02.03.10
A Bit of a Primer Relative to the Russian Kettlebell
Make no mistake, kettlebells aren’t a recent invention. Estimates favored by sports scholars locate the kettlebell as having originated approximately three hundred years ago. During recent years, though, they’ve skyrocketed in popularity to become one of the most popular fitness routines globally. And why not?
The less complicated exercise routines can be performed by anybody, even if they had no prior fitness system, and there shouldn’t be a need to spend much on gear. We can’t advise leaping directly to the more complicated techniques. As you’d expect, the basic routines must be learned first.
An important step when starting to employ kettlebells involves ensuring you pick out the correct weight. You won’t need weights as heavy as you might think when Russian kettlebells are your chosen exercise. For female trainers, an 18lb kettlebell can easily be more than enough when starting out, although male kettlebell users should opt for the thirty-five lb weights. The explanation stems from how the exercise benefits you. With the kettlebell it derives from the movement as opposed to how much weight is used. Ensuring you’ve got your exercises right is important, so order an educational DVD or pamphlet to get it right. The starting exercise to master with the kettlebell is a double-handed swing. As the foundation stone of many later kettlebell routines, this must be dealt with early on - and it looks easier than it is. You should glide fluently, without harsh stops or jerks. Remember to check you’re not lifting the Russian kettlebell with your spine - it’s smarter to use your hips instead.
If you feel you’ve got all of that, it’s time to progress farther - you’ll have learned enough to try more complex routines. Introduce different sets and increased reps into your preferred routine, and change it all up with a selection of different music to make sure it all stays interesting. As you get comfortable carrying out these movements, look at introducing an additional set of kettlebells into the routine maybe with different weights. Naturally, you won’t want your exercise program to lose its power, and these tricks may help circumvent the problem.
One thing we must repeat here is that the kettlebells aren’t going to help you build your muscle mass or aid in body building. What these techniques are designed to do is help you lose weight, tone up, and improve all round health.
One last piece of advice, fold a session using the kettlebells into a broader workout scheme. How often you pick up the kettlebells is obviously your decision alone. Are you aiming to support body weight? A mere two workouts should be fine. Instead you can step up your intensity, work out five or six times per week, and burn off that excess.
