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Next to my couch, near the TV sits a 35 lb kettlebell staring up at me. Everytime I swing it my fiance thinks I might toss it through the 4th floor window onto the cars below. What are some good routines and exercises I can do with such a device? If you know of any good free websites with videos, that would also be cool. (If you need to know what I eat for this question, the answer is: mostly bacon.)

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 You have the wrong size kettlebell. You need to swing a 50 lb. kettlebell MADE ENTIRELY OF BACON; eat the kettlebell after your workout and then you're on the right track. :) – familygrokumentarian Jan 19 2011 at 15:38
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 although familygrok might be onto something. perhaps i should be doing swings with a suckling pig or something. turkish get ups with the thanksgiving turkey. i think 50 packages of bacon duct taped together would make for a cool homemade weight. – MikeD Jan 19 2011 at 16:31
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 i will ask Patrik for my real man badge. – MikeD Jan 19 2011 at 17:02
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 What about real women? Or do I have to work up to 35# and get a MAN badge? – sherpamelissa Jan 19 2011 at 18:16
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 Once we get into 'real man' or 'real woman' badges, then we have to do pheromone testing over the internet. And that's HARD. – Adam Crafter Jan 20 2011 at 2:49
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10 Answers

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I love my kettlebell! I have a 26.2lb that hangs out in my family room.

Swings are my starter, always, great to warm up and get my heart pumping. I do goblet squats with them. Turkish Get Ups are awesome and then I can't move my abs the next day. I do deadlifts with them and also one legged deadlifts (great for balance). Hmmm, I do presses too. I even use it as a weight with my lunges.

Pavel Tsatsouline is the King of the Kettlebell to me and his book Enter The Kettlebell! Strength Secret of The Soviet Supermen is awesome. Entertaining too!

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 TGUPS! what a great, translatable, exercise. – Stephen-Aegis Jan 19 2011 at 16:18
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Dragondoor.com and artofstrength.com are both great places. If you can get a copy of Providence from AOS, it's great. I also suggest Enter the Kettlebell.

http://www.amazon.com/Art-Strength-Providence-Anthony-DiLuglio/dp/B000BLEAKO

http://www.amazon.com/Kettlebell-Strength-Secret-Soviet-Supermen/dp/0938045695/ref=pd_bxgy_d_text_b

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Hahaha. Jinx! Gotta love Pavel! – sherpamelissa Jan 19 2011 at 15:22
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Turkish Get Ups are pretty fun. Good for you, too, but its such an involved movement that if you like to nerd out on details and all id highly recommend them. The Turkish Get Up is however a slow, grind type movement just so you know. Thats totally fine, i only mention it because a lot of people usually associate kettlebells with the more ballistic movements like swings, etc.

this a good video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztTOn0rSMis

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Yeah I'm a newb still and TGU are next on my list. – Scott Jan 19 2011 at 15:44
might be good to have a break from all the explosive stuff. – MikeD Jan 19 2011 at 15:45
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 also, a lot of people (myself included) get the explosive stuff wrong. The do the swing without engaging the hips properly. I still struggle with understanding the movement and engaging properly. Slower grind movements are usually easier to pickup without excessive tutorial. – ben61820 Jan 19 2011 at 17:28
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 I started out the swings using a towel to hold the kettlebell. It helped me get the "swing" part right. I was using my shoulders too much and not my hips. Once I learned to control it at the top using the right muscles, I was golden. I hated them at first though. I felt like an idiot getting my hips into it. – sherpamelissa Jan 19 2011 at 18:17
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35 lbs = 16K. For a man that is a starter weight. I suggest doing a combo of low rep and higher rep exercises.

Low rep = turkish get ups, military presses, squats. High rep = swings, snatches and clean&jerks.

Don't do them all on the same day. In fact you can go far by picking 1 from each list per workout day. For the high rep stuff I find it helpful to use a timer (gymboss or free online one here: http://www.beach-fitness.com/tabata/) and set rounds, time/reps and time/rest.

With a 16K you'll be doing mostly 1 arm swings (2 arm is kinda light at that weight); snatches will still be good; and clean&jerks if you push the rounds and time. Soon you will want a heavier bell. There are a ton of videos out there, I don't have anything specific other than Dragon Door. For each exercise just 'google video' and watch a bunch.

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ps - If you are just starting out, simplify and just do 2 hand swings for 2 weeks to make sure you get proper form and to strengthen your core. The swing is foundation for all exercises. If you swing correctly then snatch and C&J will also probably be OK. If you swing incorrectly then no way to snatch and C&J. – TigerJ Jan 19 2011 at 16:02
awesome, good advice. i am not a beginner weight lifter but am basically a beginner at kettlebells. i've got a kitchen timer too. – MikeD Jan 19 2011 at 16:28
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 I really prefer the downloadable timers or mp3s with music that count out the seconds for me. When I'm working hard actually having to READ the timer confuses me. Being told when to STOP and START is ridiculously helpful. – sherpamelissa Jan 19 2011 at 16:35
Yes swing is key. I started out with swings, halos, sumo dead lifts. – Scott Jan 19 2011 at 16:53
Oh yeah. Halos. They scare me a bit with the 26.4, when I had access to more bells at the gym I would do halos with the 20s. I am always afraid I'm going to get tired and wonk myself in the head. LOL. – sherpamelissa Jan 19 2011 at 18:19
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Th swings, one hand swings, clean and jerks, presses, snatches, sdhp, half getups, just for a few.

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I'm a huge fan of Scott Sonnon! and here is a page full of free videos of his that Better is Better compiled: http://www.bettersbetter.com/kettlebells/

If you exhaust all that, and find it boring... I recommend http://www.tacfitcommando.com/blog/tacfit-kettlebell-spetsnaz-evolution and http://www.tacfitcommando.com/blog/kettlebell-swingblade-exercise

http://www.rmaxinternational.com/KBF/ is complex and cool as well.

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Get your fiance to help you out with the Turkish Get Ups!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDQUlshxO_8&feature=related

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haha, well then i wouldn't need the kettlebell. i think this is an advanced technique, post 35# i am guessing. after patrik gives me my man badge. – MikeD Jan 20 2011 at 1:47
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If you really want to learn to love the kettlebell you only need about twenty minutes three times a week and two exercises.

  1. Warm up. I like to start with The Maxwell Daily Dozen (http://www.maxwellsc.com/articles.cfm?art_id=3000&startrow=1).

  2. Getups. Do five minutes of getups, switching arms after each rep, without stopping.

  3. Swings. Do ten minutes of swings, alternating periods of work and rest. Start out with 30sec swings/60 sec rest. When you can do that without stopping it is time to progress. Progress through 45sec swings/60 sec rest, 60 sec swings/60 sec rest, 60 sec swings/45 sec rest, 60 sec swings/30 sec rest, 60 sec swings/15 sec rest, and finally ten minutes of swings.

This looks simple and boring. It is neither. This is exactly what I did when I picked up my first kettlebell. I wouldn't worry about doing anything else with a kettlebell until you reach this point.

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cool routine, the warmup seems like something you could do every day to improve mobility and flexibility. – MikeD Jan 20 2011 at 1:50
Thanks for editing my link. I know how to do it right the first time now. – Keith Jan 20 2011 at 4:20
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Try bodyrock.tv; it is a very good home workout site.

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that girl definitely motivates for workouts :) – crzydjm Apr 22 2011 at 17:33
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I think you can't go wrong with the advice above of practising get ups and swings as recommended in enter the kettlebell. You really should get a copy too, as the description of technique is second to none.

It may also be worth getting some instruction, as mastering the swing is not easy. Many clients have come to me after having trained at home alone, and it is amazing they have not caused themselves irreparable damage!

If you want some added variation to your workouts, you can check out some weekly kettlebell workouts here with youtube video demos:

http://www.primalfitness.co.uk/category/workouts/

We generally recommend warming up with a 16kg, building up to a near max on the get up, then performing heavy low rep sets of swings for a few mins, before performing the circuit with a 16kg kb at the end.

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