Exercise Statistics 2026: 873 Exercises by Muscle and Equipment

Updated · As of October 2026 · 873 exercises

How many exercises need no equipment?

188 exercises (21.5%) need no equipment at all: bodyweight only. The figures below come from the 873-exercise Core Health library, which is built on the public-domain free-exercise-db and published here with every number downloadable as CSV.

38 exercise statistics

  1. The Core Health exercise library documents 873 exercises, each with step-by-step instructions and start and finish photos (1746 images in total). (Source: Core Health exercise library)
  2. 581 exercises (66.6%) are strength exercises. (Source: Core Health exercise library)
  3. 123 exercises (14.1%) are stretching exercises. (Source: Core Health exercise library)
  4. 61 exercises (7%) are plyometrics exercises. (Source: Core Health exercise library)
  5. 38 exercises (4.4%) are powerlifting exercises. (Source: Core Health exercise library)
  6. 35 exercises (4%) are olympic weightlifting exercises. (Source: Core Health exercise library)
  7. 21 exercises (2.4%) are strongman exercises. (Source: Core Health exercise library)
  8. 14 exercises (1.6%) are cardio exercises. (Source: Core Health exercise library)
  9. 59.9% of exercises are rated beginner level (523 of 873). (Source: Core Health exercise library)
  10. 33.6% of exercises are rated intermediate level (293 of 873). (Source: Core Health exercise library)
  11. 6.5% of exercises are rated expert level (57 of 873). (Source: Core Health exercise library)
  12. 188 exercises (21.5%) need no equipment at all: bodyweight only. (Source: Bodyweight exercises)
  13. 170 exercises (19.5%) use a barbell. (Source: Barbell exercises)
  14. 123 exercises (14.1%) use a dumbbell. (Source: Dumbbell exercises)
  15. 81 exercises (9.3%) use a cable. (Source: Cable exercises)
  16. 67 exercises (7.7%) use a machine. (Source: Machine exercises)
  17. 53 exercises (6.1%) use kettlebells. (Source: Kettlebells exercises)
  18. 20 exercises (2.3%) use bands. (Source: Bands exercises)
  19. 151 exercises are both beginner level and equipment-free, the pool for a first home workout. (Source: Core Health exercise library)
  20. The library covers 17 distinct primary muscle groups. (Source: Core Health exercise library)
  21. Quadriceps are the primary target of 148 exercises (17%). (Source: Quadriceps exercises)
  22. Shoulders are the primary target of 127 exercises (14.5%). (Source: Shoulders exercises)
  23. Abdominals are the primary target of 93 exercises (10.7%). (Source: Abdominals exercises)
  24. Chest is the primary target of 84 exercises (9.6%). (Source: Chest exercises)
  25. Hamstrings are the primary target of 79 exercises (9%). (Source: Hamstrings exercises)
  26. Triceps are the primary target of 71 exercises (8.1%). (Source: Triceps exercises)
  27. The least-covered primary muscle group is the abductors, with 8 exercises. (Source: Core Health exercise library)
  28. 68.8% of exercises also work secondary muscles (601 of 873). (Source: Core Health exercise library)
  29. An exercise works 2.0 secondary muscle groups on average. (Source: Core Health exercise library)
  30. 489 exercises (56%) are compound movements. (Source: Core Health exercise library)
  31. 297 exercises (34%) are isolation movements. (Source: Core Health exercise library)
  32. 371 exercises (42.5%) are pull movements. (Source: Core Health exercise library)
  33. 369 exercises (42.3%) are push movements. (Source: Core Health exercise library)
  34. 104 exercises (11.9%) are static movements. (Source: Core Health exercise library)
  35. Instructions run to 4.3 steps per exercise on average, and up to 24. (Source: Core Health exercise library)
  36. 241 compound exercises are rated beginner level. (Source: Core Health exercise library)
  37. Only 6.5% of exercises are rated expert, so most of the library suits a newcomer or intermediate. (Source: Core Health exercise library)
  38. All 873 records derive from the public-domain free-exercise-db (Unlicense), reviewed and published by Core Health. (Source: free-exercise-db on GitHub)

Methodology

Every figure is counted directly from the 873 exercise records in our library: category, level, equipment, mechanic, force and the primary and secondary muscles listed for each exercise. Percentages are of all 873 exercises, rounded to one decimal place. A muscle counts as primary only where the record lists it as such. The records come from the public-domain free-exercise-db (Unlicense) and are refreshed when the library changes. Limits: equipment and level labels are the dataset's own, and "other" equipment is not broken down. Download the data: exercises.csv.

Cite this page: Core Health, "Exercise Statistics 2026", https://corehealthhq.com/statistics/exercises, updated 23 October 2026. Free to cite, updated when the library changes.