Being a full-time working parent doesn’t leave too much time for exercise. That’s why I’m such a big fan of the Perfect Fitness weighted vest.
For the past 9 months I’ve created a daily exercise habit by doing 5 minutes of body-weight exercises.
But after 9 months I began to see a slow-down in my results and wanted to kick things up a notch.
I could have added more sets to my workouts, but that would increase the amount of time and my goal was to keep the workouts to 5 minutes or less.
So that left me with 2 other options:
1. Use More Challenging Positions
Or
2. Add Weight
At first I tried more challenging positions like doing triangle push-ups in place of regular push-ups and doing pullups with 3 or 4 fingers on each hand.
But after a few weeks I began to feel pain in my wrist from the pushups and the pullups seemed to create a little too much strain in my shoulder and elbow. So, I decided to stop messing around with different angles and go with option 2 – add weight.
When Does It Make Sense To Use A Weighted Vest?
1. Efficiency
If you are doing body-weight exercises like pushups, pullups, squats, walking, running, climbing etc. adding a weighted vest will increase the intensity of your normal workout and therefore allow you to achieve greater results in the same amount of time or the same results in less time.
2. Safety
Some people use a weighted belt to add weight to pullups and squats and ankle weights for walking or running. I find it safer to use a weighted vest because the weight is more evenly distributed so there is less chance it will put more strain in the wrong places and throw things out of whack.
3. Comfort and Convenience
Ever use a weighted belt for dips or pullups? They’re not too comfortable and you have to take them off in between sets (or look weird as you try to walk around with weights dangling between your legs). With a weighted vest, you just put it on, do your workout and then take it off when you’re done. Easy.
How Does The Vest Go On?
The vest goes over your head and has a front and back flap which hold the weights. To secure the vest there are 2 Velcro straps that overlap and rap around the waist.
The straps are very flexible and comfortable. They can be wrapped around tightly for a smaller waist and very stretchy enough to fit just about any size waist. I read a comment on Amazon from a gentleman who said he is 360 lbs and quite round (his words) who said he was happy and surprised that the straps reach around and fit quite well.
Other Features
Shoulder Pads: There are pads on each shoulder which make the vest very comfortable even with the full 40 lbs. of weight loaded.
Media Player Pocket: There’s a Media Player Pocket to hold your phone or media player. It fit my iPhone without any issues.
Reflective Trim: The vest has a reflective trim material so you can be seen better if you plan to be walking or running in the dark with the vest.
Inside Of Vest
Outside Of Vest
How Are The Weights Added/Removed?
The Weights are loaded on the inside of the vest and are secured with a top and bottom pocket design which secures them really well so they don’t fall out.
The weights go into both the front and back portion of the vest so you have even distribution of weight. Unless you decide to load them unevenly, which you may want to do for some exercises as I’ll explain below.
The weight is added by inserting the 1.25 lb sand bags to the vest. There are 32 pockets inside the vest, each one holds one sand bag. The vest itself weighs 2 lbs. so the total weight with all sand bags in the vest is 42 lbs. Perfect Fitness also makes a 20 lb. Weighted Vest which has 20 pockets and each sand bag weighs 1 lb. The total weight of this vest with all sand bags in the vest is 21 lbs.
Size
There is only 1 size, however, the waist is very adjustable to fit both smaller and larger waists. The length of the vest is (x inches long) from the shoulder to the bottom which will fit most people comfortably.
How Comfortable Is The Perfect 40 lb Weighted Vest?
The vest was very comfortable to wear while doing Pullups and Squats even with the full 32 pockets loaded with weights (40 lbs).
However, push-ups with the full 40 pounds were a bit frustrating. When the vest is loaded with the full 40 lbs. the bottom of the vest hits the floor before I am fully lowered to the ground. If there was a way to tighten up the bottom portion of the vest, I think that might do the trick. Definitely some room for design improvement to help all of the weights on the front of the vest close to the body while doing push-ups.
What Kind Of Material Is The Vest Made Of?
The vest is a combination of Polyester (67.8%), SBR (18.4%) and Lycra Spandex (13.8%).
The feel is slightly stiff which is understandable since it has to hold 40 lbs. of weight but it’s really way more flexible and comfortable than I thought it would be.
Cleaning
The suggested cleaning methods are to hand wash the vest in warm water with a gentle laundry detergent, rinse and hang to dry (do not put in dryer) and to wipe down the weights with a clean, damp cloth.
Where To Buy & Cost
The current price on Amazon is $89.97.
Summary
If you’re looking for a way to add extra intensity to your body-weight exercises, you can’t go wrong with the Perfect Fitness Weighted vest. It’s high quality, designed well and can really help take your body-weight workouts to the next level.