Amp Up Your Workout With Kettlebells

 

Are you new to exercise, or are you working out consistently but starting to become bored? Or maybe you are hitting a plateau and looking for a new way to increase your intensity for better results.

Either way, you need to change something. We all want a quick fix, but with working out, it takes patience and a lot of discipline. Slow and steady wins the race but what if I told you that there is a shortcut: a faster way to get to the finish line?

Have you tried using a Kettlebell?

A Kettlebell is a round weight with a handle, similar to a handbag, but it’s extremely effective when it comes to burning calories and building lean muscles.

Kettlebells burn 20.2 calories per minute and that is 13.6 aerobic and 6.6 anaerobic according to a study by ACE (American Counsel of Exercise).

Adding one Kettlebell exercise (like two hand swings) to your workouts is common in the gym, but using a Kettlebell for an entire workout of 20-30 minutes is where you really see the difference. This is where the intensity changes and the body begins to respond for various reasons.

Center Of Gravity

Kettlebells constantly change your center of gravity so your body responds with stabilization which recruits more muscles at one time. Your core is constantly engaged which heats up your body and burns more calories.

The Nervous System Response

The U shaped handle allows the weight of the kettlebell, or center of mass, to change directions at any given time. This requires concentration and control and the nervous system is also affected. The nervous system is a network allowing cellular communication between muscles and organs; they receive information about how to interact with the environment around. This is how your mind communicates with your body and adjusts to the movement of the Kettlebell.

Planes of Motion

Working with traditional weights you can move forward and backward or side to side (laterally) but with the Kettlebell, your body constantly changes direction and moves on several planes of motion: diagonal, forward, back, lateral and vertical.

This guarantees that you will be using every muscle group in your entire body from head to toe.

Compound Exercises

Kettlebell exercises are what are referred to as compound movements: they include more than one muscle group at one time. For example a Squat uses your quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes, calves and abs— another great reason to use the Kettlebell.

Cardiovascular Conditioning

If you hate being on a boring treadmill this is the perfect tool for you. Kettlebell training gets your heart rate up so that you have all of the benefits of cardiovascular machines in the palm of your hand. When you do exercises such as Swings, Snatches, Cleans and Jerks you are building up your endurance and burning more calories.

Try adding kettlebells in with your workouts 3 days per week for 20 minutes and you will be amazed at how much fun you will have while burning body fat!

Exercise Routine For Beginners

Rest in between each set 20-30 seconds, rest 1 minute in between each exercise.

• Beginners use 10-15lbs, 1 set of each exercise
• Intermediate 15-20lbs, 2 sets of each exercise
• Advanced 20 lbs and up, perform as a circuit repeating 3 times.

 

Two Hand Swings
3 sets
10-15 reps
10-15 lbs

Rest

Racked Lunges
2 sets
10-15 lbs
10-12 reps

Rest

Squat Push Press
2 sets
10-15 lbs
10-12 reps

Rest

Figure 8s
2 sets
10 reps
10-15 lbs

Rest

Sea Saw Press (Alternating Press)
2 sets
10 lbs
10-12 reps

Rest

Half Turkish Get Up
10 lbs
5 reps per side

Cool Down Stretch

- See more at: http://fitfluential.com/2014/09/amp-up-your-workout-with-kettlebells/#sthash.b7PwxHmJ.dpuf