Friday, November 28, 2008

Kettleballs: Build Muscle and Improve Range of Motion

By Jared Conley

While kettleballs have been around for over 100 years in countries such as Russia, their use was not common until recently. In America, kettleball training is just exploding, thanks to some very unique benefits that you can achieve with kettleballs. For anyone looking for muscle weight gain, kettleballs make a compelling entry in your workout routine.

Kettleballs look like miniature bowling balls with large, thick handles. They come in various weights from around 2 kilos to 35 kilos, but the heavier weights aren't used often, because kettleball training is more focused on explosive strength, conditioning, and movement, instead of sheer strength.

The beauty of kettleball training is their versatility. In one short session you can achieve a number of goals. Some of the many benefits you'll gain from kettleball training include:

* Strength increases

* Explosive power improvements

* Improvement in your conditioning level

* Improved flexibility and range of motion in your muscles and joints

* Anaerobic conditioning gains

* Core strength improvements

* Stabilization and balance improvements

* And I've saved the best for last: kettleball training will boost your metabolic rate for after a workout is over, making them ideal candidates to help you build muscle up and shed fat.

Kettleballs do have drawbacks, however, but they can be worked around. The drawback cited most frequently is that kettleballs only work for upper body and core conditioning, and not your lower body. To supplement you'll need to pair your kettleball routine with a good lower body session, or maybe even a short high intensity interval training (HIIT) session.

Keep in mind that ketteballs will work best in interval-based workouts, so traditional strength training workouts aren't a great fit. However, if your goal is to build muscle up and you pay attention to advances in exercise science, you're probably aware already that traditional strength training exercises aren't the most fitting option.

With the many advantages that kettleballs offer, they should be added to your workout workout, provided that your workout already emphasizes recent advancements in exercise science and is a good fit for your goals and body type. - 15255

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