participation, habits, equipment, access and outcomes with their definitions intact.
Key Weightlifting Statistics
These are the most broadly useful figures in the available U.S. data:
- In 2020, 35.2% of U.S. men aged 18 and older met the federal muscle-strengthening guideline of at least two sessions per week.
- In 2020, 26.9% of U.S. women aged 18 and older met the federal muscle-strengthening guideline.
- The age-adjusted share of U.S. adults meeting the guideline was 31.9% in 2020.
- Healthy People 2030 lists 32.9% of U.S. adults meeting the guideline in 2024.
- The Healthy People 2030 target is 36.6% of U.S. adults meeting the muscle-strengthening guideline.
- In a 2009 U.S. HealthStyles analysis, 31.7% of adults reported muscle strengthening on at least two days per week.
- In that 2009 analysis, 6.0% of adults who reported strengthening met the study’s all-seven-major-muscle-groups measure.
- Among U.S. men aged 18–44, 44.5% met the guideline in 2020.
- Among U.S. women aged 18–44, 34.1% met the guideline in 2020.
- In the combined 2022–2024 NHIS, 55.3% of U.S. women aged 18–44 reported no muscle-strengthening activity.
- Among 2009 U.S. adults who strengthened at least twice weekly, 51.1% trained two to three days per week.
- Among those same 2009 participants, 85.4% reported training their arms.
- Among U.S. adults who strengthened at least twice weekly in 2009, 69.0% reported the home as a training location.
- U.S. fitness-facility membership rose 5.6% in 2024.
- Dumbbells or free weights were used by 32.1% of U.S. fitness-facility members in 2024.
- The CPSC estimated 71,700 U.S. emergency-department injuries in 2002 across its broader weightlifting activity, apparel and equipment scope.
- The CPSC estimated 340 in-scope bench-press hazard injuries in 2002, with a reported confidence interval of 90 to 600.
- The 2018 HHS evidence review says 8 to 12 repetitions per exercise are commonly supported for improving strength to volitional fatigue.
Contents
- Participation and guideline trends
- Age, sex and life-stage data
- Training frequency and muscle groups
- Home, gym and free-weight use
- Fitness memberships and equipment
- Injury estimates and measured outcomes
Weightlifting Participation and Guideline Trends
Federal surveys generally count muscle-strengthening activity rather than weightlifting alone. In the 2020 National Health Interview Survey, the measure included activities such as lifting weights, push-ups and sit-ups, and was self-reported by the U.S. civilian noninstitutionalized population.
| Measure | Population and period | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Men meeting guideline | U.S. men aged 18+, 2020 | 35.2% |
| Women meeting guideline | U.S. women aged 18+, 2020 | 26.9% |
| Age-adjusted adults meeting guideline | U.S. adults aged 18+, 2020 | 31.9% |
| Most recent Healthy People value | U.S. adults, 2024 | 32.9% |
| Healthy People target | U.S. adults | 36.6% |
Source: CDC QuickStats, National Health Interview Survey 2020; Healthy People 2030 PA-04. The 36.6% figure is a policy target, not an observed participation rate.
A peer-reviewed HealthStyles analysis found that 31.7% of U.S. adults reported muscle strengthening on at least two days per week in its 2009 survey. The estimate was self-reported, weighted to 2009 Census projections and based on the older 2008 guideline wording, so it should not be treated as a seamless time-series comparison with the 2020 or 2024 figures.
That study also found that 5.5% met both its aerobic and muscle-strengthening standards, while 0.3% met its muscle-strengthening standard without meeting the aerobic standard. The aerobic threshold was at least 150 moderate or 75 vigorous minutes weekly, or an equivalent amount, under the 2008 standard.
See Muscle-Strengthening Activities and Participation Among Adults in the United States.
Weightlifting Statistics by Age, Sex and Life Stage
The 2020 NHIS shows a consistent age gradient: reported adherence was higher among adults aged 18–44 than among older age groups for both men and women.
| Population | 18–44 | 45–64 | 65+ |
|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. men meeting guideline, 2020 | 44.5% | 29.9% | 22.0% |
| U.S. women meeting guideline, 2020 | 34.1% | 23.8% | 17.2% |
Source: CDC QuickStats, National Health Interview Survey 2020. These are self-reported percentages of adults meeting the federal muscle-strengthening guideline.
A newer analysis focused on women of reproductive age and combined the 2022 and 2024 NHIS. Among U.S. women aged 18–44, 55.3% reported no muscle-strengthening activity, 31.1% reported sufficient activity of at least two sessions weekly, and 13.6% reported insufficient activity of one session per week.
Those categories describe leisure-time activity and remain self-reported. They are not weightlifting-only measures and should not be combined directly with the 2020 age-and-sex table.
Source: Leisure-Time Physical Activity Among Women of Reproductive Age — United States, 2022 and 2024.
Weightlifting Training Frequency and Muscle-Group Data
The 2009 HealthStyles analysis provides detail about adults who already reported muscle strengthening at least twice weekly. Its percentages are conditional on that subgroup, not on all U.S. adults.
| Reported frequency | Share of adults strengthening at least twice weekly, 2009 |
|---|---|
| Two to three days per week | 51.1% |
| Four to five days per week | 36.7% |
| Six to seven days per week | 12.2% |
Among this same subgroup, 85.4% reported using their arms, 75.3% their abdomen and 72.7% their legs. Multiple muscle groups could be selected, and the measures describe a self-reported usual week rather than load, intensity or exercise quality.
Sex-specific responses show additional differences in reported muscle-group use:
- Among men strengthening at least twice weekly, 88.4% reported using their arms.
- Among women strengthening at least twice weekly, 82.2% reported using their arms.
- Shoulder use was reported by 72.1% of men and 49.6% of women in the same subgroup.
- Among men strengthening at least twice weekly, 71.5% reported using their chest muscles.
- Among women strengthening at least twice weekly, 37.5% reported using their chest muscles and 80.0% reported using their legs.
Source for the frequency and muscle-group measures: Muscle-Strengthening Activities and Participation Among Adults in the United States.
Home, Gym and Free-Weight Use in Weightlifting Data
The same 2009 study shows that resistance training was not limited to commercial gyms or free weights. Among adults strengthening at least twice weekly, 58.3% reported handheld weights and 54.6% reported calisthenics; the categories describe broad resistance activity rather than barbell-only weightlifting.
Location reporting also favored the home. The home was reported by 69.0% of the subgroup, while for-profit fitness centers were reported by 23.1%; multiple locations could be possible.
Among adults strengthening six to seven days per week, 81.3% reported the home as a location and 21.0% reported outdoor locations. This is a small conditional subgroup, and the multiple-location design means the percentages are not mutually exclusive.
Source: Muscle-Strengthening Activities and Participation Among Adults in the United States.
Fitness Membership and Equipment Statistics
HFA’s 2024 rolling 12-month consumer-report measures describe the broader U.S. fitness-facility market, not weightlifting sessions, loads or equipment sales. Membership rose 5.6% year over year, and facility membership covered 24.9% of Americans aged six and older.
Including aggregator, pay-as-you-go, insurance and employer-program users, total fitness-facility customer penetration reached 31.0% of U.S. residents aged six and older in 2024. That broader customer definition is not equivalent to paid membership.
| Facility measure | U.S. population or members | Period |
|---|---|---|
| Dumbbells or free weights | 32.1% of members | 2024 |
| Treadmills | 43.4% of members | 2024 |
| Resistance machines | 31.4% to 26.6% of members | 2021 to 2024 |
| Personal trainers | 22.6% of members | 2024 |
| Small-group training | 32.3% of members | 2024 |
Source: HFA, “How 77 Million Fitness Members Work Out”. Treadmill use is included as a facility-modality comparator, not as weightlifting.
HFA also reported that elliptical use fell from 23.2% of members in 2021 to 18.8% in 2024. Personal-trainer and small-group participation may include strength work, but neither format is restricted to weightlifting.
Weightlifting Injury Estimates and Measured Training Outcomes
The Consumer Product Safety Commission figures are modeled NEISS emergency-department estimates from 2002. They are scope-specific historical estimates, not current injury rates and not a complete count of all weightlifting injuries.
The broader CPSC table estimated 71,700 injuries across its weightlifting activity, apparel and equipment scope, with a confidence interval of 61,610 to 81,790. Within that table, 67,900 were categorized as out of scope, with a confidence interval of 58,400 to 77,370.
For the specified bench-press hazard pattern, CPSC estimated 3,820 injuries by combining 340 in-scope cases and 3,480 unknown-scope cases. The in-scope estimate had a reported confidence interval of 90 to 600, while the unknown-scope estimate had a reported interval of 2,450 to 4,500.
The scope distinction matters: the 340-injury estimate is not all bench-press injuries, and the 71,700 total should not be read as a bench-press-only figure. Source: CPSC, Petition Requesting Labeling of Weightlifting Bench-Press Benches.
The available outcome evidence is framed as program guidance rather than a population average. The 2018 HHS Physical Activity Guidelines Advisory Committee Scientific Report says 8 to 12 repetitions per exercise are commonly supported for improving strength to volitional fatigue.
The same review states that one set of 8 to 12 repetitions can be effective for increasing muscular strength, while limited evidence suggests two or three sets may be more effective. These are evidence-review estimates for program prescription, not observed averages for all lifters.
Source: 2018 Physical Activity Guidelines Advisory Committee Scientific Report.