New research found that wearing a weighted vest offers protective benefits against muscle and bone loss, as long as you’re moving while wearing one
Whether working out at the gym or walking through a park, it’s become more common to see people adorning weighted vests, hoping to reap the alleged bone-density benefits. But the science behind those benefits has been murky, while new research simultaneously supports those positive impacts and reveals their limitations.
Researchers at Wake Forest University recently published a study on whether wearing a weighted vest could help preserve bone mineral density during one year of weight loss. Results revealed that while weighted vests do support bone strength in older adults, those benefits were only found from consistent movement.
In the randomized control trial, study authors broke up 131 older adults, with an average age of 67, into three groups over the course of one year:
- Weight loss paired with resistance training
- Weight loss plus weighted vest usage, wearing the vest at least eight hours each day
- Weight loss alone
They found that for the weighted vest plus weight loss group, more time spent upright (standing or walking) yielded positive changes in bone mineral density, while time spent upright for weight loss plus resistance training didn’t impact bone density. The weight loss alone group showed negative changes in their bone mineral density.
Researchers posit that the bone density benefits of the weighted vest may be related to the amount of time participants spent standing with the added weight, and therefore exposed to additional loading, as opposed to just wearing the vest without walking or standing.
“If we’re going to be putting vests on people, we need to train those people to be up and moving,” said lead author of the study and associate professor of health and exercise science Jason Fanning. “A vest can be a great tool. But, like any tool, it’s not going to do the work for you.”
Because weighted vests can provide an external load equal to the amount of weight lost, they could help preserve muscle and bone during weight loss, which reduces risk for fracture and disability while trying to shed pounds — especially important for older adults.
The positive changes observed in bone density in the weighted vest group were promising — so much so that the researchers are already designing a new study to explore whether encouraging people to move more often boosts a weighted vest’s effectiveness in preserving bone mass.
The findings could have significant consequences for supporting the bone health and strength of older adults most at risk for falling and breaking bones, with 1 in 2 women and 1 in 4 men over 50 expected to break a bone because of osteoporosis.
The weighted vest market is only growing as well, thanks to the sleek designs of vests like Aion and The Carry that only make the bone-boosting trend more appealing.
Life Time’s recent partnership with Aion made the brand’s patented weighted vests more accessible as well, with the luxury fitness operator incorporating the products into personal and group training classes.
