Ankle weights are great tools whether you’re working out at the gym, outdoors, or at home, and this article will offer you the best ankle weights you can buy for any type of workout.
What Are Ankle Weights?
Ankles weights are wearable weights located on the ankles. Most of these weights have an adjustable strap like a Velcro strap and can be used for multiple types of exercises. Often adjustable ankle weights can even be worn as wrist weights.
An ankle weight is an excellent tool to aid fat loss, a cardio workout, core strength, or other fitness exercises. Comfortable ankle weights can be used at a home gym and help anyone live a healthy model life. The best ankle weight options will have an adjustable weight set inside these weights. With the addition of removable weights, you can use these for almost any type of exercise, including full-body workouts, or target more specific muscle groups.
A physical therapist, a bodybuilder, or a workout buff can benefit from using ankle weights. This is because all of these people see how versatile these tools are for regular workouts. An ankle weight can be used during a leg lift to help tone your leg muscles or used in other at-home workouts for strength training. You need to pick the weight for your ankle weight based on your body weight. Newer users should use a lighter weight, and you can begin using heavier weights with more practice.
You can add these to almost any workout routine to boost your normal exercise. Contrary to popular belief, these can help your body during moving workouts like runs or jogs and stationary exercise options too. If you do squats with ankle weights, you won’t boost your exercise too much, but as a resistance band, these can help you perfect your form and really get the most out of every workout. An ankle weight can be used for other stationary exercise options like side-lying hip abductions or prone superman curls.
Any workout routine can benefit from comfortable ankle weights. In addition to your body weight, this extra weight allows you to work with extra resistance, really benefiting your strength training, but there are plenty of other benefits ankle weights offer the users.
How Ankle Weights Can Benefit Workouts
One of the most obvious benefits of ankle weights is that they offer extra strength training. If you use ankle weights that are the right body weight percentage for you, you can use them to build muscle faster. You want to use between 1 to 2% of your body weight in ankle weights to benefit from this factor. But there are plenty of other ways these weights benefit the average user.
Many studies have shown that ankle weights are great for older adults and can help them with joint issues are other issues that usually come along with exercise. As you age, there can be some unwanted symptoms accompanying exercise that are usually due to excess pressure or joint issues. Ankle weights enhance walking factors in adults without adding other symptoms since you don’t have to worry about holding the right form during your walk. These are also great at improving walking gait in older adults since you can easily adjust the weights to fit your strength level best.
Other benefits ankle weights offer in balance rehabilitation. These weights can really help anyone better their balance but have been shown to be especially helpful for people recovering from a stroke.
In addition to balance rehabilitation, ankle weights are often used by physical therapists since they offer so many benefits to people recovering from sports injuries or from surgery. Their weight variability and non-pressure make it so much easier to help strengthen weaker muscles without putting too much force on fragile bones or joints.
These weights have also been proven to help lower waist circumference, which can be an ideal aspect for people looking to lose body fat or slim their silhouette.
Exercises You Can Do With Ankle Weights
You can use ankle weights with tons of exercises to get an extra boost. However, you should follow a few guidelines when using these to ensure you don’t injure yourself and can get the most out of this equipment.
Never exceed 3% of your body weight when using ankle weights. It would help if you aimed to use them about three times a week for a minimum of 20 minutes per session to get the most out of your ankle weights. Try only to use them for limited periods; otherwise, you risk experiencing overuse injuries which can cause minor aches or pains and might lead to imbalances. If you’re looking to use heavier weights, then you want to slowly incrementally increase your ankle weights to avoid these same overuse injuries.
After you know how to use these right, some examples of the best beginning exercises to use ankle weights with are side-lying hip abductions, prone superman holds, and prone hamstring curls.
Side-lying hip abductions are great with ankle weights since you can stay in a stationary position and attach your adjustable ankle weight to your ankle. Lay on one side of your body and slowly raise that leg towards the sky for your desired repetitions. Repeat this on the other side to ensure you have great balance.
Prone superman holds are useful for many people recovering from injuries or for older adults. Simply lay down on your chest and stomach with your ankle weights on your ankles for this workout. If you really want to push yourself, you could even attach ankle weights to your wrists as well. When you do this workout, you just lay flat, and in pulses, you will simultaneously raise your hands, arms, legs, and feet so you can get them off the ground. You don’t want to strain your back, and you want to move these body parts away from the ground in a controlled motion and slowly allow them to rest on the ground again as you release them from your flexed position.
A prone hamstring curl is very similar to the prone superman hold, except instead of moving all of your limbs, you’re only moving one leg at a time. You want to lay on your stomach, and while your ankle wights are attached to your leg, you should raise your leg up off the ground as slowly and controlled as you can. You can bend your knee and stop once your leg becomes a 90-degree angle or once you feel your calf is straight up in the air, perpendicular to the floor, then you release your leg back to the floor in a controlled movement.
Top Ankle Weights for At-Home Workouts
1. Sportneer Adjustable Ankle Weights 1 Pair 2 4 6 8 10 Lbs Leg Weight Straps
Ankley weights like the ones offered by Sportneer provide the users with versatility and the option to make any workout even more intense. Every ankle weight option comes in pairs, and anyone can pick between five different colors to ensure they get the choice that excites them most. Sportneer adjustable ankle weights sell pairs of black, blue, orange, pink, and purple ankle weights. These can weigh up to five pounds each, with the option to remove sand pockets to lighten your weights. Sand pockets weigh about .97 pounds each, allowing the wearer to change between one to five pounds depending on their desired intensity.
One size fits all for these weights since they’re universal sized and close with Velcro straps that best fit all ankle sizes. You can even use these weights on your wrists for more versatile workouts. Adding these to your workout will provide you with a more intense workout, adding more resistance to daily walks, jogs, core training, fitness aerobics, or the gym. This can help increase strength, and they can provide a lot of help in rehabilitating muscles as well. These can help improve balance and assist physical therapy recovery workouts. Sportneer makes their ankle weights out of neoprene exteriors with reinforced stitching to support a sturdy outer trim.
These ankle weights are soft and comfortable and will provide you with steady and reliable workout equipment. They’ll last a long time and can be used in a variety of different exercise styles, making them great additions to workout equipment.
2. Balance From GoFit Fully Adjustable Ankle Wrist Arm Leg Weights
Balance From Go Fit provides a wide array of different weights for these fully adjustable ankle weights. Anyone can choose between 1-pound, 1.5-pound, 2-pound, 2.5-pound, 3-pound, 4-pound, and 5-pound pairs of ankle weights. All the sizes come in pairs, and they work great for at-home workouts, walking, jogging, core training, cross-training, aerobic workouts, physical therapy, and many more fitness workouts.
These adjustable ankle weights are durable and made of neoprene material. Their reinforced stitching and moisture-absorbing material inside allow them to be soft, breathable, and comfortable. If you’ve had issues getting brushes, chaffed skin, or irritated skin using ankle weights in the past, the soft material on these should prevent those issues from occurring. Oversized Velcro pads allow these weights to be easy to put on and pull off. They can fit anyone’s ankle, wrist, arm, or leg, so they have even more versatility than most ankle weights do.
If you’re looking for a simple pair of ankle weights to own that are long-lasting and comfortable, these are a great option. Balance From Go Fit combines functionality, variability, comfort, and style into one when they produce these high-quality ankle weights.
3. CAP Barbell HHA-CB020A1 10-Pound Pair Adjustable Ankle Weights
CAP is a well-known and trusted fitness equipment brand. They created a trustworthy pair of adjustable ankle weights suited for at-home workouts and outside or at the gym exercises. The polyester material ensures they’re comfortable yet durable. Each set includes two 10-pound ankle weights for a total of 20-pounds. Each ankle weight constraint has five 2-pound removable weight packs so you can lower or raise your total to fit your routine best.
The adjustable 10.5-inch strap length and hook have loop closures to make sure they offer the user a snug fit. Weights have external pockets so you can easily adjust the weight to suit your needs, and all the weights are filled with sand in a zippered and enclosed compartment.
Special features like the polyester material and hook and loop closures help make sure these adjustable ankle weights can be comfortable for anyone who chooses to wear them. They are meant to fit snugly and prevent them from sliding, so you don’t have to worry about losing your ankle weight during a run. CAP is a trusted pioneer in the fitness industry, and their 10-pound pair of adjustable ankle weights are excellent additions to your normal workout routine and can be used in all sorts and styles of exercise routines.
4. Prodigen Adjustable Ankle Weights Set
The brand Prodigen makes ankle weights in all sizes and colors that are fit for women, men, and kids. Anyone looking to purchase these weights will find they can pick between black, blue, gray, pink, and purple weights. You can choose to purchase pairs of these weights that come in the sizes 1-pound, 2-pounds, 3.5-pounds, 5-pounds, and 7.5-pounds. Depending on your size, you can remove smaller weight inserts in each ankle weight, allowing the weight to lighten or become heavier based on the intensity of your desired workout. Adding weight to your ankle weights will allow you to build the muscle in your thigh and butt a little more.
These fully adjustable sturdy straps and Velcro bands ensure you’ll have a customizable fit that won’t slide off your legs. The weights are made to fit everyone thanks to their Velcro bands. Thanks to the soft and comfortable fabric material, these ankle weights aren’t only durable, they’re breathable during use. The adjustable ankle and write weight works well for protecting your ankle, leg, and wrist skin from getting hurt. When using these, you won’t develop irritated skin or brush burns; they’ll stay safe in place during even the sweatiest workouts.
These will help gradually improve your performance in the gym. Using Prodigen ankle weights will ensure you get the perfect lower body exercise, so you have so many ways to tailor your workout to fit you best. You can use them for walking, jogging, aerobics, gym, or other styles of fitness workouts.
5. Fragraim Adjustable Ankle Weights
Fragraim designed adjustable ankle weights that can be purchased in a number of different weights, colors, and strapped styles. Customers can pick between red, black, green, light gray, purple, blue, gray, and orange colors. They also can pick ankle weights that come with double straps for added security. Double strap options come in black, dark gray, green, light grey, and purple to allow everyone to pick their own aesthetic. You can choose from many different sizes and weights, such as 3-pounds, 4-pounds, 5-pounds, 6-pounds, 8-pounds, 10-pounds, 12-pounds, 15-pounds, or 20-pound packs. Each pack comes with two ankle weights adding up to that total weight, so a 4-pound pack has two 2-pound ankle weights.
Fragraim provides ankle weights with five individual and adjustable sandbags in each pocket. These sandbanks can be removed or left in to decrease or increase the weights on your ankle weights. The weight increments of the sandbags change depending on the overall weight of the ankle weights you purchase, but no matter the size of the ankle weight, they offer plenty of versatility.
Premium quality materials ensure these are durable and stretchy. Their mercerized cotton material makes them soft and breathable along with comfortable to wear. These ankle weights are durable and long-lasting for all workout routines, and they have a snug fit thanks to their closure. An adjustable strap ensures they are comfortable and can be tightened or loosened to provide a proper fit around the ankle, wrist, arm, or leg, making them snug and secure for the longevity of your workout. The Velcro straps used on these make sure they can fit anyone using them and also make them very easy to put on and take off.
These add more resistance to daily workouts, walks, jogs, runs, core training, aerobics, and all sorts of other fitness routines. Fragraim helps increase lower body strength and burn calories and fat faster. These can be excellent aids in muscle rehabilitation and improve balance and flexibility. Ankle weights can provide you with many benefits, and this brand makes sure to provide all of this along with excellent functionality and comfort as well.
How To Choose the Best Ankle Weights for You
The best ankle weights for you will not exceed 3% of your body weight and will match your experience level and goals. You should start with a lighter weight when you’re a beginner and try to ensure you get adjustable Velcro straps so you can tailor the fit to your specific body. Using a Velcro strap is common in ankle weights, but this allows for extra versatility since these can then double as wrist weights.
Make sure you have adjustable weight options since these allow for the most versatility. They can still be very useful if you’re stuck with a fixed weight, but ankle weights are far more versatile with different weight options.
If you plan on running in these or performing quick-moving exercises regularly you might want to aim for ankle weights with reinforced stitching, so you know they won’t rip on your power moves.
When you’re searching for ankle weights, look for ones with the right functionality for you. Then, ensure they will be comfortable and appealing to you. You want to get excited to use your ankle weights, and this way, you can benefit from them as much as possible.
