Kettlebells are cannonball-shaped weights with a single handle on top, originating in Eastern Europe well before they made an appearance in the West. The claimed benefits of kettlebells appeal to individuals of all fitness ranks, genders, and ages. In the last couple of decades, the fitness industry has regrettably replaced traditional compound exercises with isolation exercises. Recently though, this ‘cosmetic’ type of training is being replaced with movement based functional training. This particular type of training is precisely what kettlebells are used for.
Supporters of kettlebells assert that kettlebells offer many benefits, such as the fact that they are extremely versatile. That is, kettlebells can help you build muscle, lose weight, maintain fitness levels, and enhance sports performance. A further addition to this versatility is that it is remarkably different with respect to handling it when compared with traditional dumbbells and barbells. The off-centred weight of a kettlebell recruits more stabiliser muscles and trains the targeted muscles through a wider range of motion. Due to this, the nature of kettlebell training consists of whole body movements. Naturally, whole body movements are superior to improving strength, body composition, and augmenting the durability of the ligaments, tendons, and joints. In addition to conventional strength training, kettlebells also enhance general conditioning, which ultimately means spending less time in the gym, as you are exercising more efficiently per unit time. As a result, theoretically more calories could be expended.
A recent study illustrated that a respectable amount of calories can be used during a training session (roughly 20 calories per minute, which is 1200 calories per hour).
12 Baechle, Thomas R., and Roger W. Earle. NSCA Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning. 2nd Champaign, Illinois: Human Kinetics, 2008. Siff, Mel Cunningham, and Yuri Vitalievitch Verkhoshansky. Supertraining. 6th – Expanded Version. Denver:
Supertraining International, 2009.
Bibliography
1. Baechle, Thomas R., and Roger W. Earle. NSCA Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning. 2nd
2. Siff, Mel Cunningham, and Yuri Vitalievitch Verkhoshansky. Supertraining. 6th – Expanded Version. Denver: Supertraining International, 2009. Edition. Champaign, Illinois: Human Kinetics, 2008.