If you haven’t heard of kettlebells yet, you must have been hiding under a…dumbbell. Kettlebells are one of the newest pieces of exercise equipment to hit the US and are growing rapidly in popularity because of the results they help others achieve in very little time.

For those in the know, kettlebells are new to the US, but they are not new by any means. In fact, kettlebells have been around for HUNDREDS of years. They were basically unknown in the West sans some pictures of strongmen using them in the last 1800’s and early 1900’s until exercise specialist and Russian ex-Special Forces member Pavel Tsatsouline re introduced them around 2000.

Kettlebells look like bowling balls with handles. They are effective because you have to actively move the weight through space in both linear and non linear ways that will help you work your entire body with just about every exercise. Below are 3 basic but VERY effective exercises that you can do with kettlebells to help you get ripped, strong, and dramatically increase your cardiovascular endurance as well.

The Kettlebell Swing-This is the core exercise done with the kettlebell. It basically involves your holding the handle with two hands and swing the bell through your legs and then thrusting forward with your hips to swing the ball up to eye level or just overhead. This exercise will work your ENTIRE body and is deceptively effective. Newbies will realize this the very next day…I promise.

The Kettlebell Clean-The clean is a popular power lifting move, but done with the kettlebell, you will be forced to stabilize the side of your body opposite of where the kettlebell comes to rest. You will use your lower body to power the bell up, and your arms to a lesser degree. This makes the kettlebell clean a super cool core movement. You can bring the bell up from a dead rest, or clean it from a swing. In either case, you will bring the bell up to rest on your forearms and tight to the body as if you were chambering your fist to throw a punch. Then, bring the bell back down to either rest, or swing to the other side.

The Kettlebell Snatch-I know you have heard the squat called “The king of exercises” but after you knock out a couple of kettlebell snatches with a decent weight, you may want to crown a new ruler. This movement involves thrusting the kettlebell from the ground straight overheard, and then bringing it back down again. The kettlebell snatch effectively incorporates almost every muscle in your body, and if done for reps, will have you dripping in sweat and breathing like a dying dog in no time. You might be surprised that one round ball looking piece of equipment can do this to your body. Make no mistake, the kettlebell is EFFECTIVE.

Now that you have a bit of understanding about these exercises, DON’T DO THEM! Well, that is until you can do at least an initial session with a certified kettlebell instructor. Because of the ballistic movement required for kettlebell lifts, it is easy to injure yourself if you don’t know what you are doing. Once you get familiar with the kettlebells though, you won’t ever want to put them down again!

By: Emile A. Jarreau

About the Author:

It seems pretty trite to say that we all want to get ripped and lean but do so in the shortest amount of time, but it is a trite saying that I hear over and over again. Everyone will ALWAYS be looking for shortcuts to weight loss and physical fitness. The problem is, many people look to pills and potions as their “shortcuts” and they would rather believe the crazy claims made by TV commercials than sound exercise principals. A little hard work can go a LONG way, but some folks are just too lazy to move off the couch and into the world of exercise.

For those that aren’t afraid of a little hard work, the good news is that there ARE ways in which you can get ripped and lean and it will only take you about 30 minutes a day. I am talking about COMPOUND MOVEMENTS. A compound movement is any movement in which you will engage many muscles of your body at one time. This type of exercise will allow you to work out many muscles at one time, burn more calories, and greatly speed up the time it takes for you to get in incredible shape. One piece of exercise equipment that features compound movements as part of its core principles is the kettlebell.

The kettlebell is a piece of equipment that looks like a bowling ball with a handle. Russian in origin, the kettlebell has been around for hundreds of years, but has just recently been introduced to the US. To workout using the kettlebell, you have to engage almost every muscle in your entire body. Each list is unilateral (when using only one kettlebell of course) and this forces you to maximize the principles of core stabilization to help support the lift and move the weight through the different planes of motion. Full body muscular recruitment coupled with a focus on core stabilization…sound like an effective workout to anyone? I hope so…

Ok, now, let’s talk about what I promised you. Here is how to get a fat burning whole body workout in 30 minutes or less. Just swing baby! Using a kettlebell that is. The kettlebell swing is the core foundational exercise of the kettlebell. It incorporates just about every muscle in your body and it will keep you moving the entire time helping you burn calories and shred the fat off in no time at all. To perform the exercise, you will grasp the handle of the kettlebell with two hands. Then, thrust your hips forward, keep your arms loose but extended and allow the kettlebell to swing forward. Then, allow it to swing back down and through your legs. Now, thrust your hips again increasing the momentum. Make sure you don’t over extend your back when the bell goes forward, but instead, stabilize your core when the kettlebell moves forward and keep your back fairly straight up and down. Sounds simple, huh? Well, it is fairly easy to get the hang of it, but you will soon realize, the work is NOT easy. Even with a fairly light weight, you will probably have trouble knocking out 20 or more swings at a time. Put it this way, for your first workout of kettlebell swings, you will probably not want to go for more than about 5-10 minutes of swings at the most. This will give you an incredible workout and depending how you feel the next day, you can alter the time and weight accordingly. Most folks are surprised at just how intense and effective this workout can be, so take it slow, be safe, and start incorporating one of the most effective exercises that exists into your regimen. A fat burning whole body workout in 30 minutes or less? Yep, kettlebell swings are the answer!

By: Emile A. Jarreau

About the Author:

It seems pretty trite to say that we all want to get ripped and lean but do so in the shortest amount of time, but it is a trite saying that I hear over and over again. Everyone will ALWAYS be looking for shortcuts to weight loss and physical fitness. The problem is, many people look to pills and potions as their “shortcuts” and they would rather believe the crazy claims made by TV commercials than sound exercise principals. A little hard work can go a LONG way, but some folks are just too lazy to move off the couch and into the world of exercise.

For those that aren’t afraid of a little hard work, the good news is that there ARE ways in which you can get ripped and lean and it will only take you about 30 minutes a day. I am talking about COMPOUND MOVEMENTS. A compound movement is any movement in which you will engage many muscles of your body at one time. This type of exercise will allow you to work out many muscles at one time, burn more calories, and greatly speed up the time it takes for you to get in incredible shape. One piece of exercise equipment that features compound movements as part of its core principles is the kettlebell.

The kettlebell is a piece of equipment that looks like a bowling ball with a handle. Russian in origin, the kettlebell has been around for hundreds of years, but has just recently been introduced to the US. To workout using the kettlebell, you have to engage almost every muscle in your entire body. Each list is unilateral (when using only one kettlebell of course) and this forces you to maximize the principles of core stabilization to help support the lift and move the weight through the different planes of motion. Full body muscular recruitment coupled with a focus on core stabilization…sound like an effective workout to anyone? I hope so…

Ok, now, let’s talk about what I promised you. Here is how to get a fat burning whole body workout in 30 minutes or less. Just swing baby! Using a kettlebell that is. The kettlebell swing is the core foundational exercise of the kettlebell. It incorporates just about every muscle in your body and it will keep you moving the entire time helping you burn calories and shred the fat off in no time at all. To perform the exercise, you will grasp the handle of the kettlebell with two hands. Then, thrust your hips forward, keep your arms loose but extended and allow the kettlebell to swing forward. Then, allow it to swing back down and through your legs. Now, thrust your hips again increasing the momentum. Make sure you don’t over extend your back when the bell goes forward, but instead, stabilize your core when the kettlebell moves forward and keep your back fairly straight up and down. Sounds simple, huh? Well, it is fairly easy to get the hang of it, but you will soon realize, the work is NOT easy. Even with a fairly light weight, you will probably have trouble knocking out 20 or more swings at a time. Put it this way, for your first workout of kettlebell swings, you will probably not want to go for more than about 5-10 minutes of swings at the most. This will give you an incredible workout and depending how you feel the next day, you can alter the time and weight accordingly. Most folks are surprised at just how intense and effective this workout can be, so take it slow, be safe, and start incorporating one of the most effective exercises that exists into your regimen. A fat burning whole body workout in 30 minutes or less? Yep, kettlebell swings are the answer!

By: Emile A. Jarreau

About the Author:

Kettlebells are one of the greatest, if not THE greatest tools for developing core and overall body strength. If you heard the word kettlebell and said “what is a kettlebell?” Then listen up:

Kettlebells look like bowling balls with handles coming out of the top. They originated in Russia hundreds of years ago, and they have been used by strongmen to develop serious muscular strength and endurance ever since. The kettlebell was just recently introduced into the US and has been having a tremendous impact on everyone who decides o pick one up and give it a go. So, how do kettlebells help build core strength?

First of all, the beauty of the kettlebell is in its design. Because the handle forces your hand further away from the bulk of the weight, the center of gravity is always off requiring your core to do work throughout just about any kettlebell exercise thereby increasing the affect it has on your body. Compare this to a dumbbell that features weight distributed evenly on either side of a handle. Kettlebells are much harder to manipulate because of their design, which in terms of developing cores strength is a GOOD thing.

The next feature of the kettlebell that makes it such a great core developing tool is how you use it during a workout. The main exercise of the kettlebell is called the SWING. The way it is performed is by swinging the kettlebell through your legs and then thrusting your hips to swing it forward and up to or even above eye level. To properly perform the exercise, you will squat as you swing downward, and stand straight up and the bell moves forward and up, keeping the arms extended all the while. To demonstrate the physics of how incredible this exercise is, picture in your mind a large trebuchet. (a trebuchet, for those who are unaware, is a centuries old battle weapon that would use a counterweight of hundreds or thousands of pounds in order to launch rocks and other debris into enemy territory using a long arm with a basket or sling attachment.) So, if you think of YOURSELF as the trebuchet, your core is the bulk of the machine and must perform all the work in order to move the ammunition (in this case the kettlebell) through the air. The more efficient and strong your core is, the easier it will be to swing the bell through space, and the greater and greater weight you will be able to handle.

Watching someone swing a kettlebell does not look difficult at all. The first time you swing one, while you will notice that you do start breathing heavily, you may not think you are getting a true muscular endurance workout…until the next day that is. Swinging a kettlebell will tax your thighs, your calves, our abdominals, your lower back, and possible even your shoulders and arms. In addition, the exercise itself is an incredible fat burner as well. One simply motion that will help build a rock solid core as well as strip away pounds of fat. If this is your goal, go pick up a kettlebell today and get to swinging!

By: Emile A. Jarreau

About the Author: