Best Weighted Vest Reviews

In some ways, wearing the best weighted vest is a bit like training like a warrior. But it’s not just because it looks like body armor.

When you consider how some military personnel train, you’d probably be amazed at just how much extra weight they have to carry during their runs. They carry their heavy weapons, communications gear, their armor, and sometimes even their parachutes.

A weight vest is just what it sounds like—a vest you wear around your torso that adds weight and therefore resistance to your training. Since a weighted workout vest leaves your hands free, it allows you to perform a wide variety of exercises, such as jogging, climbing, pushups, and pull-ups.

A quick comparison and overview of the products that we`ll discuss today!

The MIR® – 50lbs Pro (Long Style) Adjustable Weighted Vest​ is designed specially for Crossfitters. Its small and compact. 

The Cross101 – 20lbs Adjustable Weighted Vest Camouflage is a one size fits all weighted vest that comes with 8 x 2.5lbs weights. Suitable for beginners. 

The Cross101 Adjustable Weighted Vest, 40lbs (Camouflage) is another one size fits all vest that comes with 10 x 4lbs weights. This is one of the most compact 40lbs weighted vest in its class. 

​The RUNFast/Max Pro Weighted Vest is more flexible in that it allows users to select the weight and get the vest corresponding to the weight selected. There are 5 variations to choose from. 

The SKLZ Weighted Vest is designed to give maximum comfortability by having soft bound edges, reinforced nylon and mesh design for maximum breathability.

The HumanX Weight Vest​ also comes with 3 variations which allows users to choose the weight that is needed. 

The weighted vest benefits include boosting your endurance and strength, enhancing your cardiovascular system, and increasing your bone density after enlarging your muscles. The vest also provides greater variation in your workouts to prevent your body from adapting to the same routine each day.

So how do you find the best weighted vest for you? This article with its weighted vest reviews can help you in making that decision by pointing to your best options.

Reviews of the Best Weighted Vests

Now this one is a bit more expensive than the others. To be honest, you have to pay at least double the price of the others.

 

So what do you get for your money? At the very last, you get a full size vest so it looks tough and rugged.

This comes in a one-size- fits-all design, and you have a couple of Velcro belts to help it fit you comfortably. The belts fit around your chest and around your midsection.

This one is also extremely comfortable. It features double padding and lining throughout your body and shoulder.

This comes with a 50-pound limit, which should be more than sufficient for even the most dedicated lifters. And the weights come in at just 3-pounds each, so you don’t shock your system when you start light and add more weights as you progress.

It’s very easy and comfortable to carry when you’re running, as it’s designed for cross fitters who can run with this with minimal bounce from the weights. It even has a reflective stripe in the back, which makes you more visible (and therefore safer) when you run in the dark.

Just everyone who has tried this loves the balance and the comfort it provides when they use it while running. It even adds a layer of warmth during winter training.

Pro's

  • It offers 50 pounds.
  • The quality is superb.
  • It looks great.
  • It’s very comfy.

Con's

  • It’s a bit expensive.

Need more details?

t’s important that you start with a light load at first when you start to wear a weighted vest. The recommended beginner’s weight is just 5% of your body weight, so you can minimize the risk of injury.

 

As you become more used to the weight, you can then increase the load. The 20-pound weight can thus offer a nice start.

You get 8 separate weights that come with the vest, and they weigh 2.5 pounds each. So if you weigh 200 pounds, you can then put on 4 of the weights for a total of 10 pounds, which fits the 5% of body weight requirement.

Since the weights only weight 2.5 pounds, you can increase the load gradually. This reduces the shock of having to adjust to a much greater weight right away.

It’s one-size- fits-all, with a belt to tighten it around you. It’s easy to use and washing it isn’t a problem at all.

It even looks good. The camouflage design gives a military vibe that can help motivate you.

Unfortunately, the shoulder area doesn’t have any padding at all. So it can rub your shoulders raw when you run, unless you can put some makeshift padding there somehow.

Pro's

  • It offers very light weights so you can increase the load gradually.
  • It looks great.
  • It is very affordable. 

Con's

  • It only goes to 20 pounds.
  • It can chafe your shoulders.

Need more details?

Now how about if you really want to add more resistance to your training? In fact, you can add more resistance to all your everyday tasks.

But if 20 pounds isn’t enough for you, then 40 pounds should be sufficient. It’s obviously not advisable to start with the whole 40 pounds at once if you’re just a beginner to weighted vests, but you can still smart light.

The design is similar to the 20-pound model, with the one-size- fits-all design and the adjustable belt. Unfortunately, there’s no padding around the neck and on the shoulders.

This time, you get 10 pieces of iron ore for weight, with each one weighing 4 pounds each. That may be too sudden an increase if you’re a beginner and you wish to add another weight to your vest.

Pro's

  • It offers a greater maximum weight so you can progress in your training.
  • The increments in the weight increase won’t shock your system.
  • It looks great.
  • The price is reasonable.

Con's

  • It’s not very comfortable to wear.

Need more details?

This weight vest offers several trims you can choose from. You can choose a model with the shoulder pads, or without.

 

The weights included can be for 12, 20, 40, 50, and 60 pounds, and you can remove the sand bags to suit your resistance needs. The weight of each sand bag depends on the maximum weight, so it can be 1.5 pounds for the 12-pound version and 4 pounds each for the 40-pound model.

It can be a bit challenging to make this fit for you, however. Straps are under your armpits aside from the Velcro on your waist.

It’s made with ballistic nylon, and the stitching at the seams is invisible. It does help hold the vest tight to your body, without overly limiting your range of motion.

Many say that it’s very comfortable to wear for everyday tasks, but this isn’t by any means a unanimous opinion. Quite a few also say that the sand bags feel more comfortable against the body.

Some report that the 12-pound version seems to be made for someone who weighs 160 pounds, so the vest may be too small if you’re heavier or too bulky when you’re small.

Pro's

  • You can get the model with the shoulder padding.
  • There are a lot of weight options to choose from.
  • It doesn’t limit your range of motion.

Con's

  • It doesn’t really fit quite a few people comfortably.

Need more details?

This model looks like a half shirt, so it adjusts to your chest instead of your waist. But you may have to endure some “man-bra” jokes for a while.

 

If you’re saddled with a large waistline and you’re trying to lose weight, this can fit you more comfortably. Comfort is a big deal with the SKLZ, since it features soft bound edges.

Another comfort is that you have 20 separate weighted bags which you can fit in the various pockets. They each weigh only half a pound each so you can increase the weight very gradually, although the total is only 10 pounds.

Still, for some people the 10 pounds of extra weight provide a worthy challenge for their workout efforts. In fact, you may want to start with just a few pounds at first even if you’re not a beginner when it comes to working out.

You can tighten it up so that it doesn’t jiggle around when you move, but that can constrict your breathing. On the other hand, you can loosen it up to help you breathe, but that can result in a little movement for the vest.

It’s easy enough to clean, although it can be annoying to remove 20 bags each time.

Pro's

  • It’s very comfy to wear.
  • The small size increments enable you to increase the load gently.

Con's

  • It only weighs 10 pounds.
  • It looks like a “man-bra”, so you need to cover it up.

Need more details?

Benefits of Using A Weighted Vest

It Adds Greater Resistance and Intensity to Your Training

Body weight training is a big part in many workouts. When you do pushups and pull-ups, you use your own body weight as the resistance your work with in your exercise.

But sometimes that’s not enough. If that’s the case, then the added weight of the weight vest can therefore increase the resistance for your exercises.

That makes your exercises more effective in helping you achieve your fitness aims.

It Boosts Your Strength, Size, and Endurance

Because of the added weight you have to lug around, your muscles have to adapt. That means you’ll slowly become stronger because of it.

But having stronger muscles means having bigger muscles. So that means carrying the extra weight can really enhance your physique.

It Helps with Your Weight Loss Efforts

Sometimes you don’t really want bigger muscles right away. If you’re carrying excess fat, you need to get rid of them to improve your overall health.

The weight vest helps with those efforts too. The additional resistance increases the intensity of the exercises, which accelerates the calorie-burning benefits of your exercises.

It Improves Bone Density

When your muscles become bigger due to the use of the weight vest, your bones develop along as well. Your bones have to become stronger and denser, to support the heavier musculature.

This benefit is especially useful for the elderly, who are at greater risk from osteoporosis. They can be less like to accidentally fall down, and their bones are less likely to break even if they do.

It Encourages Better Posture

Carrying backpacks and other heavy weights on your torso can lead to poor posture. You may develop a slouch in order to maintain your balance with the weight on your back.

But a weighted vest distributes the extra load all over your upper body, so you can stand straight.

Wrap-Up!

All these benefits are possible, but you need the best weighted vest you can get. With the right choice, you improve your strength, endurance, and your overall health.

But which one is the best? Obviously, your own preference will largely determine that, but it seems apparent that the HumanX and the MIR weighted vests offer the greatest value for money.

Get the 40-pound model for the HumanX vest, and you can use it even if you’re a beginner or an experienced vest user. Besides, going for more than 40 pounds may not be too practical, especially if you plan to wear this all day.

The MIR is more expensive, but you get up to 50 pounds. And its quality is superb.

It’s very durable, it’s comfortable to wear, it can probably fit you, and it even looks good. The price is very reasonable for the HumanX, although you won’t have any quality concerns with the more expensive MIR.

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