Kettlebell Basics Combo #1

One awesome thing about mastering the basics of kettlebell training – the Swing, the Get Up, the Squat, the Clean and Press, and the Snatch – is that you can combine these exercises together into ‘flow’ combo circuits (see this post for more about the concept of ‘kettlebell flow’) once you’ve got them down.

So I’ve decided to do a short series of videos showing you how to do a few of these ‘kettlebell basics combos’. Here’s the first in the series:

To perform this combo, you’ll do 3 One Arm Swings, 3 One Arm Squat to Overhead Presses, and 3 One Arm Snatches, all continuously and on the same side (as shown in the video above).

You’ll then switch sides and complete the circuit again on the opposite side.

Complete ten rounds of this on the right and ten rounds on the left for a complete workout.

Enjoy!

One more thing: doing circuits like these requires mastery of the basic kettlebell drills first. You must have a solid grasp of the basic drills before you can start ripping them off in a circuit fashion like this. If you’re just getting started, here are two places to start:

1. Sign up for the KettlebellBasics.net newsletter and get 1. A Free Beginner’s Guide to Kettlebell Training and 2. Kettlebell Rx – a free KB training video. Just enter your name and email above to sign up today!

2. Pick up a copy of the KettlebellBasics.net Quick Start Guide and get a complete guide to the basics of kettlebell training, audio mp3’s to guide you through your workouts, a bonus guide to fixing three commmon KB training mistakes, and more. Click here to find out more and pick up a copy today!

15 Minute Kettlebell Circuit And Some Special News …

To start, here’s a 15 minute kettlebell workout for you to try –

This is a nice one if you’re pressed for time. Throw in some joint mobility drills and/ or a dynamic warm up at the beginning, a few stretches that focus on tight muscle groups at the end, and you’ve got a complete workout.

Here’s what it looks like:

1 Get Up Right
1 Get Up Left
12 Swings Right
12 Swings Left
6 KB Squats, KB in right rack position
6 KB Squats, KB in left rack position

Repeat 2x (beginner), 3x (intermediate), 4x (advanced) for time

Make sure to pick a heavy kettlebell that challenges you!!

The special news is that I’ve added a couple of new bonuses for you all:

1. A short ‘Beginner’s Guide To Kettlebell Training’ is now included when you sign up for the KettlebellBasics.net newsletter

2. A PDF report version of Kettlebell Rx: Three Training Mistakes and How To Fix Them is now included with your purchase of the KettlebellBasics.net Quick Start Guide.

That’s it for today!  Have a great weekend.

Mastering The Art Of ‘Kettlebell Flow’ – Two Cool Videos

What in the heck is ‘kettlebell flow’?

Well, first, take a look at this ‘body weight flow’ video to get an idea of what I’m talking about:

Body Weight Flow Video

And here’s an example of a ‘kettlebell flow routine’:

Kettlebell Flow Routine

Pretty cool, huh?

Each movement ‘flows’ together, you keep your heart rate up, and get a great workout – it’s awesome. And you look like a kettlebell master 🙂

So what’s the secret?

It’s practicing the basic movements and getting them down cold. No ‘secret sauce’ – just practice.

The pitfall you want to avoid is jumping around and doing a million kettlebell exercises just for the sake of getting fancy. This is a little like what I tried to do when I first started training with kettlebells – and it didn’t work very well. Once I really focused in on the basics – the Swing, the Get Up, the Squat, the Snatch, and the Clean and Press – is when it all kind of came together.

Keep practicing those kettlebell drills!

P.S. Don’t forget to sign up for our newsletter while you’re here – and you’ll get a free copy of Kettlebell Rx: 3 Common Training Mistakes and How To Fix Them!

The Magic Fixes To Three Common Kettlebell Training Mistakes

Are you into kettlebell training? Having problems mastering the basics?

Then you may be interested in these two awesome free bonus reports/ mini ebooks that you get when you order the KettlebellBasics.net Quick Start Guide – my guide to everything you need to know about the basics of kettlebell training – this weekend:

1. Kettlebell Rx: Are you having problems ‘groving’ the swing? With keeping the kettlebell from hitting you in the forearm when you do your KB cleans? This is a special report about 3 common kettlebell training mistakes and how to fix them – fixes that have worked for many of my clients and that will surely work for you!! (This is in ebook, not video format – for those of you who’ve already seen the Kettlebell Rx video)

2. The Easiest, Fastest Fat Loss Meal Plan Ever: The incredibly popular meal plan and recipe guide – outlines an exact meal plan for fast fat loss and gives you dozens of ideas to put together fast, easy and healthy meals.

It’s my birthday this weekend – thought I would pass on some of the good times to you with this special offer 🙂

If you’re thinking about doing this, act fast – the offer only lasts through Sunday night! For more info and to order the guide:

Click Here

P.S. If you haven’t yet, also make sure to sign up for our newsletter and check out the Kettlebell Rx video by entering your name and email in the box above!

A Kettlebell Workout For Women

In large part, men and women have very similar fitness goals – lose fat, gain a little muscle, and improve overall fitness. So their workouts should, in theory, look very similar.

However, what people need and what they’re willing to actually do is many times very different. For example, in a gym setting, 80% of women will head straight for the cardio section when they walk through the door, and 80% of men will head for the bench press. This doesn’t mean that men need to bench press more than women, or women need to do cardio more than men .. it just means, generally, this is where people are the most comfortable.

I think this is a very important consideration – if you don’t enjoy and can’t buy into what you’re doing in a workout, you’re going to have a difficult time putting your all into it and gettting the results you should be. The trick is to balance out both what you like and what you need.

A kettlebell workout designed specifically for women should probably keep this idea in mind. If you’re a woman looking to get started with kettlebells that might be a little hesitant about some of the other resources I’ve recommended, you should definitely check out The Kettlebell Goddess DVD with Andrea DuCane.

Andrea goes over the basic kettlebell moves before she progresses you to more advanced exercises. She gives you several workouts to choose from, with several even focusing on some ‘typical female problem areas’ – like Legs & Butt, for example. She also gives you a ‘template’ to work from to design an almost infinate amount of workouts. The package even includes a bonus report: How To Get The Most Out Of Your Kettlebell Goddess Workout DVD. Click the banner below to read reviews about the Kettlebell Goddess DVD and to order one for yourself:

Kettlebell Goddess DVD for Women

The bottom line is that you need to have a solidly-designed program that you actually enjoy. Meet this need and you’ve won half the battle!

P.S. Have you signed up for the Kettlebell Basics newsletter yet? Make sure to enter your name and email in the upper right hand corner of the page and get your free video on three common kettlebell training mistakes and how to fix them while you’re here!

My Favorite Kettlebell Training Resources

Quality kettlebell training advice can be hard to come by- here’s a short list of resources I’ve used to build my kettlebell knowledge over time – I hope you find it useful:

DragonDoor.com

The premier source of kettlebell training info. Pavel Tsatsouline, the man behind The Russian Kettlebell Challenge, Enter The Kettlebell, Return of The Kettlebell and lots of other books from Dragon Door, is largely responsible for popularizing kettlebell training in the U.S.

Enter The Kettlebell by Pavel

The best book, in my opinion, on getting started with kettlebell training. Keeps things basic for you, and Pavel has a both highly effective and highly entertaining way of teaching.  A must have for your KB training library.  The Enter The Kettlebell DVD is also a great tool.

YouTube

A good resource with a lot of good stuff – and a lot of bad. I might sound a little like I’m condradicting myself after this post – the rule is to use YouTube at your own risk and, after looking at all the other resources I recommend here, use your knowledge as a ‘filter’ and decide what’s good and what’s not.

The CrossFit Journal

This is, at $25 a year, one of the best investments you can make in furthering your general training knowledge.   I know the jury is out on CrossFit (I wrote a post about this recently on The Fitness Monster, in fact – you can check it out here), but I think their journal is an awesome resource. There’s not only a lot of kettlebell info here – much of it from Jeff Martone, a former RKC guy – but lots and lots more on every imaginable topic.

Viking Warrior Conditioning

This is a killer book if you’re looking to improve your conditioning.  A word of warning: the program is hard 🙂  But if you can survive, you’ll probably get into the best shape of your life.

Another cool thing is that Kenneth Jay, author of Viking Warrior Conditioning, has extensive research that he’s performed himself to back up what he’s saying.

Return of The Kettlebell

What to do once you’re done with Enter The Kettlebell.  Covers advanced kettlebell training methods, most notably double kettlebell drills in detail – again, don’t even think about it until you’ve completed the Rite of Passage!

MikeMahler.com

Another former RKC guy, has an awesome free e-book on kettlebell training you get for signing up for his newsletter. Also has a ton of training dvd’s and holds various workshops across the country. Highly recommended.

ArtofStrength.com

Great YouTube channel, Art of Strength and Punch Kettlebell Gym is headed by Anthony DiLugo, who got his start with the RKC – seeing a common theme here?

There you have it – a short list of kettlebell training resources that should keep you busy for a while! This list is by no means exhaustive – in fact, feel free to leave links to your favorite places to find kettlebell training info in the comments section.

Keep training hard!!

Kettlebell Training: The Great Equalizer

There’s this guy that works out at the same gym as I do. I see him there every day mid-afternoon and he’s getting after it, throwing the weights around, training chest and biceps four times a week.

His passion and intensity level is inspiring; but I also know, because he’s a nice guy and I talk to him almost every day, that he wants to lose fat. And I know that there’s probably a more effective way to go about doing it than his current training system – to say the least.

My almost daily exposure to this spectacle has got me thinking: kettlebell training is like the ‘great equalizer’. Take someone who thinks they’re training hard, who’s training using this body part split, bodybuilding style workout, and have them do swings for 10 or 15 minutes. I’ve done it lots of times, and I know that this person gets smoked 9 times out of 10. In fact, most times they can’t make it the full 15 minutes.

On the other hand, I have female clients who are under 130 pounds that can do more swings and squats with a 24 kilo (53 pound) kettlebell than most men.

The point is, kettlebell training has a tendency of evening the playing field. If you think you’re in good shape, get someone who knows what they’re talking about to teach you the basics (or at the very least pick up a copy of the KettlebellBasics.net Quick Start Guide) and give kettlebell training a try.

And to help you learn more about the basics of training with kettlebells, here are a few posts from the archives to get you going:

The Swing

The Get Up

A Beginner Kettlebell Workout

Keep training hard!