Four New Kettlebell Exercises

 Yesterday was kettlebell day and Michael, Michele and I tried four new kettlebell exercises.  I am using 12 kg kettlebells, Michael is using 16 kg and Michele is using 8 kg kettlebells:

 1.  Lawnmower pull – stand with feet at shoulder width, kettlebell at rest next to left foot.  With right arm, reach down and across body, grasp kettlebell handle and pull slowly across body.  Make sure to keep stress off lower back by bending at the knees and keeping body weight towards heels.  Pull kettlebell across body and straight up to the right.  Repeat 15 times with the left arm and 15 times with the right.   We did three sets of these, running sprints in between sets.  Note that I started with my right arm because I am left handed – a right hander would start with the left arm.

2.  Standing dip – stand with feet at shoulder width and kettlebell between feet.  Bending at the knees lower body and grasp kettlebell handle, raising to waist.  15 dips constitute a set.  Do three sets total, breaking up each set with a sprint or other exercise.

3.  Upper body raise – stand with feet at shoulder width and kettlebell held in both hands at waist.  Raise arms to chest level keeping elbows extended.  15 raises constitute a set.  Do three sets.  Michael did this exercise with two kettlebells, one in each hand.  Michele and I used only one.

4.  Back dip – stand with feet at shoulder width and kettlebell in hands behind body.  Slowly dip into squatting position.  Note that this exercise was actually quite easy as the weight of the kettlebell held behind the body did not really trigger any stabilizing muscles.  Do three sets of 15 reps.

5.  Standing arm extension – standing with feet at shoulder width, hold the kettlebell at chest level and rotate upwards towards face, taking care not to hit your face with the handle!   Three sets of 15 reps.

6.  Kettlebell planks – start in pushup position with hands on the round part of the bell.  Hold pushup position for 45 seconds.   Secondly, vary position from low to ground, high and middle – 15 seconds each for a total of 60 seconds.

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