“Do you even lift, Bro?”

Yes, there’s a good chance your typical bro lifts weights in some capacity. And it’s not just the bros. More women than ever are engaging in strength training, and these “muscle mommies” like to share their progress on social media.

That should be a hint that the growing population of those who plant themselves in the weight room are in young demographics. According to the 2025 US Health & Fitness Consumer Report: Expanded Insights, of the 77 million gym goers who worked out in 2024, 32.1% of them trained with dumbbells or free weights, with the largest proportion being millennials (25-44 years old).

Playing into all of this is the increase of functional training. While many functional training programs differ, most utilize the same tools. Once again, millennials dominate in this category. Expanded Insights found that millennials “accounted for 43.4% of kettlebell use, 40.7% of rowing machine participation, and 39.6% of barbell use, underscoring their preference for versatile, functional training tools that support varied and high-intensity workouts.”

As more scientific evidence emerges about the value of resistance training for every age group—including seniors, who benefit from the bone-building and mobility stabilizing effects of weightlifting—operators will see more Gen X and Boomers in the weight room.

When they get there, they’ll find there’s no shortage of resistance training machines and carefully crafted free weights, kettlebells, and other precision strength tools to get the job done. The industry partners in this section have a solution for any health club or studio looking to empower their value proposition with the latest strength training equipment.