I bought a weighted vest....

So I purchased a weighted vest, the Gold's brand, anyone using weighted vest to workout? So far all i can do in it is walk. It holds 20 pounds total, but i only put 10-12 pounds on it for starters. Any good ideas of things that can be done with the vest? and how beneficial is it?

Climb stairs. Even if you can't run with it on yet, walk up a flight of stairs and it will get your heart rate going.

oh yea ive climbing the stairs of a Mountain at the local park when i do my walks, and i plan on working on my speed up the stairs, thanks

That's cool, I always wanted to buy one. Now, being in the military, I have a flak vest in my possession, weighs about 15lbs give or take. I wear it in my home when I workout here, push-ups, pull-ups, air squats, burpees, pretty much any body weight exercise. I've ran in it, but that wasn't voluntarily and it involved more gear lol.

Just remember to take it off before you get on the scales

Original Post by geturdone:

So I purchased a weighted vest, the Gold's brand, anyone using weighted vest to workout? So far all i can do in it is walk. It holds 20 pounds total, but i only put 10-12 pounds on it for starters. Any good ideas of things that can be done with the vest? and how beneficial is it?

Lunges. Sometimes, holding db's can be bothersome and or throw some people, partic. beginners, off balance while holding dbs. Wearing a weighted vest gives you a little extra weight while still allowing you to use your arms for balance, if need be. This is also true for Step ups.

I personally used a weighted vest when doing pull ups [ have since moved onto a backpack since I put more weight in it than the vest could carry] but I don't recommend doing that until you can do a full set -8-12 - of bw pull ups.

i wear my vest around the house when im doing chores etc. My husband wore it once put 20lbs into it (it holds up to 40lbs) and ran a seven minute mile...i wouldnt recommend it though, even though he is really fit, he still threw up afterwards and felt like crap the rest of the day....i recommend sticking to power walking! 

Using a weighted vest is an interesting approach. Do they come in different sizes or do they all only hold up to 40 pounds? If they only hold up to 40 pounds, I think a weighted dip belt with the chain for adding plates would be a better way to go. Up until recently, I was doing the same thing as fitnessgirl using a backpack. However, my backpack has a hard time zipping completely up around a 45 pound plate. So I finally decided to invest in a weighted dip belt. I really like it. Now I can finally start doing pull-ups with a 45 pound plate and get a much better dip workout by adding more weight.

Weighted pull-ups and chin-ups are the best thing you can do for building bigger/stronger arms. I used to do curls back in the day and while my curl strength would go up, my arms never really increased in size. I haven't done a curl now in months and strictly rely on weighted chin-ups, pull-ups, barbel rows, and inverted rows. I have put two inches on my arms since. Whether you use a vest or a dipping belt, start hitting those weighted pull-ups and chin-ups.