Wearable weights can boost workout

Limiting weight on ankles, wrists helps avoid injury; vests the most versatile

Just like scrunchies and bike shorts, another trend from decades past is back: ankle and wrist weights, which became cool again during the pandemic. In part, the revival was spurred by Bala Bangles — aesthetically pleasing, minimalist weights that come in colors such as charcoal and blush and that look good on Instagram.

Wearable weights initially became popular in the 1970s and ’80s, “when people didn’t really have access to resistance bands or kettlebells or all these other things,” says Erin Mahoney, a personal trainer in Scottsdale, Ariz., and the founder of EMAC Certifications, an online personal training certification company. “It made sense: Add more weight to your feet or hands, and it will make (your workout) harder. But now, there’s so many other ways that people can access fitness that they’re really not the best choices anymore.”

According to research commissioned by the American Council on Exercise, it’s best to limit ankle and wrist weights to 1 to 3 pounds each; otherwise, the risk for injury by stressing the joints becomes too significant, says Cedric X. Bryant, the group’s president and chief science officer.

Among ACE’s other findings: Wrist weights can increase your heart rate by five to 10 beats per minute and your caloric expenditure by about 5 to 15 percent, compared with doing the same exercise without weights. Ankle weights can increase your heart rate by an average of three to five beats per minute, plus boost oxygen consumption by 5 to 10 percent.

“I understand the intent to try to increase the intensity of the workout,” Bryant says. “But I think people need to be careful, because depending upon how much weight it is, it can alter your mechanics such that it could place you at risk for potential injury.”

Here’s a closer look at what to know about wrist and ankle weights — plus a potentially superior option: weighted vests.