Five Workouts with a Weighted Vest
Wearing a weighted vest when training has fast become incredibly popular and is a fantastic way to take your workouts to the next level. Most weighted vests are adjustable so you can decide how much you want your weighted vest to weigh during various forms of training.
What are the benefits of using a weighted vest?
There are many benefits to wearing a weighted vest, whether running, walking, or weight training.
Some of the many benefits include:
- A weighted vest workout adds variety to your fitness regime.
- You will use more energy wearing a weighted vest, improving your performance as your body adjusts to the extra weight.
- You will improve your endurance, strength, and cardio by increasing your weight on your person.
- It will challenge how your muscles stabilize during a workout, meaning more challenging workouts.
If you are already an avid athlete, try these five weighted vest workout exercises on for size!
1. "Murph" Weighted Vest Workout
This workout is special because it is named after the military hero, Lt. Michael Murphy, and it's arguably the most well-known weighted vest workout across the globe!
For time:
- One mile run
- 100 pull-ups
- 200 push-ups
- 300 air squats
- One mile run
2. The "Gunny" Weighted Vest Workout
This workout is historically done wearing a 50-pound weighted vest, but you can adjust your weight accordingly. You don't have to do the 50 reps all at once, you can break them up into smaller sets of reps, as long as you have completed them all by the end.
For time:
- One mile run
- 50 push-ups
- 50 sit-ups
- One mile run
- 50 push-ups
- 50 sit-ups
- One mile run
3. The "Bambi" Weighted Vest Workout
This workout is excellent for anyone who loves to sprint! It is designed to get you through the rounds and movements as quickly as possible. This is great because it changes your routine before your muscles start to burn out.
Three rounds for time:
- 800-meter run
- 40 air squats
- 30 walking lunges
- 20 burpees
4. The "Angie" Weighted Vest Workout
Before doing this workout, here's a tip. Make sure you are ready to train before putting on your weighted vest. You need to try to get through this workout as quickly as you can, and you don't want to be tired out before you even start!
- 100 pull-ups
- 100 push-ups
- 100 sit-ups
- 100 air-squats
5. The "Riley" Weighted Vest Workout
This workout is a great way to build cardiovascular endurance using a 20-pound vest (but again, you can adjust accordingly). If you need to, break up the 150 burpees into more manageable sets to help you reach all 150reps.
For time:
- Run 1.5 miles
- Do 150 burpees
- Run 1.5 miles again
The Brute Force Weighted Vest
If you are looking for a superior weighted vest, we highly recommend our Brute Force APC Weighted Vest 3.0. We don't mean to brag, but we have designed this weighted vest to be the most comfortable weighted vest on the planet. Our modular APC weight system is comprised of 10, flexible 2-pound packets filled with our proprietary recycled steel blend. Unlike a steel-plated vest, our APC (Anti Plate Carrier) system bends and flexes with you, allowing you the freedom to move and breathe like no other vest can.
Weighted vests are a fantastic way to challenge yourself even further when training, and because the Brute Force APC 3.0 Vest is adjustable, you can start light and work your way up to a heavier weight as your body adapts.
In addition to the specific workouts while wearing a weighted vest that we outlined above, lots of people prefer simply walking with a weighted vest, running with a weighted vest, or adding a weighted vest to their Crossfit workouts. Just adding a weighted vest to your existing routine, whatever it is, will add an additional layer to your output to get you feeling stronger faster.
Happy Training!