How Working Out With a Weighted Vest Boosts Your Strength?

What Are Weighted Vests?

As the name suggests, a weighted vest has small weights in them. People wear these vests for cardio conditioning and strength development. These weights largely vary according to the products. Generally, this vest contains some extra plates or bars to add weight. The rule of thumbs is, the more weight you carry, the more resistance you will face. 

These gadgets are great for plyometrics, cardiovascular training, and bodyweight exercises. Moreover, some athletes also use these vests in their specific sports training. Like any other type of vest, these also cover your core, back, or chest when you wear them. 

The Science behind Weighted Vest

Okay, it’s quite simple. The more challenging your workout, the more oxygen you will inhale. Not to mention, this way you will burn more calories. Whether you are squatting, running, exercising, or kickboxing while wearing the vest, it will provide you a secure overload method. This encourages your body to exert more force to the ground, which is also an important aspect in terms of efficiency in running. Not only this, but also walking around your house or flailing in your living room while wearing a vest can help your body significantly. Research indicates that a weight vest boosts the inhaling process, which eventually improves your performance in sports or other activities. 

Furthermore, building high speed is not the only advantage of the heavy vest. If you perform high-intensity strength activities or training while wearing a vest, it will generate a high level of force on your body. This, in turn, improves your bone density. Yes, this is something that you may don’t need at a young age, but the higher bone density will help you maintain strength at an older age. 

Advantages: Boost Your Strength

There are plenty of benefits you can avail of by adding these vests to your fitness regime. Usually, people wear them during aerobic activities and strength training. Moving your body with extra weight requires a great amount of strength. The more the weight you use, the more your muscles have to cope with higher weights, which leads to excessive muscular endurance and strength. Texas Tech University conducted a study, including two groups. One group performed plyometrics and traditional resistance while, the second group performed resistant training, plyometrics, and weight vest training. After six months, both groups showed great progress in the broad jump, vertical jump, and 40-yard dash. However, the group that also performed weight vest training showed far better results. This research indicates that a workout with a weighted vest helps your muscles build strength and endurance. 

Not to mention, adding mass to your body affects the stress and strain of your muscles during exercises. As this process also increases breathing and depleted energy, it can greatly improve your cardio health. Lastly, wearing this vest can also help you get some variety in your fitness routine. This additional body weight can help you in different exercises. From any workout or activity to plyometric and jogging, these vests simply maximize the results of your training session. 

How to Train with a Weighted Vest?

It is crucial to understand that you can’t hit the gym or run miles on your first day. You need to start your journey slowly. For your first time, just go for a long walk wearing the vest. If you want to use a weight vest for cardio conditioning, begin with a vest with 5% of your body weight. Make sure to increase the weight to 10% over time. You can wear it throughout the low to moderate intensity cardio session. 

Additionally, an individual who wants results in strength, power workout, and explosive speed, should wear it on the treadmill. This way, your body will get used to the high heart rate and added diaphragmatic pressure. Furthermore, you will also learn to control your breathing at a low level on the treadmill. Once your body gets ready to take more challenges, first try to complete 3 sets of 10 reps of the move. After this, you can add 5 to 10% of your body weight to the vest. Aim to increase the weight by up to 20 to 25%. 

Bottom Line

A weighted vest is a relatively new technology that helps you boost your strength and endurance. This is great for people who want to get better results from their workout sessions, as wearing it will increase your challenges.