Customer Reviews

2" PC APT Free Weights Fractional Plates Weightlifting Full set 8 plates

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Charles Poliquin (Strngth coach) recommended in an article years ago to make very small weight increases instead of big jumps of 5-10 lbs. He stated by using fractional plates you could gain longer without hitting a plateau. Personally when I am getting in to challenging weights and the thought of another 5 lbs is daunting, being able to increase the weight by only 1/2 lb helps. I think "whats half a pound?" 8 ounces! I probably will not be able to feel the difference, yet I am still increasing weight.

They get the job done. Very useful for shoulder press and other movements where you make smaller gains.

I mean it too. These weight plates solve a big problem- being force to go up in bigger increments than you're ready for. While these are a somewhat expensive investment, know that I did a pretty extensive search on the internet on fractional plates and was unable to find anything cheaper than what's offered here.

In most gyms, the smallest weight plate you'll find is a 5 lb. plate and MAYBE a 2 1/2 lb. plate- if you're lucky. Even with the 2 1/2 lb. plate added to each end of a barbell or adjustable dumbbell, that's still a 5 lb. jump in weight- which may be okay for exercises like the squat or bench press where you work big muscle groups. However going up that much can be a lot for the smaller muscles, especially for the ladies, when you're doing exercises such as the biceps curl or tricep press. Problem solved with these weights- and believe me, its a whole lot easier and safer going up a 1/2 lb. at a time than going up 5 or 10 lbs. at a time!

Individuals that would like to start weight lifting but find free weights too daunting might consider beginning with elastic bands such as the Latex Free Light Resistance Thera-band Exercise Bands - Money Saving Light Resistance Pack with 1 thin, 1 medium & 1 heavy band for light resistance.

These plates come in very small increments, but several of them - like a mini olympic set - which makes them PERFECT for adding just an extra pound or two (or heck, a half pound if you want) to bust through a plataeu, or progress to a very specific percentage upwards.

This company has spiked up 30% in negative ratings in the last 30 days. The feedback is consistent that people have been waiting over 30 days and have not received the product yet. I am in the same boat and as I am already out the money I am concerned about whether or not they are even in business. They have not responded to customer emails in weeks. Look elseware.

Most Gyms and stores only have 2.5 lb plates so you can only increase your dumbbell or barbell poundage at 5 lb increments. The problem is 5 lbs can be too much of an increase in PERCENTAGE of the poundage you are lifting. 5 lbs is usually too much if you are doing dumbbell exercises because you will usually be lifting less poundage than on a barbell exercise.

If you are doing Dumbbell Lateral Raises 20 lbs X 10 to muscular failure(momentary exhaustion, your BODY is unable to complete another repetition without rest) and you increase the poundage to 25 lbs on your next work out it will be very hard to do the exercise. You probably will only be able to do a few repetitions at most, you will NOT be able to lift it 8 or more repetitions. If you do Bench Press 200 lbs X 10 to muscular failure and you increase the poundage to 205 lbs on your next work out, you probably will be able to complete 8 or more repetitions. The reason for this is the PERCENTAGE increase in poundage on an exercise depends on both the actual poundage and the amount you are increasing it. If you are increasing the poundage on 2 different exercises by the SAME amount, but the poundage you are lifting is a DIFFERENT amount , the HIGHER the poundage you are lifting will result in a LOWER PERCENTAGE increase when you increase the weight by the SAME amount, and the LOWER the poundage you are lifting will result in a HIGHER PERCENTAGE increase when you increase the poundage by the SAME amount.

For example if you are Bench Pressing 200 lbs and you increase the poundage 5 lbs that is a 2.5% increase. If you are doing Dumbbell Lateral Raises at 20 lbs and you increase the poundage 5 lbs that is a 25% increase.

With these plates you can increase your poundage on an Olympic(2 inch diameter barbell & dumbbells) barbell or dumbbell by increments of .5 lb, 1 lb, 1.5 lbs, and 2 lbs.

If you plan to increase mass and strength I personally endorse programs such as Bill Starr 5x5 or Max OT. First and foremost, increasing one's strength and mass should be conducted as safely and as scientifically as possible. Then and only then you can train intensely and insanely. Have you heard of Kaizen? It's a Japanese term used in the manufacturing industry. It means continuous improvement a little at a time. A LITTLE AT A TIME. This principle (more like philosophy, really) applies in the lifting community as well.

You're stuck at 220 lbs bench press and you want to blast through plateau so you can finally have the coveted "two 45-lb plates on each side of the bar" look and impress your friends? You certainly would not want to add 5 pounds on each side for a total of 230, because this is an invitation for serious injury. Using these fractional plates, you should add 1.25 lbs A LITTLE AT A TIME until you reach your goal of 225.

These plates are easy to use. They are color coded as to avoid confusion. The weights are also stenciled on each plate so that your stereo-typical knuckle-dragging meathead will know how much it weighs. The plates easily slip on and off on any Olympic bar. I don't know how else to explain the simplicity and rugged toughness of these plates. They are so easy to use even a caveman can do it. (Hey, we're lifters, so we're supposed to be dumb as a rock, right?)

You know the old saying "great things come in small package?" I think they were referring to these plates. Do not underestimate these powerful tools. Trust me. I'm a trainer.

At first I was skeptical about getting these fractional weights.
After training a while, a 5 pound jump became too much.
I used these weights to get past the "plateau".
As whimpy as adding these weights to the bar may look, I am making great progress as opposed to the people who regularly lift the same amount of weight every time they go to the gym, thus never making progress.