Boost your total body strength with clubbells

 http://www.menshealth.co.uk/building-muscle/get-big/boost-your-total-body-strength-with-clubbells

Scott Shannon, author of The Big Book of Clubbell Training, gives you a do-anywhere full-body workout guaranteed to build muscle. Do 3-4 sets of 6-8 reps, resting 30 seconds between sets

Barbarian squat

A) Hold the club in front of you, with your arms extended.
B) Raise the club above your head.
C) Lower the club until your arms are parallel to the floor, then bend at your hips and knees to drop slowly into a squat. Straighten your legs to return to the start. “Holding the weight in front of you works your abs more than a traditional squat,” says Scott Sonnon, author of The Big Book of Clubbell Training.

Front-clean

A) Holding the club in both hands, drop into a squat so the end of the club rests on the floor. “Start with the weight slightly behind your feet to create the momentum to engage your core,” says Sonnon.
B) Stand and lift the club up over your head with your arms extended.
C) Keeping it above your head drop into a squat then bring it down to the start. Big legs and shoulders will be yours.

Bruiser push-press

A) Hold the club handle, one hand higher than the other with the weighted end resting on your shoulder.
B) Lower into a squat. Drop as deep as you feel is comfortable.
C) Lower the weight to your other shoulder and repeat. Rise up and push the weight above your head. “Lock your elbows at the top,” says Sonnon. Works your abs as well as sit-ups.

Bruiser big wheel

A) Hold the club with your left hand on the handle and your right hand above it. Keep your left elbow tucked in and your right forearm parallel to the floor.
B) Drive from the bottom arm and rotate into a military press above your head.
C) Drop your right arm to lower the weight to the other side. “Don’t rotate your body,” says Sonnon. This develops your arms and improves coordination.

Front swipe

A) Lower into a squat and hold the club between your legs. “Lock your elbows to give yourself distance from the club,” says Sonnon.
B) Straighten your legs and push your hips for ward to gain momentum to swing the club over your shoulder. Bring it back to the start and go again, this time over the other shoulder. Now chopping wood will be a breeze.

Clockwork squat

A) Swing the club back and forth to warm up your back.
B) At the top, hoist the club onto your shoulder. “On your trap not the bony part,” says Sonnon. Lower to a squat.
C) Rise up then let the club swing down from your shoulder.
D) Repeat on your right shoulder. It’s great for legs and upper body.

Two-handed mill

A) Swing the club in front of you as if you were hitting a cricket ball to the left. “Keep your back straight and bend at the knees,” says Sonnon.
B) On the upswing to the right, hoist it up and over your right shoulder.
C) Twist your body left and bring the club back down to the right hand side. Repeat the movement backwards. You’ll be hitting sixes all summer. 

Clubbells available at UKkettlebells.com and Rawfit.co.uk from £32.50.

Words: Ray Klerck and Scott Sonnon; Photography: Adrian Weinbrecht; Model: Ben Kirby at Flair Talent