Are Weighted Vests Any Good?
Weighted vests are becoming more and more popular amongst the fitness population. This is because of the endless benefits that you can attain from exercising with a weighted vest. They are also a versatile piece of equipment; use them whilst walking, running or performing body weight exercise. So, 'Are Weighted Vests Any Good?'. Yes! And this blog will explain how they work, the benefits, and give some useful exercises that you can do with them.
How Do Weighted Vests Work
A weighted vest is an upper-body garment with pouches or pockets that can hold additional weight. By adding weight on top of your natural body weight, causes chosen activities and movements to become more difficult. However, with this new, increased difficulty also comes greater physiological adaptations (muscle growth, strength, endurance, weight loss, etc).
Weighted vest benefits
By adding a weighted vest to your workouts, you can unlock a number of benefits, such as;
- Increased Muscle Growth and Strength
- Increased Calorie Expenditure
- Increased Bone Health
- Improved Postural Stability
- Increased Anaerobic Metabolism
Increased Muscle Growth and Strength
A key strategy for building muscle is using progressive overload. This involves a steady (progressive) increase in task difficulty as you progress throughout a training program. Increasing the weight when you strength train is one way to progressively overload and so is introducing a weighted vest. The added resistance on the body provides greater stress on the muscles to induce physiological adaptions, specifically muscle growth. You also gain adaptions in the neuromuscular system and hormonal secretion that are crucial to increase muscular strength. As weighted vests come with pouches to increase the weight, with weighted plates, you can progressively overlaod consistantly.
Increased Calorie Expenditure
In order to produce muscle contractions, energy (also known as ATP) is used. However, when consistent contractions are occurring, we require this energy to be more available at the muscle. The body does this by aerobic respiration. To do this, your heart and breathing rate increase, to supply more oxygen to the muscle. This allows a greater conversion of carbohydrates and fats to be used and converted to provide energy. By using these carbohydrates and fat, you burn calories, which is integral to losing weight. (source)
Improved Bone Health
The increased weight to your body increases the mechanical stress on the musculoskeletal system. Weve already discussed the impacts it has on the muscle, but what impact does this have on your bone?
In line with Wolf's Law, the increase in mechanical stress causes an increase in bone-building cells and hormonal secretion responsible for bone remodeling (i.e., bone growth and regeneration). As such, bone density is increased, which is crucial in the prevention of injuries such as fractures.
Improved Postural Stability
Due to the increased weight around your torso, there becomes a greater consciousness of how you distribute this weight. By doing so, exercising or even just walking around with a weighted vest adds resistance to your core. The core muscles are essential for stabilisation of the spine and your posture. By strengthening your core, you are less likely to endure lower back injuries and will attain a more upright and 'proper' posture.
Increased Anaerobic metabolism
Research has shown that a weighted vest can increase your anaerobic metabolism if you walk briskly or run (source). An added bonus is that this may help your body build up a tolerance to lactic acid and other factors that may inhibit your endurance levels.
Improved Endurance
If you complete aerobic exercise, such as running with a weighted vest, the increased intensity can prompt physiological adaptations. Because, as exercise intensity increases, there is a greater demand for oxygen at the working muscles. This is why heart and breathing rates simultaneously increase, so that more oxygen can pass from the lungs into the blood and more blood can deliver this oxygen to the muscle. To be more efficent, your body adapts. Stroke volume (the amount of blood pumped out of the heart) increases. Additionally, lung capacity increases, increasing the amount of oxygen delivered to the muscle. But it doesn't stop there. A process called angiogenesis also occurs, which refers to an increase in blood vessels. This helps provide more blood to the lungs and the muscles so that more of that increased oxygen can be used. Together, aerobic exercise then becomes easier as your body adapts.
What are weighted vests good for?
Weighted vests are good for the following types of exercises:
- Walking
- Running
- Strength training
- HIIT (high-intensity interval training)
- LISS (Low-intensity steady-state training)
- Calisthenics
If you can safely carry out an exercise with the increased load, then by all means go for it.
Why are weighted vests becoming so popular?
A growing interest in fitness and strength training
The popularity of functional training exercises and sports, such as CrossFit and HYROX, which benefit from the use of weighted vests in competition and training, has grown the demand for this innovative product.
Furthermore, as more people become interested in improving their fitness and strength, they are looking for new ways to challenge themselves. Weighted vests can provide an extra level of resistance to bodyweight exercises, making them more challenging and effective.
Increase in home workouts:
With the COVID-19 pandemic, many people have shifted to working out at home instead of going to the gym. Weighted vests are a popular piece of equipment for home workouts, as they are compact and versatile, allowing people to add resistance to their workouts without taking up too much space.
What to look out for in a weighted vest?
Fit and comfort
When choosing a weighted vest you should ensure that it fits snugly but comfortably around your torso. A vest should not be too loose or too tight and should not restrict your range of motion. Good quality weighted vests often have padded shoulder straps to help distribute the weight evenly and reduce discomfort when performing exercises.
Adjustable Weights:
The ability to alter the weight of the vest is a key componenet. This can be especially helpful if you plan to use the vest for a variety of exercises or if you need to adjust the weight over time.
Weighted vests are an easy way to add some variety to your workout routine.
Are weighted vests safe?
Yes, they are generally safe. But if you have a condition, or overuse them, they can lead to injury. Do not use one — or speak to a health advisor first — if you have any of the following:
- Back or neck problems, such as spinal stenosis or a disc degeneration issue.
Or if you develop or have:
- Excessive soreness.
-
Chronic strain or pain.
If you are physically able to wear one alright (and do not have a condition), break yourself into them slowly.
Who can use weighted vests?
Anyone can use a weights vest, and wearing one simply to do mundane everyday activities can benefit the body — including going for a short walk. You don’t have to be a professional athlete to enjoy the benefits of a weighted vest.
FAQs
How heavy should a weighted vest be?
Anything beyond 11% of your body weight is considered a ‘high load’ (source). You shouldn’t exceed that percentage. Most studies seem to think that anywhere in the 4-10% range is adequate to see the health and performance benefits.
Can I wear a weighted vest all day long?
We dont recommend it. Too much excess weight all day is likely to cause injury. If you are planning to wear one for extended periods, then the lighter the weight the better.
Check out our weighted vests and weight plates here at Exersci.
So, given the evidence, what do you think? We sell our very own one-size-fits-all tactical weighted vests in a variety of colours and with additional weight plates so that you can customise the load.
Got a question about weighted vests or can’t find what you’re looking for? Then please contact us today — we’ll be happy to help.