Weightlifting Statistics & Data Trends to Know in 2026

The latest weightlifting statistics show how the sport has moved out of a niche corner of fitness and into the mainstream of public health. Researchers, federal agencies, and industry groups now track participation, performance, and health outcomes more closely than ever. The strength training statistics below show just how much the lifting world has grown over the last decade.

This page pulls together more than 30 verified statistics on weightlifting across seven categories. You'll find data covering participation rates, fitness industry growth, health benefits, mental health, aging and bone health, injury patterns, and elite performance records. Every figure comes from a primary source, whether that's peer-reviewed research, government datasets, or official sport federations.

The takeaway is hard to miss. People are lifting more, living longer because of it, and pushing the upper limits of human performance year after year.

Weightlifting Participation Statistics

In 2020, 35.2% of men and 26.9% of women in the United States met federal guidelines for muscle-strengthening physical activity, according to the National Health Interview Survey [1]. The bar is low. Adults are asked to do muscle-strengthening work like lifting weights, push-ups, or sit-ups at least two days per week.

Participation drops sharply with age. Among men ages 18 to 44, 44.5% met the muscle-strengthening guideline, falling to 29.9% for ages 45 to 64 and just 22.0% for adults 65 and older. Women followed the same pattern, dropping from 34.1% in the youngest group to 17.2% among those 65 and older [1].

Per National Health Interview Survey data, 31.9% of U.S. adults aged 18 and over reported muscle-strengthening work on two or more days per week during leisure time [2]. That figure covers anyone clearing the strength threshold, separate from those who also hit aerobic guidelines.

Combine both aerobic and muscle-strengthening guidelines, and the number drops further. Only 26.4% of U.S. adults aged 18 and older met the combined federal recommendation in 2024 [2]. The strength piece is what most adults skip, but research links it to real health gains.

Fitness Industry and Gym Membership Statistics

Fitness industry statistics show that global gym memberships climbed 6% year over year in 2024, and total industry revenue rose an average of 8%, outpacing inflation in most regions [3]. The number of fitness facilities also expanded by nearly 4%, signaling that physical gyms remain a growth market alongside at-home training.

Operator confidence is running high. Among fitness operators surveyed by the Health & Fitness Association, 91% expect revenue gains in 2025, and 83% predict profitability increases [3]. More than half (51.3%) expect member growth to top 5%.

In the U.S., fitness facility penetration hit 23.7% in 2023, the highest rate among 17 surveyed markets [4]. Roughly one in four Americans belonged to a gym, fitness studio, or health club.

The United Kingdom ranked second at 15.9%, followed by Switzerland at 14.9%, New Zealand at 13.6%, and Germany at 14.3% [4]. Budget gyms and specialty studios are driving most of the expansion as global demand and current weightlifting trends shift toward strength-focused training spaces.

Health Benefits of Weightlifting Statistics

Recent weight training statistics from a 2024 study in the International Journal of Epidemiology tracked older adults who lifted weights versus those who didn't. The lifters had a 6% lower risk of all-cause mortality, an 8% lower risk of cardiovascular disease mortality, and a 5% lower risk of cancer mortality compared to non-lifters [5].

Women got more protection than men, and the gap was wide. Female lifters showed 12% lower all-cause mortality, 16% lower cardiovascular mortality, and 9% lower cancer mortality. The corresponding reductions for men were just 3%, 4%, and 4% [5].

A meta-analysis in the British Journal of Sports Medicine linked muscle-strengthening activity to a 15% lower risk of all-cause mortality and a 17% lower risk of cardiovascular disease [6]. The protective effect held across more than 16,000 cases reviewed, independent of aerobic exercise.

The same meta-analysis tied muscle-strengthening activity to a 12% lower risk of total cancer and a 17% lower incidence of type 2 diabetes [6]. Regular lifters also showed a 10% reduction in lung cancer incidence.

You don't need to lift much to get most of the benefit. Adults who performed 30 to 60 minutes of muscle-strengthening activity per week saw the largest risk reductions, with diminishing returns at higher volumes [6]. Two short weekly sessions cover most of the protection.

Strength training also raises resting metabolic rate. In a study published in Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 24 weeks of supervised strength training increased resting metabolic rate by 9% in men, helping offset age-related declines in energy expenditure [7].

Mental Health and Weightlifting Statistics

A 2018 meta-analysis in JAMA Psychiatry pulled together 33 randomized controlled trials covering 1,877 participants. Resistance training produced a moderate, statistically significant reduction in depressive symptoms, with an effect size of 0.66 [8]. The effect held regardless of participant age, sex, or health status.

Among participants with baseline scores in the mild to moderate depression range, the effect grew larger, reaching 0.90 [8]. The authors estimated that four people would need to train for one to experience a clinically meaningful improvement.

Weightlifting and Aging Statistics

Adults start losing 3% to 5% of their muscle mass per decade once they hit age 30, according to Harvard Medical School [9]. The loss accelerates after age 60 and feeds directly into falls, fractures, and loss of independence in older adults.

Most men lose roughly 30% of their muscle mass over the course of their adult lives if they don't train against the decline [9]. Resistance training is the most effective non-pharmaceutical way to slow or reverse that loss.

Sarcopenia, the clinical form of age-related muscle loss, affects an estimated 5% to 13% of adults aged 60 and older, climbing to between 11% and 50% of those over 80 [10].

A 2022 systematic review in Healthcare found that resistance training produced small but measurable gains in bone mineral density across older adults, with increases of 0.62% in the lumbar spine and 0.64% in the total hip [11]. The authors concluded resistance training plays a preventive role against age-related bone loss, with modest but measurable gains.

Weightlifting Injury Statistics

A 2009 study in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research analyzed 4,111 weightlifting-related emergency department visits in the United States between 2002 and 2005 [12]. The data came from the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System. Of those visits, 38.4% involved patients aged 14 to 18, and 34.2% involved patients aged 23 to 30.

Accidents hit the youngest lifters hardest. Among children aged 8 to 13, 77.2% of weightlifting-related emergency visits were classified as accidental, often from weights dropped on hands or feet [12]. That rate fell to 27.5% among adults aged 23 to 30, where sprains and strains took over as the dominant injury type.

A 20-year NEISS survey estimated that 980,173 Americans were treated in emergency departments for weight-training-related injuries between 1978 and 1998 [13]. The injury rate climbed 35% over that period, outpacing the 20% population growth in the same window.

Males accounted for 82% of weight-training-related ED visits during the 20-year survey, and youth and young adults ages 13 to 24 made up 47% of all injuries [14]. The most common mechanism was weights dropping on the lifter, which covered 65% of cases. Most injuries (90%) involved free weights rather than machines.

Strength and Performance Statistics

The Guinness World Record for heaviest deadlift stands at 501 kg (1,104.5 lb), pulled by Hafthor Julius Bjornsson of Iceland on May 2, 2020 [15]. Bjornsson made the lift under strongman rules with lifting straps and a deadlift suit.

Among current powerlifting statistics, in tested raw powerlifting, Temur Samkharadze set the International Powerlifting Federation deadlift world record at 410.5 kg (905 lb) at the 2024 Euro Muscle Show, breaking the previous mark by half a kilogram [16].

On the women's side, Brittany Schlater pulled 273.5 kg (603 lb) at the 2024 Canadian Powerlifting Union national championships to claim an unofficial IPF raw deadlift world record [17]. The lift came on her third attempt and capped off a record-setting day on the platform.

Olympic-style weightlifting keeps pushing the ceiling too. At the 2025 IWF World Championships in Forde, Norway, USA's Olivia Reeves won the women's 77 kg category with a 278 kg total, including a snatch of 123 kg and a clean and jerk of 155 kg [18]. The performance set three world records in a single competition.

In the men's superheavyweight ranks, the current IWF clean and jerk world record in the +110 kg category sits at 261 kg, held by Alireza Yousefi of Iran [18]. The matching snatch world standard is 218 kg, and the world standard total is 477 kg.

These weightlifting statistics paint a clear picture. Strength training is delivering measurable health, longevity, and performance gains, the fitness industry continues to grow around it, and elite lifters keep rewriting the record books. Expect the next round of weightlifting data to reflect even broader participation and even higher performance ceilings.

Sources

1. [1] Heitz, Elizabeth. "QuickStats: Percentage of Adults Aged 18 Years and Over Who Met the Federal Guidelines for Muscle-Strengthening Physical Activity, by Age Group and Sex: National Health Interview Survey, United States, 2020." Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, vol. 71, no. 18, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 6 May 2022, https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/71/wr/mm7118a6.htm.

2. [2] National Center for Health Statistics. "FastStats: Exercise or Physical Activity." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, n.d., https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/exercise.htm.

3. [3] Health and Fitness Association. "2025 Global Fitness Industry Report Shows Record Growth and What's Next for the Market." Health and Fitness Association, 18 Aug. 2025, https://www.healthandfitness.org/2025-global-fitness-industry-report-shows-record-growth-and-whats-next-for-the-market/.

4. [4] Health and Fitness Association. "Global Fitness Participation Reached New Heights in 2023." Health and Fitness Association, 16 Sept. 2024, https://www.healthandfitness.org/global-fitness-participation-reached-new-heights-in-2023/.

5. [5] Shailendra, Prathiyankara, et al. "Weight Training and Risk of All-Cause, Cardiovascular Disease and Cancer Mortality Among Older Adults." International Journal of Epidemiology, vol. 53, no. 3, 3 June 2024, https://academic.oup.com/ije/article/53/3/dyae074/7687204.

6. [6] Momma, Haruki, et al. "Muscle-Strengthening Activities Are Associated with Lower Risk and Mortality in Major Non-Communicable Diseases: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Cohort Studies." British Journal of Sports Medicine, vol. 56, no. 13, 2022, pp. 755-763, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9209691/.

7. [7] Lemmer, Jeffrey T., et al. "Effect of Strength Training on Resting Metabolic Rate and Physical Activity: Age and Gender Comparisons." Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, vol. 33, no. 4, Apr. 2001, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11283427/.

8. [8] Gordon, Brett R., et al. "Association of Efficacy of Resistance Exercise Training with Depressive Symptoms: Meta-Analysis and Meta-Regression Analysis of Randomized Clinical Trials." JAMA Psychiatry, vol. 75, no. 6, 9 May 2018, https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/fullarticle/2680311.

9. [9] Harvard Health Publishing. "Preserve Your Muscle Mass." Harvard Medical School, 19 Feb. 2016, https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/preserve-your-muscle-mass.

10. [10] Ardeljan, Andrew D., and Razvan Hurezeanu. "Sarcopenia." StatPearls, National Center for Biotechnology Information, 4 Jul. 2023, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK560813/.

11. [11] Massini, Diego A., et al. "The Effect of Resistance Training on Bone Mineral Density in Older Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis." Healthcare, vol. 10, no. 6, 2022, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9222380/.

12. [12] Myer, Gregory D., et al. "Youth Versus Adult Weightlifting Injuries Presenting to United States Emergency Rooms: Accidental Versus Nonaccidental Injury Mechanisms." Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, vol. 23, no. 7, 2009, pp. 2054-2060, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4034275/.

13. [13] Quatman, Carmen E., et al. "Weight Training Injury Trends: A 20-Year Survey." Physician and Sportsmedicine, vol. 37, no. 3, 2009, https://paulogentil.com/pdf/Weight%20Training%20Injury%20Trends.pdf.

14. [14] Kerr, Zachary Y., et al. "Epidemiology of Weight Training-Related Injuries Presenting to United States Emergency Departments, 1990 to 2007." American Journal of Sports Medicine, vol. 38, no. 4, Apr. 2010, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20139328/.

15. [15] Guinness World Records. "Heaviest Deadlift (Male)." Guinness World Records, n.d., https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/heaviest-deadlift.

16. [16] Goedert, Roy. "Temur Samkharadze (+120KG) Sets IPF Deadlift World Record of 410.5 Kilograms." BarBend, 7 Oct. 2024, https://barbend.com/news/ipf-deadlift-world-record-temur-samkharadze-2024-euro-muscle-show/.

17. [17] BarBend Staff. "Brittany Schlater Eclipses IPF Raw Deadlift World Record at 2024 CPU Nationals." BarBend, 15 Sept. 2024, https://barbend.com/news/ipf-raw-deadlift-world-record-brittany-schlater-2024-cpu-nationals/.

18. [18] International Weightlifting Federation. "World Records." International Weightlifting Federation, n.d., https://iwf.sport/results/world-records/.