box weighted vest vs box women's weighted vest

This is a comparison between the of the Box weighted vest and the box women's weighted vest including pros, cons, and alternatives. This was originally posted in which weighted vest to get from Rogue.

Overview and review of the Box women's weighted vest

This is an overview of the Women's box weighted vest including pros, cons, and alternatives. This was originally posted in which weighted vest to get from Rogue.

BOX Women's Weight Vest - Weight Training | Rogue Fitness

Overview of the Women's weighted vest

Price: $122 - $144

The women's box vest is a redesign of the time tested box vest classic. Some of the material of the vest has been removed at the chest to make it a better fit for women. This lowers the maximum amount of weight the vest can take to 25lbs. In return, you will have less fabric in the wrong places, especially if you only work at lower weight rates anyway and bring in a sizeable front yourself. (Box themselves avoided to say this, if you have a better way of explaining this, please let me know. It is pretty obvious what this design for women is about.)

Pros of the Women's weighted vest

The pros of the women's box vest are:

A different color scheme from black
Zipper in the front
Better suited to a female anatomy

This vest has been designed with women in mind. You can call them out for gender stereotyping, as this is always a challenge with gender-specific products. Still, I think it makes sense to have a vest that is a little lighter and leaves space in the right places to perform your best without creating unnecessary pain.

Cons of the Women's box weighted vest

The cons of the Women's box weighted vest are:

Less fabric
Price

While the design helps to give you more freedom and provides less fabric than other vests at a similar price point. This also means there is less surface to stick weight into which lowers the overall capacity to 25lb. Combined with the fact that the base price of the women's box vest is the same as their standard vest I find it to be a little bit of a ripoff. I think it would be fairer to deduct $20 as this clearly uses less material than the standard box vest unless somebody explains to me how the production of this vest is a lot more complex.

Alternatives to the women's box weighted vest

Alternatives to the box weighted vest are:

If you hate gender stereotyping and do not mind that a weighted vest covers your full front, then the box weighted vest gives you more capacity for the same price. You can use the same weights and train with a battle-tested classic. The only downside is that it might be a little more painful than with the women's version.

The Rogue plate carrier is gender-neutral and goes up to 40lbs in weight. This is a great value for money option that also leaves you with possibilities to customize the vest with your own patches.

The MiR short vest is a great option if you want to maximize your weight at a relatively low cost for up to 90lbs. In this segment, you can not beat the MiR short vest in the Rogue shop.

Conclusion for the women's box weighted vest

If you need it for what it has been designed for, it is a great fit. Otherwise, it is overpriced and you should go for something else.

Overview and review of the box weighted vest

This is an overview of the Box weighted vest including pros, cons, and alternatives. This was originally posted in which weighted vest to get from Rogue.

Overview of the Box weighted vest

Price $125 - $195

The box weighted vest is where it all started for Rogue. This was one of the first weighted vests on their website and the go-to vest in the Crossfit community for a considerable time. Since Rogue is working closely with the military for product ideas other products have gained in popularity and have overtaken the box weighted vest in numbers sold. Still, this is a very solid vest that goes up to 45lb in load. It is easy to get on and off and will take a beating. The full specifications are:

Made in the USA
Weighted Tac Vest (for Gym Use / Resistance Bodyweight Training only)
One Size Fits All: Compact design with natural contouring (Dimensions: 10.5" width x 8.5" length x 2.5" depth)
Narrow 3.25” wide shoulders for a greater range of motion
Fully Padded body and shoulders
Moisture-Resistant
Weight Available in 2.5LB increments (4.25" x 1.875" x 1.5" dimensions)
Max Weight Capacity: 45LB
Unloaded Vest Weight: 2.815LBS
Easy-adjust kipping-proof BOX belt system with military-grade webbing and hook-and-loop attachment
All weights and belts are removable
Durable military-grade construction backed by Lifetime Warranty against defects in materials and workmanship
Applications: Resistance weighted vest training - Pull-ups, Climbing, CrossFit exercises, Dragging, Chopping, Punching, Crawling, etc.
Color: Black

This is a great budget option for a vest that can be loaded in 2.5lbs increments. If that is what you are looking for than the Box weighted vest is your best bet.

Pros of the box weighted vest

The pros of the box weighted vest are:

Price
Made in America
Robust design

This vest has a great price point and a robust design that will not break. The one size fits all approach helps to come up with a structure that is hard to break. For $125 this vest is also at the lower end of vests which are decent and still loadable in 2.5 lbs increments. There is a reason for the box was popular for so long before everything went a bit more down the military design lane.

Cons of the box weighted vest

Cons of the box weighted vest are:

Quick changes in weight are hard
One size fits all
Only available in black

The plate carrier designs are easier to manage when you want to change weights quickly. While they deliver fewer increments, you only have to change two or even one plate to get a completely different experience. One size fits all can also be a problem as this usually ends up being one size fits the norm. If you are too tall, small, broad or thin, the box vest will shave more. The last point that in our age of individualization and customization you might think that black as the only option is a bit boring for something that you wear regularly when you work out.

Alternatives to the box weighted vest

Alternatives to the box weighted vest are:

The Rogue plate carrier vest comes in at the same price as the box vest and delivers more mobility and easier change of weight at a slightly lower maximum weight. The Rogue plate carrier scales up to 30lb compared to the 45lb of the Box vest. In return, you get a design you can customize with batches and lends itself to more mobility.

The women's box vest has been adjusted to give women a bit more freedom around the chest to make the vest more comfortable to wear. This is the right choice when you are worried about the one size fits all approach of the original box vest.

The MiR short vest is a small powerhouse that packs up to 90lb in a short vest design. If you go for the full enchilada it is fair to see that the price $289 and therefore not fully comparable to the $195 upper end of the box vest. In return, you get double the weight in almost the same amount of vest.

Conclusion for the box weighted vest

The box weighted vest is classic and no-nonsense design. If you want a robust vest that can carry up to 45lbs this is the one to get a good price point. Overall, it might have outlived its best days as a product and needs a revisit for color options and quicker loading/reloading.