Professor Kristen Beavers puts weighted vests to the test

Nearly a decade ago, Kristen Beavers, who studies safe ways for older adults to lose weight, began asking whether weighted vests could help this population drop pounds without sacrificing vital bone mass and lean muscle. Now, in 2025, she routinely gets requests from national media, community groups and individuals interested in better ways to work out.

A professor of internal medicine, section of gerontology and geriatric medicine, at Wake Forest University School of Medicine and research professor of health and exercise science at Wake Forest University, Beavers received a $2.9 million grant from the National Institute on Aging in 2020 to study the ability of a weighted vest worn during weight loss to minimize bone loss in older adults. INVEST (Incorporating Nutrition, Vests, Education and Strength Training) in Bone Health is one of the largest National Institutes of Health-funded weighted vest research studies to be conducted. 

Read more and view an interview with Beavers on news.wfu.edu.