So you’ve discovered kettlebells have you? Well you’re on a good path. Kettlebells are an extremely versatile piece of workout equipment and lend themselves to a ton of different great exercises. For whatever reason they seem to only have been widely discovered in North America very recently, however, they’ve been a staple of Russian muscle building for quite some time.
Anyway, enough about that… you need some kettlebell exercises to do. Well here are three great kettlebell exercises which will get multiple muscle groups working in unison (always a good thing as that’s how things work in the real world).
Kettlebell Excercise #1 – Squat Thrusts
This is a great full body exercise, which can be turned into an endurance as well as muscle building exercise if your kettlebell (kettlebell) isn’t too heavy.
Start in a full squat, will your butt slightly below your knees, and keep your back flat (not straight up and down… you should be leaning forwards a bit at this point… but it should be flat, i.e. not arched). The kettlebell should be resting on the floor beside one of your feet, with the handle in one hand.
Now as you stand up, pull the kettlebell up as you would in a bicep curl. When your legs are almost fully straight you should push the kettlebell up over your head, as in a shoulder press. Your entire body should now be straight up and down with your hand extended above you holding the kettlebell (elbow locked, or close to it). Now reverse the motion back into a squat, and repeat. When you go back into your squat the kettlebell doesn’t have to touch the floor (you can do so if you like however… it will make the exercise slightly more difficult). Once finished with one arm, repeat with the other arm.
Do this for speed for a little bit more of an endurance exercise (still keep good form though!), or more slowly and controlled to make it harder on your muscles. This is a great exercise to work many muscles in your upper body, your core, and your legs (a part of the body too many people ignore!).
Kettlebell Excercise #2 – Squat Lifts
This exercise is very similar to the first, however it will work the back and the front of the shoulder a little bit more. Start again in a full squat, this time the kettlebell between your legs, holding the handle with both hands (you should be bent forward at the hips slightly more in this exercise than in the previous one… still keep your back straight though!).
As you stand up, swing the kettlebell upwards in front of you… as you reach the end of your squat (legs fully extended), the kettlebell should just be reaching its peak, arms fully ended over your head. When I say “swing” the kettlebell, I do not mean do a floppy swing and just fling it up there… good form is key! As you swing, keep your body rigid, and be sure to keep your back straight, only bending at the hips.
At the bottom of your motion, the kettlebell shouldn’t be touching the floor again… go down until it’s maybe about a foot off the ground. Again do this for speed for endurance, or slower to work your muscles more.
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