Is Nike Strength Equipment Actually Worth Buying?
Our thoughts after testing some home gym offerings from the Swoosh.
Reviewed by Charles Thorp, NASMFitness and Reviews Editor
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NIKE IS ICONIC in sportswear and fashion, and in 2023, it expanded into strength equipment, a significant yet sensible departure from its usual offerings. Nike Strength—an officially licensed equipment line operated by Dimension 6 Fitness Corporation—now includes kettlebells, dumbbells, racks, weight benches, barbells, and plates, all promoted alongside the caliber of athletes you’d expect from the Swoosh, including LeBron James, Scottie Scheffler, and Dak Prescott. But does the equipment’s quality live up to the reputation of the logo it bears?
“For years, athletes have trained in Nike footwear and apparel, but when they stepped into the gym, they had to leave the Nike ecosystem behind,” Nike Strength founder Drew Conant tells Men’s Health. “Nike Strength allows us to create a more complete training experience by bringing the same commitment to innovation, performance, and design to the equipment they use every day.”
When a brand that generated more than $46 billion in revenue in fiscal 2026 puts its name behind a new product line, the hype is automatic. The expectations are also sky-high. Plenty of companies in the home gym space have already built rabid fan bases around high-quality, extensive equipment lines, so why would those consumers switch to a shoe company for barbells and weight plates?
Nike Strength drew plenty of attention when it launched, but the response from hardcore equipment heads was more measured. The lineup—which has since expanded to include racks, benches, storage, flooring, and accessories—was generally viewed as fairly standard, and the build quality as… fine. The equipment looked stellar, to no one’s surprise, and the prices were high, also to no one’s shock. That makes much of the gear hard to justify, especially when proven versions of nearly everything Nike sells are available for the same price or less.
Some owners have been more positive. Beyond liking the look of the equipment, buyers on Reddit have praised the build quality and highlighted thoughtful features, such as the ergonomic handles on the dumbbells.
“Athletes and casual lifters know Nike colors instinctively, and they find our equipment really attractive because we can do things like pull in colors they connect with,” Conant continues. “We have barbells and curl bars in our iconic orange colorway that sneakerheads know from our classic orange shoeboxes.”
Those details sound meaningful on paper, but their value—and whether they justify Nike’s pricing—depends on how well they translate to actual training. A sharp colorway and a familiar logo can only carry equipment so far. The best pieces pair Nike’s design instincts with features that improve the lifting experience; the weaker ones ask you to pay a premium for the Swoosh. Here’s which Nike Strength equipment pieces are actually worth your money, which we’ve determined after quality testing time with each piece.
Nike Strength Equipment Actually Worth Buying
Nike Kettlebell
Nike Kettlebell
Pros
- Simple, versatile, and beginner-friendly
- Available from 9 lb to 88 lb
- Wide handle
- Cast-iron construction
Cons
- One kettlebell can be limiting as strength improves
- Handle size changes depending on kettlebell weight
Again, Nike didn’t reinvent the wheel here—and that’s probably a good thing. A kettlebell does not need a flashy redesign. It needs a stable base, a comfortable handle, a durable finish, and enough weight options to serve everyone from beginners learning deadlifts and goblet squats to experienced lifters who swing, clean, and press heavier bells.
Nike’s version checks those basic boxes. The kettlebell is made of cast iron and comes in weights ranging from 4 kilograms (about 9 pounds) to 40 kilograms (about 88 pounds). Nike lists a handle diameter range of 30mm to 40mm, depending on size, and a handle width range of 160mm to 238mm, which gives heavier bells more room for two-handed swings and goblet work.
The downside is cost and commitment. Nike sells these individually, so building a full run quickly becomes expensive.
But as a single-piece purchase, the kettlebell might be one of the easiest Nike Strength products to justify. MH Fitness and Reviews Editor Charles Thorp, NASM has a 44-lb version that has suited him well for more than a year of workouts in his garage gym. Buy the right weight, and you get a compact tool for swings, carries, squats, presses, rows, and conditioning work that takes up almost no space.
Read More: The Best Kettlebells, Tested by Us
| Weight Range | 9 lb to 88 lbs |
| Handle Diameter | 30 mm to 40 mm, depending on size |
| Handle Width | 160 mm to 238 mm, depending on size |
| Material | Cast iron |
Nike Grind Dumbbell
Nike Grind Dumbbell
Pros
- Made with at least 20 percent Nike Grind rubber by volume
- Anti-roll hex-style construction
- Medium knurled handle
- Wide weight range from light to heavy pairs
Cons
- Fixed dumbbells require more space as your collection grows
- Sold in quantities of two, so the price climbs quickly when building a set
Fixed dumbbells aren’t inherently better than adjustable pairs, but plenty of lifters prefer them for their stability, durability, and commercial-gym feel. They’re also a little easier to use for supersets, since you don’t have to return them to a cradle and adjust the weight between movements.
If these dumbbells are anything, they’re eye-catching. Made with at least 20 percent Nike Grind rubber by volume, they get their speckled, funfetti-like look from ground-up scraps from footwear manufacturing, giving each bell a more distinctive look than the usual black rubber pair. The sculpted anti-roll shape helps keep them in place between sets and makes them usable for movements like dumbbell pushups and renegade rows, while the medium-knurled handles add grip without feeling overly aggressive.
Thorp has a few pairs of these at home, and the lighter weights are used often by the whole household; because they are aesthetically pleasing, they don’t look out of place in a living room setting where light workouts happen.
Read More: The Best Dumbbells, Tested bfy Us
| Weight Range | 2.5 to 75 lbs |
| Material | Rubber with at least 20% Nike Grind rubber by volume |
| Handle | Medium knurled handle |
| Design | Anti-roll geometry |
| Best for | Fixed-weight dumbbell training |
Nike Strength Shield Barbell (20 kg)
Nike Strength Shield Barbell (20 kg)
Pros
- 190,000 PSI tensile strength
- 1,500-pound listed weight capacity
- Cerakote shaft coating
- Dual knurl marks
Cons
- Not as specialized as a dedicated power bar or Olympic weightlifting bar
Most serious strength equipment brands are defined by their barbells. Eleiko, Rogue, REP Fitness—all make strong products across the board, but the barbells are often the centerpieces. That’s because barbells anchor the classic strength lifts: bench presses, deadlifts, squats, cleans, jerks, and snatches. You don’t technically need a barbell to train those movement patterns, but barbell lifting remains the standard in strength training. Everything else is, in some way, an accessory.
Nike’s Shield Barbell is best understood as a good-looking, general-purpose bar for home gym owners who want one barbell that can handle a little bit of everything. Thorp uses it for a variety of basic, lightweight lifts at home. Its 28-millimeter shaft, 190,000 PSI tensile strength, dual knurl marks, and needle-bearing sleeves make it a capable multipurpose bar. But the knurling is passive, and the spin may not feel as lively as the bearing spec suggests.
This is a nerdy detail, but most multipurpose bars are 28.5 millimeters. That’s because 28.5 millimeters splits the difference between a standard Olympic weightlifting barbell, which is typically 28 millimeters, and a powerlifting bar, which is typically 29 millimeters. Will most general lifters notice the difference? Probably not. But if you’re used to a power bar, this one may feel a little different in your hands. The diameter is part of the reason. The knurling is also less aggressive than Nike suggests. That doesn’t make it ineffective, but it does mean the bar walks a safe middle ground that may leave serious weightlifters and powerlifters wanting more.
The Shield Barbell is approachable, versatile, and polished, in line with Nike’s broader Strength line. The tradeoff is that you’re paying close to specialty-bar prices for what is ultimately the safer, jack-of-all-trades pick. If your training mostly consists of benching, squatting, deadlifting, accessory work, and the occasional clean or snatch variation, this bar should do the job well. But if you’re chasing max-effort pulls, competition-style squats, or serious Olympic weightlifting, you’ll probably get more value from a purpose-built barbell.
| Bar weight | 44 lbs |
| Bar length | 86.6'' |
| Diameter | 28.5mm |
| Shaft coating | Cerakote coating |
| Weight capacity | 1,500 lb |
Andrew Gutman, NASM-CPT is a journalist with a decade of experience covering fitness and nutrition. His work has been published in Men's Health, Men's Journal, Muscle & Fitness, and Gear Patrol. Outside of writing, Andrew trains in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, helps coach his gym's kickboxing team, and enjoys reading and cooking.
Charles Thorp is the Fitness and Reviews Editor at Men’s Health, where he shares the best product recommendations in gym equipment, recovery tools, supplements, and more. Following an early life in athletics, Charles became a NASM-certified trainer and began writing programs alongside the most respected coaches in the world. Since entering the world of fitness content, Charles has had the opportunity to learn from and train alongside high performance individuals from the NFL, UFC, NBA, Formula 1, CrossFit, US Olympics, and Navy SEALs. When he’s not writing about training programs or gear, he can be seen at the gym or in the wild, putting them to the test.
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