Kettlebells: Transform Your Body & Everyday Life
INTRODUCING THE KETTLEBELL
Kettlebells! At Results Fitness, this is one of our MOST favorite training tools because of its impact for making you STRONGER, LEANER, and everyday life EASIER!
It is literally one of the most versatile, effective and dynamic training tools you can use.
For example: Say there was a global pandemic, everything was about to shut down and you could only pick ONE piece of equipment for exercising. The kettlebell is SO what you want to be adding to that online shopping cart!
If you are a Results Fitness Warrior, you have come to know, love and expect kettlebell exercises as part of your regular routine. If you are new to strength training, here is a quick intro to the beloved kettlebell:
First off, what exactly IS a kettlebell?
At first glance, the kettlebell looks oddly shaped because well, it is! Unlike a more traditional looking weight, a kettlebell’s weight is not evenly distributed BUT that is the point and what makes it such an incredibly versatile and dynamic training tool.
It’s unique design requires more overall total body strength including increased grip, wrist, arm, and core strength in order to handle its uneven distribution of weight.
Another perk?
The kettlebell’s unique design helps you improve your overall movement, mobility, posture, strength, and conditioning.
Instead of only working one isolated muscle group, kettlebell exercises involve use of multiple joints, muscles and movement patterns all at once.
WOW! You’re probably thinking to yourself, “What more could I possible want or need?!”
Because of this, the kettlebell is more than simply a weight. It is a functional training tool making daily activities like bending over, getting out of bed, carrying groceries, rocking your toddler /grandkids to sleep, easier!
Now that we know what a kettlebell is, let’s move on to why this bell of the ball truly is THE most effective training tool in your arsenal when it comes to:
Transforming your body
Improving quality of life as you age
Making everyday life easier
TOP 10 BENEFITS OF KETTLEBELLS
Kettlebell training exercises build strength and endurance, particularly in the low back, legs, shoulders, and hands (grip strength). They are holistic in nature meaning this tool works several muscle groups simultaneously and can be repeated over and over with short or little rest breaks.
This combination provides exactly what you need for giving your body the absolute best, total body workout. If you’re reading this thinking, you need these in your life or wonder why the heck your RF coaches are super adamant about using them, here are the top 10 benefits of using kettlebells:
#1. Get a TOTAL BODY workout in just 30 minutes!
Because of its versatility, you only need ONE kettlebell to perform a total body workout! Yes, just one kettlebell is all you really need when it comes to burning fat and building lean muscle and strength while increasing endurance, flexibility, range of motion, and balance. The best part, you can do ALL of that in just 30 minutes / day!
#2. Burn MORE calories in LESS time!
If you’re looking to burn more calories in a short time but the thought of running or cycling makes you wince, good news!
Metabolic kettlebell exercises provide the same bang for your buck as those cardio laden activities in usually half the amount of time. By metabolic, we mean performing higher repetitions and higher intensity (keeping in mind speed and intensity is relative and different for everyone). Kettlebell exercises work more muscles in ONE movement than any other training tool!
Why is that SO awesome?
The more muscles you use and the more intense your movements are, the more calories you burn! These high intensity exercises allow for the after-burn effect so your body continues burning calories at a higher rater long after your kettlebell workout.
PLUS, you may find this workout feels WAY more fun and engaging than say more traditional cardio activities like running on a treadmill or using a stationary bike. Workouts should be fun, not a chore to cross off your list!
#3. Reshape and transform your body!
Want to fit in your clothes better and feel more confident? Kettlebell exercises increase your body’s amount of lean muscle tissue giving you a firmer, leaner and more toned appearance. Because of the higher repetitions and shorter, more intense workouts, your body builds dense muscle tissue while torching fat, making your muscles appear tighter and your body trimmer!
#4. Accelerate fat loss!
Remember, kettlebell exercises are said to work more muscles in ONE movement than any other training tool! Why is that SO awesome? The more lean muscle you build, the more fat your body burns. The resistance of the kettlebell allows you to build serious strength and tone, making for the ultimate total body transformation tool.
#5. Enhance core strength + balance!
When using exercise machine likes cable stations, or other exercising tools likes barbells and ellipticals, your body moves through a limited, predetermined range of motion. Comparatively, kettlebell exercises put YOU in charge-here’s why that’s important:
With any kettlebell exercise, you are responsible for the flow of the exercise and this requires an increased demand on your stabilizer muscles, thus improving your balance and stability. Who doesn’t need better core strength & balance?
#6. Improve coordination + prevent injury!
The dynamic nature of kettlebell exercises results in improved mind and body connection – here’s why:
When you use a typical weight like a dumbbell, you are limited in how you can move the weight. On the other hand, the kettlebell moves and swings across all planes of movement: above you, between your legs, to the side, overhead, etc.
Because of this, you develop more body awareness. The more awareness you have, the less chance for injury. Consider this: how many times have you gone to lift something and hurt your back because you did so without “thinking” about what you were doing?!
Developing a better mind-body connection translates into daily activities like carrying groceries and laundry, picking up your grandchildren, that heavy piece or furniture or box at work, cleaning your home, and participating in leisurely recreational activities. The possibilities are endless!
#6. Reduce chronic pain + move better!
…Does your body ever feel stiff or stuck?
…Do you have limited range of motion when reaching to put on your seat belt, bending over to put on your shoes or reaching high up in the cupboard for a snack?
…Want to reduce your risk of tweaking your back, knees, shoulders?
Kettlebell exercises improve our range of motion, flexibility and joint stability by moving our bodies through different planes of movement. If you are in the market to make day to day life easier, kettlebells are exactly one tool you want to be using.
Kettlebells simultaneously use various muscles groups and joints. Over time, this increases both flexibility and range of motion, leading to stronger bones and joints so you are less prone to broken bones and injury. Maintaining muscle mass and strong bones gets harder as we age as we naturally lose more and more muscle mass each year without consistent strength training.
Who doesn’t want to maintain strength and live every day pain free?!
#8. Improve your posture!
Most kettlebell exercises target our posterior chain which is a fancy way to reference our entire backside - think glutes (butt), hamstrings (back of the legs), low, middle, and upper back - all part of your core!
Naturally, we spend a good chunk of our days sitting at a desk, driving in a car and staring at our phones. All these things lead to a weak posterior chain and extremely poor posture; which leads to neck, shoulder and back pain ☹ (are you hunched over your phone reading this?).
A movement as simple and effective as a powerful kettlebell swing targets all our posterior muscles resulting in increased strength of these muscles and improved posture overall.
#9. Make everyday activities easier (and pain free)!
We can’t say it enough, getting strong, building lean muscle mass and maintaining that muscle as you age is super important! Your RF coaches LOVE kettlebells for all the incredible, total-body strength they provide. Here’s how it all works:
When you use a kettlebell, it provides an external resistance to your movement, and this resistance stresses your body, muscles, tendons, ligaments, and bones in a way that forces them to grow stronger. The stronger you are and the more muscle you have, not only do your workouts improve with being able more and at a higher intensity, but every day functional activities also become easier.
When you pick your crying toddler off the floor, being strong ensures you can do so without hurting your back.
When you are hauling 10 bags of groceries from the car to the kitchen, being strong makes this effortless.
When you are putting out the patio furniture because it’s summertime in Cleveland, you can lift that stuff no problem!
Aside from lifting heavy stuff, think about your grip strength, too Most of the time, it is our grip that gives out first before our muscles fatigue. The stronger your grip, the stronger you are and let us not forget, having a firm handshake is seen as a sign of strength and power!
How does this relate to kettlebells you ask?
Well, since the shape of the kettlebell does not allow the weight to be placed in the center of our hand, it is harder to control. The offset weight is usually 6-8 inches away from your grip on the handle making your forearms, wrists and fingers work overtime to control the kettlebell during all exercises improving grip strength from every possible angle. Move over, hubby! I can open that jar of pickles myself!
#10. Enjoy effective + versatile workouts anywhere, anytime!
Only one or two kettlebells are required to get in a killer, full body workout making it easy to transport your bells anywhere you want to exercise.
You can take your bells on a field trip to the park, in the comfort of your living room or workout in your backyard. No big, fancy training equipment needed to get in an effective full body workout.
The versatility of kettlebell exercises keeps your body guessing by adding in new movement patterns and challenging your body in new and exciting ways. This means your body does not have the chance to get comfortable or bored. Who wants to have fun while working out?! We do
GET YOUR BODY BY BELLS!
The bottom line is, although kettlebells can take a little while to get used to, adding them to your exercise routine guarantees you get one of THE most effective, total body workouts in ONLY 30 minutes: burn MORE fat, burn MORE calories, get stronger, reshape your body and move BETTER by alleviating all those aches and pains.
Plus, like we said, kettlebells are super portable and you only need one. The key is to start slow with the help of a coach so you can learn the movement patterns and nail the basics.
It’s time to get your bells on! If you want to learn more about kettlebells so that you can understand how these will transform your body and make very day life easier regardless of your age of fitness level, click the button below and talk to a coach!