Kettlebell Training: Are You Man Enough?
This is Kevin’s third guest post with us and boy do you guys love him. I get more emails about his posts then all of mine combined. Not to mention Kevin is truly one great guy who has a very successful blog himself at Strong and Fit where you can get all the information you need to live a healthy and successful life. We are blessed to have Kevin and know you will enjoy this post. Thanks Kevin
I’m willing to bet some of you man-over-board readers will make a New Year’s resolution to lose weight or get in better shape next year. But here’s a dilemma many men face: treadmills and stair climbers are . . . well . . . boring. I’ve decided to do more cardiovascular training next year, and I think I’ve found something that will keep me interested: kettlebell training.
Kettlebells look kind of like cannonballs with handles. This humble yet effective training tool apparently evolved from counter-weights in Russian markets (early 1700’s). They became very popular in the early 1900’s for developing strength and power. Now there is a worldwide renaissance of this type of training—everyone from MMA fighters to Biggest Loser contestants are throwing them around.
Here are three major benefits I see to kettlebells:
1. Cost-effective: compare a set of kettlebells to the cost of a treadmill, stair climber, or yearly gym membership. You’ll see this is a relatively inexpensive tool for fitness.
2. Versatile: put a pair of kettlebells on the floor and you have a perfect pushup stand (they have flat bottoms). Use them for traditional weight training movements, such as curls, squats, lunges, etc. If you are ready to get intense, try some dynamic movements such as swings or snatches. You can use them to develop several aspects of fitness: strength, cardiovascular endurance, balance, and the list goes on.
3. Durable: you’d have to get pretty creative to break a chunk of iron. A set of these should last a lifetime.
I bought a 20-kilo kettlebell a few days ago. I tried it out this morning, and now I’m hooked. I’ll be using it regularly to improve my cardiovascular fitness and burn calories—without even leaving my apartment. Maybe you, too, will consider using this tool in your fitness regimen.
For more information, visit Strongandfit.net: Kettlebell Training
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Posted by Kevin Sanders
on Dec 23 2009 Filed under HEALTH, SELF HELP.
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Back to Basics???
Yes, the old-fashioned stuff still works today
Hard to reinvent the wheel, right Kevin?
What a great idea. I’d not heard of or seen these before. I think I’ll give them a go too. Thanks.
Have a terrific day Glenn. Big hug.
You can make sexist remarks on my blog anytime. I loved it. I love that type of banter. Keep them coming.
Have a terrific day Glenn. Big Christmas hugs.
Cool I know you are fine with it Sandee, just didn’t want to upset some of the moms or Christian bloggers you have as commenters, you know how they can be
Merry Christmas Darling xox
Interesting and simple. Now if only I didn’t constantly get bored of everything, these seem like an adequate perma-solution for some good ol’ exercise. Tempting to play catch with it and hope it doesn’t land on my toe(any other toe will get some sympathy love from me, but only for a few seconds).
First of all Merry Christmas. Hope you have had a good one with loved ones.
Second of all… I don’t think we have kettlebells in our gym, but I’m sure my training partner would love to punish me with a few sets in the New Year if they did
Kettlebells are a great fitness tool for women too! I have one and enjoy working out with it – the traditional dumbbell exercises can get boring (for you AND your muscles) if you’ve been doing them forever. Kettlebells challenge you in a fresh way.
(And no, I am not cut like the woman in the photo! I am slim and lightly toned – so those who want a less extreme look can get that too.)
omg..i love it. dang..the picture is awesome!!!
My recent post I Have Fun On Twitter : Pleasure Ellis
Glad you approve of the picture
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You should be comparing kettlebells to dumbbells. For example cost and variety of exercises. Can you do fly's lying down on a bench with these? Will a 20 pound kettlebell feel any different than doing a 20 pound dumbbell workout? Been quite a few years since I've hit the gym, so I've never seen these close up.
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I think the jest of the post was to introduce a great simple addition to someones fitness assortment. I know I never thought to compare prices when I went out to by either dumb bells or free weights. My main concern was they were made well and would not easily slide off the pole when using the free weights. I also believe the kettlebells can hit a different group of muscles that dumb bells fail to. But using anything to get you back in shape, even a rock is better then doing nothing.
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1. The Overhead Kettlebell Swing: This particular drill is as intense as it gets, but is one of the best for helping you to develop superior core strength for your volleyball game!
What a great post! Please write more often about kettlebells they are my new fitness passion!See you
Margaret