Wrist weights are affordable, effective, and easy to use – 5 benefits that prove they'll transform your workout routine
A deep dive into the trending bit of kit.
When we predicted that wrist weights would be a big fitness trend for 2024, we weren’t wrong. As we type, the TikTok girlies are declaring this season a "Wrist Weight and Hot Girl Walk Summer" and describing walking while wearing wrist weights as "so BRAT" (a la Charli XCX). The app is chock-full of creators crediting the equipment with toning their arms, and there are just as many videos of those influenced hot-footing it to their nearest store to nab a pair. So, question: what are the main wrist weight benefits and why is everyone loving using them RN?
According to Claire Mills, physiotherapist, Pilates instructor and founder of CORE, it’s largely due to their simplicity and accessibility that wrist weights have become so popular. They're just weights that fasten around your wrist like a bracelet, you see, and can also be strapped round your ankles if you'd like to mix things up a little. “They provide an easy way to intensify any workout, come in different weights, are inexpensive, portable and can be used by anyone,” she says. She also cites good marketing as being key to their meteoric rise. “In my opinion, it was Bala who made wrist weights – or as they call them Bala Bangles – trendy and popular, and since then other brands have followed suit."
She also points out that social media plays a huge factor, with fitness influencers and celebrities endorsing this easy way of elevating your fitness and workouts. Rita Ora, Hailey Bieber, Kendall Jenner and Victoria Beckham are all rumoured to be fans of the kit.
While wrist weights certainly aren't for everyone and – spoiler alert – might not be the sole route to muscular arms as so many make out, they are a tool that many a Pilates instructor rates. To read more about the main wrist weight benefits from a qualified expert, keep scrolling. And for more on the topic, don't miss our explainers on the benefits of ankle weights, plus one MC UK writer's honest ankle weights review.
5 wrist weight benefits you need to know about
1. They can help you to build strength
Let’s start by addressing the rumour that wearing wrist weights while doing daily activities, such as walking or cleaning, facilitates increased arm muscle "tone."
Resistance training causes muscle fibres to tear. When they’re repaired and rebuilt by the body, this results in increased muscle. “Adding weights to your wrists or ankles will add resistance to that limb, thus intensifying the movement and muscle loading,” says Mills. “When we load muscles in the right way with the correct reps and sets, this can lead to muscle strengthening.”
While wrist weights do challenge the muscles in the arms, the load isn’t enough to significantly build muscle. “For this, you would need to do heavier strength training,” Mills clarifies. Progressive overload – where you gradually increase the difficulty of resistance training over time – is the key to building muscle. And as for "tone", this typically translates to definition, which comes as a result of genetics, muscle mass and low body fat, among other factors. Wrist weights alone cannot achieve definition.
That said, Mills assures that using wrist weights alongside reformer Pilates or resistance training can help you achieve your muscle gain goals.
2. Wrist weights can help to improve your cardiovascular health
A study published in the Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, which explored the effects on physiologic responses of wearing wrist weights during treadmill running, found that, because the equipment increases training intensity and energy expenditure during cardio exercise, it may facilitate greater increases in cardiovascular fitness. Mills explains this in more detail: “The added weight intensifies the workout, which raises your heart rate and, therefore, makes the heart pump harder. This increases the challenge to your cardiovascular system, and helps to improve your cardiovascular health.”
Further research, published in the Journal of Taibah University Medical Sciences, found that, similarly to light resistance training with dumbbells, using wrist weights may decrease your risk of cardiovascular disease.
3. They help to improve balance, stability and coordination
“To improve balance and stability, you need to strengthen the muscles that assist with these, challenge proprioception (your awareness of the position or movement of the body) and improve your core strength,” Mills explains. Wearing wrist weights while working out, she says, does both. “Pilates is my go-to form of exercise for this, as Pilates moves are specifically designed to challenge balance, stability and coordination alongside strengthening your core.”
It’s important to note, however, that when used incorrectly or without proper form, wrist weights can studies show that wrist weights can increase your risk of injury, especially to the wrists, elbows, shoulders and neck.
4. Wrist weights can help people have trouble gripping weights add load to exercises
Free weight exercises with weights like dumbbells may be more efficient when it comes to building strength and muscle, but they aren’t accessible to everyone. Wrist weights allow people who are unable to hold free weights to add additional load to upper body exercises. “The velcro means they attach around the wrist, so will add a distal load to the upper limb and body much like holding a weight would do,” Mills says.
This is also useful for those new to weightlifting. “Using lighter weights like wrist or ankle weights can help you build and improve on technique and your control of movements before progressing to heavier weights,” Mills adds. “As a physiotherapist, I find this particularly useful in rehabbing injuries.”
5. They’re accessible and convenient
Unlike other bulkier and more costly equipment, wrist weights are easy to store, use on the go and are lower in price. “I personally use Bala bangles in the majority of my Pilates workouts,” says Mills. “They are easily available, come in varying weights and I often shove them in my case when I go away as they are so small and easy to use.”
Shop MC UK's favourite wrist weights now:
They're pricier than some other wrist weights on the market, but Bala Bands are Mills's go-to.
Available in three colours, these wrist weights are mid-range in price and look super sleek. Each bracelet weighs around 450g each, plus they're wipe-clean.
What these wrist weights lack in aesthetic appeal they gain in value for money. Available in four different weights, from 0.5kg to 2kg per bracelet, they accommodate various experience levels and workout styles.
