I wear a weighted vest on my walks every day – here's how it's changed my fitness for the better

Walking for pleasure never used to be part of my daily routine, but ever since I started working from home full-time, I've started walking around my local park every day. Not only are my hips, back, and legs loving the movement, but it clears my head and motivates me for the rest of the day.

I've been doing this for a few years now, and I try to walk for 20 to 30 minutes in one go. While I do these walking workouts at a vigorous pace, I started to want to make them harder, especially on days I couldn't get to the gym for my regular strength training sessions. I’d seen runners and other walkers wearing weighted vests, and decided to try one myself.

I chose a 6kg vest. It felt heavy enough to be impactful, without feeling like there was a huge weight sitting on my chest.

What is a weighted vest? 

A weighted vest looks like a running vest or a cropped gilet. It wraps around your back and chest, and clasps at the front. It contains fixed weights sewn in, or small sandbags that you can remove or add to adjust the weight. They range from 5kg to 30kg, and experts recommend you choose one in proportion to your current body weight and strength level.

This resistance on top of your body weight adds another level of intensity to any walk or other exercise, forcing you to work harder to complete the same movement. You can also use one in a weighted vest workout.

To improve aerobic fitness, boost strength, lose weight, perform better in sports, or simply combine activities to save time, this simple accessory is well worth the investment.

Benefits of a weighted vest for walking

1. Build strength and endurance

I’m very keen to build my strength as I go through my 40s so I can lower my risk of osteoporosis and keep doing the things I love. I already follow online dumbbell workouts at home and attend in-person mat and Reformer Pilates classes, but I wanted a flexible workout option. This is where the weighted vest came in.

I also wore it around the house, walking around the block to post a letter and during an exercise ‘snack’ of lunges and squats in the garden.

I didn’t think 6kg would feel that heavy, but I was wrong. I actually found it quite claustrophobic to start with, with tightness across my chest and on my shoulders. I knew immediately I needed to become accustomed to wearing it in the safety of my house. I walked up and down the stairs in it, and even this felt like a workout in the first few days.

I could feel my core and glutes working hard, even just wearing it around the kitchen, and I had to adjust my posture to stop my shoulders from rounding and pulling on the weight, so I had to stand taller.

2. It's easy to include in your day

In the first few days, I always made sure I left my vest somewhere I could see it, so I could strap it on as I wandered around the house. I wasn’t ready to wear it on a walk just yet. I envisioned getting halfway and then finding the weight too much.

Even wearing the vest for chores felt like a workout. I would find myself getting hot and sweaty. It felt really good to do mundane things, knowing my muscles and joints were getting a bit of a workout at the same time.

Once I got used to the weight, I started to wear the vest for short 15-minute walks, where I knew I’d be comfortable. I increased the distance every other day so I could walk for 20 to 30 minutes while wearing it. This was far from easy, and everything ached at the end, but it felt like I’d done a full-body workout, which was very satisfying.

I’m not a gym-goer, but I imagine if you used a treadmill or walking pad, you could easily wear the vest for an indoor walking workout. This makes a vest a great option for the winter months when you don’t want to leave the house.

3. It's a full body workout

The vest surprised me with a full-body workout. Yes, my upper body carried the weight, but my lower body also worked hard. I could feel the burn in my calves, quads and glutes as I tried to keep my walk at a moderate pace. Other walkers may have been concerned about the slightly pained look on my face during my first few outings, but I soon got used to wearing the extra bit of kit. In fact, I started to feel quite smug.

I have clicky, volatile shoulders and the pressure on them was quite intense at first. I didn’t really know what to do with my arms, but I soon worked out that holding on to the front of the vest eased some of the discomfort. My core, upper arms and upper back all felt stronger

4. Suitable for all

I’m hypermobile. My right shoulder can dislocate during regular strength training, so I made sure I was extra cautious when putting the vest on and taking it off. Otherwise, I didn't have to worry. Normally, I have to be very careful when using dumbbells and kettlebells.

It was easy to put on for a quick 20-minute walk around my local area or to the park, and I finished these walks feeling physically tired afterwards, making it a time-efficient exercise.

If I had opted for an adjustable weighted vest for walking, I could have removed some of the weights and started at an easier level before working my way up to 6kg. If you're new to strength training or weighted workouts, I'd recommend this to get fitter.

5. Improve bone density in perimenopause

A weighted vest may be particularly excellent for women approaching or going through perimenopause, where muscle and bone density naturally decline. "Carrying weight on your body improves bone density and stimulates bone growth due to the increased load, which is important for preventing osteoporosis,” says personal trainer Anya Russell.

According to the Royal Osteoporosis Society, 50% of women over the age of 50 will break a bone largely due to osteoporosis during their lifetime, so exercising to increase bone strength is important.

Dr Mary Claire Haver, a menopause specialist and bestselling author with over 2 million Instagram followers, is also a fan of the weighted vest for gym and treadmill workouts. "These are great for osteoporosis prevention and for strength and for muscle building," she says in an Instagram reel. "I'm always wearing one of these when I walk on the treadmill."

6. A weighted vest can help you lose weight

If weight loss is your goal, wearing a weighted vest while walking or working out is an excellent idea as it's deemed "safe" and "feasible" by the experts and leads to greater calorie burn, per studies by the University of Gothenburg and Wake Forest School of Medicine. Working harder raises the heart rate and forces your body to burn more energy (calories) to fuel and complete the same activities. The more calories you burn, the more likely you are to be in a calorie deficit for weight loss.

Benefits extend well beyond just the 20 or 30-minute walk you do. “A 10-minute brisk walk with a weighted vest will be an incredible leg workout and you'll feel it even after you've taken the vest off," says personal trainer and fat loss expert Andrew Hill. "Whilst muscles repair, energy expenditure is increased as more resources are pumped to worked muscles. In other words, your metabolism stays elevated even after you've stopped exercising." This essentially means you'll still be burning calories while sitting down, having breakfast, and getting on with the rest of your day - sans weighted vest.

"Strength-based exercises are well documented to be the most effective for maintaining a high metabolism, which is essential for fat loss, whilst consuming an increased protein diet," he says.

How much should a weighted vest weigh?

It's recommended that you don’t wear more than 4 to 10% of your body weight in a weighted vest, but if you're like me and have never worn one before, it's best to start on the lighter end. I chose a 6kg (12lbs) vest as I’m petite and not particularly strong.

"What starts feeling like a lightweight soon becomes heavy after just a few minutes, and it can be quite a shock," warns PT and nutrition expert Scott Harrison. "Begin light and gradually increase it to avoid injury and early exercise burnout. You must make sure the vest fits well to prevent discomfort and negatively affect your balance and posture.

On that note, always remember that with any exercise, you must maintain proper form and keep your back in alignment to avoid strain or injury."

Stop wearing it completely if you feel any sharp or consistent pain, especially in joints like the knees and hips.

How long should a weighted vest be worn for?

Only wear it for a short time to avoid muscle strain and/or pain. “We're all different. If the weighted vest starts to cause any feeling of pain or increasing discomfort, take a break," says Hill.

Wear your weighted vest around the house to start with. I found this to be a really useful way of figuring out the best for me, and how it felt to wear it. You can also take it off and carry on with your day without having to negotiate getting home with the additional weight.

From here, I recommend taking your weighted vest out of the house for 10 to 15 minutes at a time - and be sure to stay close to home. "It isn't fun when you wear it until fatigue, and then you have to carry it for a further 30 minutes before you can put it away,” says Hill.