As the saying goes, “everything old is new again”—and that applies to your workout gear, too. One of the hottest fitness trends from the ‘80s, wearing wrist weights as a passive form of strength training, has recently been revived—and it’s taking over TikTok.
In recent years, walking has surged in popularity for its physical and mental health benefits. Research has shown that increasing your step count can not only lengthen your life but also improve its quality in the meantime. In fact, one well-known study published in the European Journal of Cardiology found that taking just under 4,000 steps per day was associated with a significantly reduced risk of cardiovascular and all-cause mortality. More immediately, those who walk regularly tend to experience weight loss, reduced cancer risk, more energy, fewer sleep disturbances, improved mood, and more.
Experts say that adding wrist or ankle weights to your workout can further increase the benefits of your daily walk by incorporating strength training into your regimen. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that on top of getting a minimum of 150 minutes of cardiovascular exercise per week, you should also aim for at least two weekly sessions of strength training that work each of your body’s various muscle groups.
Adding wrist weights to your walk won’t give you the full-body burn the CDC recommends, but it could count towards that strength training goal while adding only minimal effort. Those who find it difficult to carve out time for the gym may benefit greatly from the leap from no strength training to some.
RELATED: Walking Pads Are the Latest Wellness Trend Everyone's Talking About.
However, some fitness and medical experts caution that any time you add a more strenuous element to your workout, there could be some risk involved. Even one- to three-pound wrist cuffs can cause strain or injury to the joints.
"Initially, it's one of those things where you think, 'This is great. You're killing two birds with one stone,' especially when we're limited for time in everyone's busy lives these days. But, they are putting themselves at risk for overuse injuries and tendonitis," Emily Bateman, multi-site clinic director with ATI Physical Therapy, recently told CBS News. "Walking is one of the safest and easiest ways to get active and adding weights to your workout can help increase the intensity, but you are at risk of injuries to your joints."
It’s also important to recognize the workout’s limitations: Though wrist weights can certainly help you build strength if you use them regularly, you’ll likely need to make bigger changes to your diet and activity levels to notice any aesthetic changes. Miriam Fried, a personal trainer in New York City, recently told The New York Times that, in fact, the entire concept of spot toning a body part is a myth. “You can’t really ‘tone’ muscle,” she said. Instead, your best bet is to “build muscle and then maybe lose a little bit of fat so that muscle is more visible,” she explained in a TikTok video.
@move.with.margie Follow for more at-home workouts! @caliweights ✨ #tonedarms #wristweights #workoutsforwomen #beginnerworkout #SaveIt4TheEndZone #MakeADogsDay #fyp
Still, many people swear by the aesthetic benefits, saying their own arms look leaner and stronger since beginning their wrist-weight walks. As long as you’re cautious not to overexert yourself by piling on too much weight and have realistic expectations, this could very well be one trend worth trying.
