FALL IN LOVE WITH KETTLE BELLS: Videos Included

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I could not love my kettle bell more. It was a love/hate thing at first, but now...I got nuttin' but love for it. 

      The kettle bell is a total body workout that quickly tones, sculpts, and builds muscle. It truly is a remarkable, affordable, and wildly effective way to get stronger and I encourage everybody to try it out. In this article, I provide you with 3 full kettle bell workouts AND illustrate each exercise in 3 separate videos....SO YOU HAVE NO EXCUSE...

IT'S TIME TO MOVE THAT ASS!!

      You can pick up a cheap kettle bell at any Wal-mart or Target for under $10. So if for some reason you end up not loving it, you're not out a shit-ton of money. If you try it, love it, and decide to make it a regular part of your routine, you could also buy a selectable weight kettle bell. With these you can choose how much weight you want your kettle bell to hold and you don't have to keep buying the next heavier kettle bell as you build muscle and get stronger. And this will indeed happen...and quickly!

     Usually when doing any kind of weight training or resistance training, each exercise isolates a particular muscle. Free weights, resistance bands, gym machines...these are all excellent ways to build muscle but again, most are for targeting specific muscle groups. 

The kettle bell is more unique in that it can target several muscle groups at once, allowing for shorter workout times as well as total body workouts. 

There are in fact particular kettle bell exercises that DO target specific muscles, but overall it engages the entire body for a well rounded and complete workout. I'm not saying replace all other forms of weight training with the kettle bell, but it's a great addition to any fitness regimen and is much more fun then traditional dead lifts and bench pressing.

     I have to say, each and every person I have turned onto the kettle bell absolutely loves it. It is worth a try if you're looking for a new workout. Another perk is that you don't need a lot of space. Just a little square of space in a living room or bedroom and you're good to go.  And you also don't need DVD video workouts, you can simply learn some exercises and design your own workouts to fit your own needs. I much rather do my own thing and blast my music than watch a group of people on the screen with some lame ass music playing in the background. I mean really, WHO listens to that crap?! I def need kick ass blaring music to get me going and to help push myself even harder.

     I recently started a workout group about 6 weeks ago. It's a group of seven women who want to get healthy, lose weight, and get fit. Our group is called The Sexy Bitches Workout Group (SBWG). Once a week, we meet and have a group workout. I have them go through a circuit of three separate stations, each station featuring a completely different workout. One of these stations is a kettle bell station. It is everybody's favorite. Now let me note, it is not the easiest. It is grueling on those muscles and most of my girls will call, text, or facebook me in the next days following the workout teasing me about 'trying to kill them' because of how sore they are. It's not easy, but it's fun. You got this kettle bell and you're swinging it around feeling all 'bad ass' and it feels good. It's empowering to build some muscle, feel stronger, and feel that tightness in your body.

     One of the girls in the group, Jen, has been trying to get a couple of her long distance friends to start the kettle bell and has had a difficult time trying to explain how to do the exercises to them. It is definitely easier to learn by watching someone. So the other day Jen asked if she could video tape me doing a kettle bell instructional showing how to perform the exercises. So, that we did. After we were done she said 'you should put these videos on your blog.' And I had a 'duh' moment like, oh ya, why haven't I done anything like this yet. So, thanks Jen...it's nice to have someone else (who has a brain) help me out every once in a while :)

    Being as at the time of shooting the videos, I had no idea they would be widely viewed, I didn't explain as much as I'd like to. It was strictly me showing the exercises with little elaboration. For this reason, I decided to have the Hubs video a more comprehensive explanation.

Below you will find a video for three different kettle bell routines: ABS, ARMS, & LEGS. I have written out each workout in it's entirity and I have also included an instructional video for each workout. 

In these instructional videos, I will show you how to perform each kettle bell exercise.

      All of these workouts have one circuit listed. You will want to work up to completing 2 or 3 circuits at a time. One circuit should take approx. 8 minutes+/-. You should alternate workouts. For example, you should not do the AB workout everyday. If you are going to do a kettle bell workout everyday, you must alternate the big muscle groups. For example, you might want to do the AB workout on day one, the ARM workout on day two, and the LEG workout on day three.  If you are going to do kettle bell 3x per week, you might do the AB workout on Monday, the ARM workout on Wednesday, and the LEG workout on Friday.

     These are just suggestions, you will want to design something custom to your needs once you get the hang of the kettle bell. 

Here are three beginner workouts to get you started.

The KETTLE BELL ARM WORKOUT:

1. AROUND THE WAIST: 20 REPS (L & R)
2. SWINGS (Two-handed): 15 REPS
3. SINGLE SWINGS: 15 REPS (L & R)
4. MILITARY PRESS: 15 REPS (L & R)
5. CRUSHER SQUATS: 10 REPS (if you're a beginner, start with 5 and build up)  
6. ARM PUNCH: 15 REPS (L & R)
7. BENT ROW: 15 REPS (L & R) (use heavier weight if available)
8. UPRIGHT ROW: 15 REPS (use heavier weight if available)