London Kettlebells UK Kettlebells And Kettlebell Personal Training

We love kettlebells here at London Kettlebells - we love them so much we even named our company after them :)

Most people using them stick with the basic exercises and think that's all there is to them. Our aim is to show you the sheer variety of training available with them, a little bit of ingenuity and a penchant for training hard.

The exercise demonstrated here will build immense strength in the fingers, ligaments and tendons, perfect for grapplers and those interested in grip strength - however, it won't be for everyone. Go carefully.

Attach an Eagle Loop to the handle of a kettlebell. Deadlift the kettlebell using the Loop and hold it in the hang position.

From there, squat slightly and pull the kettlebell explosively upwards as if for a high pull. When it gets to the top of the pull catch the kettlebell handle with the same hand. Drop and repeat.

Start light and be careful not to strain ligaments and tendons.

Depending on the size of your kettlebell it can be easier to attach the eagle loop to the side of the handle and swing it from there. Play around and find a method comfortable to you.

Many people tend to believe that light to moderate kettlebell training is ideal. 53lb kettlebells for men and 26lb kettlebells for women. I think that this line of thinking is a great way to miss out on the benefits of heavy kettlebell training. The 53lb kettlebells are worthless for me. They are not challenging at all and if I based my training on 53lb kettlebells, I would not have the strength, size, endurance, and explosive power that I currently have. Moreover, my clients would not make the improvements that they have made if the stuck to light bells.

Now that we've started selling kettlebells its about time we published some routines to give you some ideas on how to use them to increase your strength and conditioning as well as how to use them to hone your body. The routine here is a good introduction to both strength work and ballistic drills for a cardio experience your lungs won't be forgetting soon!

If you're stuck for ideas on how to strengthen your legs with kettlebells here's a nice progression to working up to some sick overhead squats.

I don't need to, or shouldn't need to emphasise how important it is to work the legs and how squats play such an important part in development of strength and athletic ability. If I do, go back to curling chrome dumbbells or scampering on a treadmill!

The basic squat
Holding the kettlebell by the horns perform a full squat. If you need more information on the correct way to squat check out this article from John Murphy, renowned sports injury therapist.

The kettlebell racked squat (single bell)
This is a more advanced version of the single kettlebell squat. The weight is distributed over one side which considerably increases the tension needed to stabilise and keep the body upright.

Two kettlebell racked squat (erm, two bells)
This will be a challenge as the weight distribution feels very different to those used to back squats and even somewhat different to barbell front squats. Great exercise and if you're knees are up to it I recommend going ATG. Note that the handles of the kettlebell are drawn in and almost rest on the collarbones. This keeps the weight supported on the upper body without undue stress on the elbows (which is what would happen if you allowed the arms to drift outwards)

The single kettlebell overhead squat
Pretty simple to explain. Get a kettlebell overhead and squat. Note that the arm stretches behind the back to maintain the kettlebells position over your centre of gravity. This is a superb shoulder stretch and strengthener.

The double kettlebell overhead squat (variant 1)
Get a kettlebell overhead, grab a second, heavier bell in the other hand and squat. The kettlebell in the lower position acts as a nice indicator of squat depth...as long as you don't cheat!

The double kettlebell overhead squat (variant 2)
Clean the heavier kettlebell and get the other, lighter bell overhead. You can work out the details yourself :) With the heavier bell racked and the other bell overhead, perform an overhead squat. As the second bell is now racked there is no excuse not to go ATG. This is a real killer for core strength and stability and is a fantastic way to train handling uneven loads overhead.

For this final variant you must focus your gaze and attention directly in front and slightly above you. Do not look at the kettlebell as you can for the other versions.
The daddy overhead squat (variant 3)
Get two bells overhead and perform an overhead squat. Feel like a real man (or woman) Again, this is phenomenal for training strength to handle awkward weights overhead. Use both different size kettlebells and the same size kettlebells.

One legged squats
Okay, okay. I'll stop showing off now...

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1. start by cleaning 2 Kettlebells
2. drop the left kettlebell and lower into a good deep squat
3. pull the kettlebell while standing from the squat to a snatch
4. lower the snatched kettlebell to a double clean position
5. drop the right kettlebell and lower into a deep squat
6. stand and snatch the right kettlebell then return to double clean

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As with the bodyweight circuit, find a decent space for your shuttle runs. This one can be made as tough as you like by using a heavy bell or 2 bells

Now that I've gotten the crude innuendo's out of the way I'll be introducing the method I use to show people how to snatch a kettlebell.

There is something about throwing a weight overhead (probably fear) that makes people freeze up and lose the snatch.

Here is a simple method for getting used to moving a heavy weight overhead and fixing it in place.

1 handed swings. This works on getting the height and speed needed to send the bell overhead.

2 handed snatch pulls. A snatch pull is performed by deadlifting the kettlebell and explosively pulling it straight up. There should be little or no backswing and the hands should be holding the kettlebells by the "corners" of the handle. This works the path an efficient snatch will take and kick starts the dead snatch (one with no backswing)

Overhead holds. The endpoint of a snatch is holding a kettlebell overhead. If you're not confident doing this, you'll lose the exercise. Press or jerk a kettlebell overhead and hold it in place. Work on maximal tension at lock out.

There you have it. The LKB guide to working up to snatching kettlebells.

http://www.londonkettlebells.com

Hands up all of you that hate standard cardio exercise? I have nothing against people that enjoy running, rowing or cross training machines but personally, I find that type of cardio extremely boring. The other problem is that the time spent doing the normal prescribed 45 minute cardio work could be better employed doing other training or checking out babes.

Unfortunately cardio is vital to health and general well being. It works the heart and circulatory systems, keeps the metabolism stoked (if done properly) and is one of the three components of strength and conditioning (the other two being strength training and flexibility/mobility work)

We've written a small article about Kettlebell training and a brief FAQ on what to buy.

There has been a great deal written about kettlebell history so we won't go over it all again. What we'll do here is go over some of the benefits of kettlebell training cutting out the excessive and over the top claims that many websites espouse.

What a kettlebell can do for you

Kettlebell swings, cleans and snatches work the posterior chain hard and your abs won't be getting an easy ride either. This type of compound movement is great for athletics training, forcing the body to work as an integrated unit. The combination of strength and cardio will be a shock to the system as a ten minute workout with a kettlebell will get your cardiovascular system working overtime and a monstrous strength workout simultaenously. You will develop a steel grip as your hands gets fried from the effort of holding onto a heavy weight that is thrown about at high speeds.

Finally, if you think that core training comprises of rolling about on a swiss ball you're in for a rude shock as your abs, obliques and lower back get tortured from exercises like windmills and Turkish get ups. Go scare the mullets in the gym and impress the fitness bunnies.