If you want to change your physique from a Krispy Kreme to lean cut of meat, then Kettlebell lifting is an excellent way to achieve your goal. Kettlebell lifting is actually a popular sport in Russia, consisting of the same two events as Olympic lifting, the snatch and clean and jerk, except there is a twist. In kettlebell lifting competitions, they perform the snatch with only one arm at a time and the lifts are done to maximal repetitions. The result is a combination of strength and endurance, which makes KB lifting a great form of exercise for the person who desires all-around fitness. The most immediate benefits people notice are increases in strength and endurance, plus improvements in flexibility, body composition, speed, agility, coordination and resting heart rate.

People often wonder what order they should buy the products in. First and foremost, the video is the most important instructional material you can buy, because it is very difficult to learn these lifts from pictures and descriptions alone. From Russia with Tough Love by Pavel Tsatsouline, is probably the best bet for beginners, male or female. It is much longer and more comprehensive than the original video. There is some content in the original Russian Kettlebell Challenge video that is not covered in FRWTL, but most of it is covered in the new advanced video, More Russian Kettlebell Challenges. After buying the video, you can either buy a Kettlebell or buy one of the books. The choice of books is up to you, because they are both excellent. I think most men will prefer the original RKC book and most women will probably prefer the FRWTL book. Can you do the Russian Kettlebell Challenge using dumbbells? Yes, it will work. Mastery of the exercises themselves is far more important than the implement. However, if you choose to buy a kettlebell, I would recommend the 1 pood as a starting point for most men and the ½ pood for most women. If you have any concerns about your ability to handle that weight, either buy that and the lower weight or build your strength up using dumbbells until you can handle that weight. There are exceptions to this, such as rehab patients and elite strongmen. As you become more advanced, you might decide to purchase more kettlebells. I suggest filling out your entire set before you starting getting doubles. For example, for a man: 1 pood, 1.5 pood, 2 pood. At this point you have to make a choice of whether to buy another 1 pood or skip it and buy a 1.5 pood. If you can handle the 2 pood in most lifts or if you are looking for more strength, go with the 1.5 pood. If you are more interested in endurance get a second 1 pood. Next up is either a 2.5 or a second 2 pood. Your decision depends entirely upon how much you like the 2 KB drills, but by this time, you are no longer a beginner and you will be more than knowledgeable enough to decide for yourself on this one!

What happens if I have outgrown my kettlebell? Congratulations! However, there are plenty of things you can do to extend the life of a KB. Try doing bottoms-up presses instead of the conventional ones. Dead snatches are much more difficult than swing snatches, so give these a try if you are feeling like things are getting too easy. Try the "anchored snatch" from MRKC if you have two KB's and you are waiting on a third. Overhead squats are more challenging than front squats, so plug these into your workout and you will gain strength, balance and flexibility. Because of the shape of the KB, there are many different ways to hold it and work with it, so with some creativity, you can make one weight last for a long time.

It is important when you begin Kettlebell lifting to master the basics before moving onto more advanced exercises. The most logical progression is to start with the two-arm swing. After this, learn the one-arm swing, clean and then snatch. Most people should spend a week or two just learning the swing because it is the foundation of all of the other exercises. The hip snap is where most of the power is generated in KB lifting. Each of the ballistic lifts (swing, clean, snatch) employs the same hip snap, so this is a very important thing to master. It is common for beginners to attempt to lift the weight with shoulder power, but this is incorrect and can be dangerous. Trying to slowly lower the weight is probably even more dangerous. Simply let the weight drop between and behind your feet and catch it with your legs. When learning the swing, treat your arms as if they are ropes attached to the weight. They should be taut at all times, but they should not work in any way to change the momentum of the bell. The next mistake most people make is trying to keep their backs upright. We hear all too often that when lifting a weight that we should lift with our knees. This is incorrect and much weaker than folding at the hips. Simply push your butt back and keep your shins nearly vertical. If you do this correctly, you will be folding at your hips and you will have a moderate bend in the knees as well. You should feel a stretch in your hamstrings.

One way to enforce proper form is to start out with the KB about a foot behind your heels. Without rounding your back, grab the weight and perform a swing. This will enforce proper technique, assuming you have pushed your butt back and kept your shins nearly vertical. Another way to think of the hip snap is to perform a few standing vertical jumps. Lifting a kettlebell is nearly the same motion, however, instead of thinking about moving your hips up and down, think of the horizontal motion of your hips as the action that drives they weight upwards. Catch the weight by rocking your hips back, change the direction of the bell by moving your hips forward and finally snap your hips through at the end.

Some people describe the rhythm of the ballistic moves as "tight, loose, tight". This description really helped me. Basically, it means that you should be tight as you catch the weight at the bottom, then relatively loose as the bell is floating to the top following the hip snap and then tight again as you catch the weight at the top of the lift. As you are catching the weight at the bottom, take a breath into your stomach and keep your abs tight. At the top, feel free to let some air out as you catch the weight. Both of these methods will increase intra-abdominal pressure.

There are some safety tips that every lifter should be aware of. First, never bend back too far after you snap your hips. If you brace your abs and squeeze your butt at the end of the snap, you will effectively protect your back. Next, when performing overhead work, do not let your shoulder drift too far back or out to the side. This can easily hyperextend the joint, which is bad news. Focus on punching straight up. This will not only protect your shoulder, it will help you balance the weight. However, in presses do not let your shoulder shrug upwards. To prevent this, tighten up your armpit (lat muscle) and focus on pushing the weight away from you. You should now feel like you are pushing and pulling on your shoulder at the same time, this is good. In every lift, to protect your knees, make sure that they always track your toes. Do not let them bow in or go out too wide. If your shins are vertical, this is not even a consideration. Practicing the front squat is a great way to learn how to track properly. Most people will need to consciously spread their legs apart in order for their knees to track. Lastly, the position of your head can have big implications on the safety of your back. Do not look at the ground or look at the ceiling, this will either round your back or excessively arch it. Simply look straight ahead and keep your back flat.

Many people are unsure of what to do with a kettlebell once they have finally mastered the basics. It is a versatile training tool and can be used for a variety of different purposes, so there is no way to please everyone when you design a training program. With some experience and by looking at models of well designed training programs, you will be served best by designing your own training regimen, tailored to your own goals. However, there are a few general rules of thumb. Start out your workout with the most technically demanding lifts and end your workout with the most fatiguing lifts. In order to stay fresh, cycle through a variety of different lifts so that some muscles get to rest while the others are working. This is difficult when you are using compound, multi-joint movements, like in KB lifting, but switching to different lifts will help spread the fatigue. Variety is important at every level. Within one workout, be sure to include some variation for the reasons I just described. Within one 2-6 week training cycle, also include some variation so that you do not overtrain. Over the long haul, it is important to have variety because most people do not want to be a one-trick pony. Good all-around fitness requires a varied program based on the fundamental lifts. The snatch and bent press are my meat and potatoes, but I like to include a lit bit of everything to keep things interesting and to ensure well-rounded development. Next, people probably wonder how many days a week they should be training and how long each session should last. This depends on your goals, but training can range anywhere from 2 times per week to multiple workouts per day. The frequency of your training sessions should be inversely proportional to the duration and intensity of your workouts. Three workouts per week seems to be a popular number because you will probably have adequate time to rest and you will look forward to your workouts and approach them with intensity. However, frequency is just another training variable that needs to be rotated. Three times per week might be great for a while, but eventually you will probably stall and then decide to change things up a bit. Ladders, Density Training and Grease the Groove are all great rep/set schemes that you should look into. There are plenty of articles and information freely available at Dragondoor.com that is worth looking into. The RKC and Power to the People books both contain excellent information on how to plan and organize your training. If you study as hard as you train, you will be well on your way to becoming a Girevik.