Strength Training Statistics: Health & Mortality Data

35.2% of US men and 26.9% of US women met the federal muscle-strengthening guideline in 2020

The guideline is muscle-strengthening activity on at least 2 days a week.

Meeting the muscle-strengthening guideline fell with age, from 44.5% of men aged 18-44 to 22.0% at 65 and over, and from 34.1% to 17.2% of women

Same survey; adults aged 45-64 were in between (29.9% of men, 23.8% of women).

Resistance training was associated with 21% lower all-cause mortality than no exercise (hazard ratio 0.79), and 40% lower when combined with aerobic exercise

Meta-analysis of one trial and 10 cohort studies with 370,256 participants followed for a mean of 8.85 years. The association with cardiovascular mortality was borderline (0.83).

Muscle-strengthening activity was associated with a 10-17% lower risk of all-cause mortality, cardiovascular disease, total cancer, diabetes and lung cancer

Meta-analysis of 16 prospective cohort studies, independent of aerobic activity. The largest risk reductions (about 10-20%) came at about 30-60 minutes a week, with a J-shaped curve beyond.

Each additional weekly set per muscle was associated with a 0.37% greater gain in muscle size

Meta-regression of 34 treatment groups from 15 studies; within studies the higher-volume condition out-gained the lower one by 3.9 percentage points.

Training a muscle group twice a week produced more hypertrophy than once a week: effect size 0.49 versus 0.30

Meta-analysis of 10 volume-equated studies; whether three times a week beats twice remained undetermined.

Training to failure and stopping short of failure produced similar strength (effect size -0.09) and hypertrophy (0.22) gains

Meta-analysis of 15 studies in young adults; neither difference was significant. In resistance-trained people failure training had a small hypertrophy edge (0.15).

Training to momentary muscular failure was not superior to non-failure training for hypertrophy (effect size 0.12, not significant)

Meta-analysis of 15 studies. Using any definition of set failure gave only a trivial advantage (0.19), suggesting a non-linear link between proximity to failure and growth.

When sets are taken to failure, loads above 60% of 1RM build more 1RM strength than loads of 60% or less, while muscle growth is similar

Meta-analysis of 21 studies lasting at least six weeks; hypertrophy can be achieved across a wide loading range.

Over 8 weeks, resistance-trained men resting 3 minutes between sets gained more squat and bench strength and more thigh muscle than those resting 1 minute

21 young men doing three full-body sessions a week of 3 sets of 8-12RM; local muscular endurance improved similarly in both groups.

Dynamic resistance training lowered blood pressure by 1.8 mmHg systolic and 3.2 mmHg diastolic, and by 4.0/3.8 mmHg in people with prehypertension

Meta-analysis of 93 trials with 5,223 participants, including 29 dynamic resistance groups. Isometric resistance training produced the largest drops (10.9/6.2 mmHg) in a few studies.

Exercise programmes combining balance and functional work with resistance exercise probably cut the rate of falls in older people by 34%

108 trials with 23,407 community-dwelling people aged 60 and over. Exercise of all types cut falls by 23%; the effect of programmes that are primarily resistance training was uncertain.

Eight months of twice-weekly heavy resistance and impact training raised lumbar-spine bone density by 2.9% in postmenopausal women with low bone mass, against a 1.2% fall with low-intensity exercise

101 women aged about 65 doing 5 sets of 5 at over 85% of 1RM under supervision; femoral-neck density rose 0.3% against a 1.9% fall, with one minor adverse event.

Resistance exercise reduced depressive symptoms with a moderate effect (Δ = 0.66); four people needed to train for one to benefit

Meta-analysis of 33 randomized trials with 1,877 participants. Trials with blinded allocation or assessment found smaller effects.

Inactive adults lose 3-8% of muscle mass per decade, and ten weeks of resistance training may add 1.4 kg of lean weight and cut 1.8 kg of fat

Narrative review of resistance training and health; it also cites a 7% rise in resting metabolic rate and 1-3% gains in bone density. Figures are drawn from the studies it reviews.

Early strength gains come largely from the nervous system: greater activation of prime movers and better coordination of the muscles involved

Review of electromyographic and cross-training evidence for neural adaptation to resistance training.