Want to Burn Fat?

When I first heard the word kettlebell, my mental images danced from kettle corn to cowbells and everything in between. Later on, I found out that kettlebells had little to do with either unless you use them to burn off the kettle corn and keep you from looking like a cow! Since the early 2000’s, kettlebells have taken the fitness world by storm. These little bomb-shaped weights pack an incredible punch when appropriately used. If you want to burn big time fat, work every major muscle group and get your workout in fast, start with the kettlebell. Here’s the key. You need the proper form or your workout will be as dangerous as a dive into shallow water. Strength expert Jason Ferruggia says kettlebell workouts are so incredible that “If boredom wasn’t an issue, the kettlebell swing is the only exercise you would ever need to do in your entire life.”

“If boredom wasn’t an issue, the kettlebell swing is the only exercise you would ever need to do in your entire life.”

History of Kettlebells

Kettlebells took over the American fitness culture in the early 2000’s. In 1998, Russian strongman Pavel Tsatsouline came to America and began preaching the gospel of the bell. The rise of social media assisted in spreading the kettlebell craze. Incredibly, kettlebells date all the way back to ancient Greece. Historians say that weights, similar to kettlebells were used to measure grain and other products in the ancient marketplaces. Merchants used to swing the weights around for fun and exercise. This led to strength competitions and soon the kettlebell as a fitness tool was born.

Types of Kettlebell Swings

Some have called it the next Cold War, but the American and the Russian swings both have their advantages. Both swings utilize the same first half of the movement, with knees slightly bent, with glutes, thighs, and abs engaged in the backswing and hips driving the swing motion. The Russian swing brings your arms up to shoulder level at the top of the swing. For the American swing, arms swing all the way up above your head at the top of the movement. The Russian swing utilizes a heavier bell with more and faster repetitions. American style chooses a lighter weight to complement the fuller movement. Fewer repetitions are called for due to the extended reach and longer timing of the move. 

Proper Form with Kettlebells

Max’s Best Bootcamp recorded Common Mistakes and How to Fix Them:

• Too wide of a stance. Improper form often includes a stance that is so wide that it is unable to harness hip power. To avoid this, bring your knees back together to shoulder width apart and slightly bent to prepare for the hip hinge.
• Too tight of a grip on the bell. Many newcomers use a death grip that makes their arms rigid, puts too much pressure on the shoulders and excludes the lower half of the body. A lighter grip allows for your hips and legs to work with your arms in creating the momentum to move the bell.
• Squatting instead of using hips as a hinge. The trouble with squatting is that it removes the hip hinge effect and again, overuses the shoulders while missing out on the momentum power of the hinge. Your goal is bent knees with the buttocks out. As you swing, use the hips to hinge and pop forward into a tight position at the top of the movement. At the top of the movement, your body should feel almost as if you are doing a plank position, except you are standing. Your abs, glutes, and thighs should all be engaged.
• Your spine should be neutral the entire move, with your ear, hip and ankle aligned at the top of the move. Slouchy posture, so typical in our sedentary culture, will ruin the move for you.
• Commit to either the Russian or American swing style. Many beginners end up halfway between the two, unable to decide.
• Over-swing is a danger for those trying American style. The kettlebell upswing should end with your bicep and ear in alignment. The bell should not go over and behind your head.

Correct form looks like the following:

• Stand with feet a little wider than shoulder-width apart.
• Squat down and pick it up. Stand back up to a soft bent knee position.

This is your starting position.

• Gently begin to swing the bell between your legs. At the bottom of the swing, the kettlebell should be between your legs, almost hitting the glutes.
• Your back should be straight, chin up and chest out. Your eyes should look forward.
• Thrust your hips forward in a hinge motion. Your legs, abdominals, and glutes should be tight on your upswing. At the top of the swing, the bell should almost float while your entire body is working, similar to plank position type tension except you are standing.

Properly working the kettlebell will explode your fitness routine! This a straightforward tool will have you burning up fat and working your entire body.