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Why is everyone wearing weighted vests? I tried one for two weeks
Celebrities have been sporting them on walks and influencers are peddling them on TikTok – what are they and what are the benefits? |
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| Estelle Tang |
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Madeleine Aggeler, who usually writes this newsletter, is taking a well-earned break this week. Before her holiday, she started noticing people wearing “weird, heavy little backpacks”. At first, she thought they were bulletproof vests – scary! – but then realized they were actually weighted vests, a popular new fitness trend.
Madeleine tried wearing a weighted vest during workouts for two weeks, and asked experts about the benefits and drawbacks.
Key things to know about weighted vests:
• Start light. “Start with a vest that’s no more than 5-10% of your body weight, and build from there,” says obstetrician-gynecologist Dr Mary Claire Haver.
• It can feel strange at first. “I was surprised by how off-balance I felt,” Madeleine writes. “It took me a few minutes to find my stride, and holding myself upright and centered required more core strength than I had expected.”
• Benefits include strengthening, calorie burning and possible prevention of bone loss. Experts say that carrying the extra weight requires more muscle, which improves strength. The greater weight also requires more energy in movement, and thus burns more calories. Some research shows that long-term use can prevent bone loss in postmenopausal women, but the studies have been small.
• Don’t push through pain. Weighted vests “can cause joint strain, poor posture, or even back or knee pain” if used incorrectly, says Haver. Proper fit and gradual progression are key, she says. If you ever feel discomfort, stop.
Read the full story here.
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Health & wellbeing |
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“Everyone needs a hobby, and for 40 years mine was booze,” writes Phil Daoust in his Fit for ever column. Five years after quitting alcohol, he reflects on the arguing, vomiting, petty theft and “hundreds of thousands of pounds” spent on drinks. When his wife, Hannah, decided to take a three-month break, he joined her, and they never looked back. Now they don’t suffer from “biblical” hangovers. And, he writes, “we’re closer now than we were five years ago”.
Read the full story here.
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Betsy Reed
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Editor, Guardian US
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At this dangerous moment for dissent
I hope you appreciated this newsletter. Before you move on, I wanted to ask if you could support the Guardian at this crucial time for journalism in the US.
When the military is deployed to quell overwhelmingly peaceful protest, when elected officials of the opposing party are arrested or handcuffed, when student activists are jailed and deported, and when a wide range of civic institutions – non-profits, law firms, universities, news outlets, the arts, the civil service, scientists – are targeted and penalized by the federal government, it’s hard to avoid the conclusion that our core freedoms are disappearing before our eyes – and democracy itself is slipping away.
In any country on the cusp of authoritarianism, the role of the press as an engine of scrutiny, truth and accountability becomes increasingly critical. At the Guardian, we see it as our job not only to report on the suppression of dissenting voices, but to make sure those voices are heard.
Not every news organization sees its mission this way – indeed, some have been pressured by their corporate and billionaire owners to avoid antagonizing this government. I am thankful the Guardian is different.
Our only financial obligation is to fund independent journalism in perpetuity: we have no ultrarich owner, no shareholders, no corporate bosses with the power to overrule or influence our editorial decisions. Reader support is what guarantees our survival and safeguards our independence – and every cent we receive is reinvested in our work.
The Guardian’s global perspective helps contextualize and illuminate what we are experiencing in this country. That doesn’t mean we have a single viewpoint, but we do have a shared set of values. Humanity, curiosity and honesty guide us, and our work is rooted in solidarity with ordinary people and hope for our shared future.
It has never been more urgent, or more perilous, to pursue reporting in the US that holds power to account and counters the spread of misinformation. Can you spare just 37 seconds now to support our work and protect the free press?
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We value whatever you can spare, but a recurring contribution makes the most impact, enabling greater investment in our most crucial, fearless journalism. We’ve made it very quick to set up, so we hope you’ll consider it. Thank you.
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More from Health & wellbeing … |
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Advice & perspectives |
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Oncologist Kirtan Nautiyal remembers the afternoon he told Betsy Lewis she had stage IV lung cancer. The “divorced, fierce and sarcastic” 72-year-old had already gone through treatment for breast cancer. She agreed to immunotherapy, which kept the masses in her lungs from growing. But then cancer recurred in her left breast. Nautiyal and his colleagues discussed treatment options with Lewis, but she refused them all: “She knew in a very real way what each option would cost her.”
Read the full story here.
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More from Advice & perspectives … |
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Relationships |
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Psychotherapist Pamela Stephenson Connolly responds to a reader whose wife admitted to having had over 50 sexual partners. “Rightly or wrongly, I now feel upset that she was willing to have sex with so many people before me but doesn’t want to have sex with me,” they write. Libido can drop for many different reasons, Connolly says, and reduced attraction is not always to blame: “Instead of focusing on her past, try to think of ways to help her think of herself as a sensual being.”
Read the full story here.
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More from Relationships … |
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