Whole Body Kettlebell Exercises
Exercise: Clean
Muscles Targeted: This is an excellent full body exercise that hits many major muscle groups all over the entire body. From the glutes and legs, to the back, chest, shoulders and arms, this is an outstanding movement to include in your training if you want to build strength and size for bodybuilding or for specific sports like football, basketball and hockey.
Exercise Instructions: Take a wider than shoulder width stance while bending your knees. Grab one kettlebell with both hands with an overhand grip (palms facing in). Position the kettlebell in between your legs at approximately knee level. Explode up while extending your knees and flip the kettlebell so that at the top position, your hands will be just below your chin with your palms facing out. Slowly lower the kettlebell down to the starting position and repeat.
Things To Avoid: Avoid arching your back and rounding your shoulders during the entire range of motion for this exercise. Your goal should be to focus on keeping your back flat with your shoulders back and your chest out as you bring the kettlebell up to the top position. An athletic stance is important so keep your feet at shoulder width and don’t get too narrow or too wide with your feet. Avoid pointing your toes inward and focus on a slightly outward position of your feet which will allow you to squat down further. Your grip needs to be secure with all your fingers on the kettlebell at all times. At the top, you will be swinging the kettlebell over with your hands, so be extra careful to avoid hitting your face or head if the kettlebell slips. Tempo is very important so avoid rushing the exercise and going too fast. Your goal is proper technique at all times so slow it down and execute the movement correctly.
Exercise: Clean Lunge
Muscles Targeted: This kettlebell exercise is truly an overall body movement that targets all of the major muscles of the body. If you’re looking for a great “bang for the buck” exercise that you can implement into a strength training routine to build size and strength then you will benefit greatly from this kettlebell movement since it hits the quadriceps, glutes, deltoids, biceps, triceps and overall core muscles of your abdominals, trunk and lower back. Your shoulders, quadriceps and butt muscles get the brunt of the exercise as the primary muscle groups while the arms and core work as secondary muscles.
Exercise Instructions: Take a wider than shoulder width stance while bending your knees. Hold a kettlebell in one hand with an overhand grip (palms facing in). Position the kettlebell on the ground between your feet. Explode up while lunging forward with your lead leg and raising your lead arm up above your head. Make sure your lead knee does not pass over your toe in the lunge position. During the upward movement, the kettlebell will flip so that your palm will be facing out at the top position. Slowly lower the kettlebell down to the starting position and repeat.
Things To Avoid: Speed and overall tempo is crucial with this kettlebell exercise. Avoid fast and jerky movements while executing this exercise and focus on strict form to position your body correctly so you can benefit from the movement and most importantly, be safe at all times. Your stance is critical, so avoid positioning your feet too narrow or you might lose balance. Avoid hunching or rounding your shoulders and keep them back with your chest out and your back flat. Be careful of your front leg and aware of the position of your lead knee as you lunge forward. Always keep your knee in line with your front toe and avoid letting your knee go past it or you could injure yourself. If you let your knee get past that front lead foot, it places too much pressure on the delicate knee joint and could possibly cause knee injuries which is something you definitely want to avoid!
Exercise: Clean With One Arm
Muscles Targeted: This kettlebell exercise hits both the lower and upper body muscle groups that include the glutes, quadriceps, hamstrings, back, biceps and core. It’s an excellent full body movement that works great for implementing into a training routine that focuses on working the entire body with just a few short workouts per week. This type of whole body training is perfect for people with busy schedules and don’t have that much time to spend in the gym. With just 1-2 workouts per week, you will be able to target the important larger muscles of the body. This will allow you to focus on the most important movements for providing maximum results with limited time.
Exercise Instructions: Take a wider than shoulder width stance while bending your knees. Hold a kettlebell in one hand with an overhand grip (palms facing in). Position the kettlebell on the ground between your feet. Explode up while raising the kettlebell to the top position. Slowly lower the kettlebell down to the starting position and repeat.
Things To Avoid: Posture and tempo are the key items you want to focus on with this kettlebell exercise in order to execute is safely and correctly. Do not rush through the movement with a fast, jerky and out of control speed. This will only result in possible injury due to improper technique and form. Your stance with your legs should be a little wider than shoulder width. Avoid pointing your feet inward and keeping your legs too narrow. Do not bend forward too much in the bottom position or you will lose balance. Keep your weight balanced evenly between your feet and completely stable on the ground (do not raise and lower you heels or toes). Do not look down while executing this kettlebell movement and focus on looking straight ahead during the range of motion. If possible, perform the movement in front of a mirror so you can watch and monitor your form to make sure it’s on point.
Exercise: Clean Press With One Arm
Exercise Advice: Take a wider than shoulder width stance. Hold a kettlebell in one hand with an overhand grip (palms facing in). Position the kettlebell in front of you at just below waist level. Squat down to the bottom position while bringing the kettlebell up to just below your chin. From the squat position, explode up while pressing the kettlebell above your head to the top position. Slowly lower the kettlebell down to the starting position and repeat.
Exercise: Double Arm Swing Squats
Overview: Kettlebell double arm swing squats are a blast from the past. Old time strongmen knew about the benefits of using kettlebells to exercise the body in a free range of motion. This builds intense core strength which has strong carry over to your daily life or athletic events. Grab a kettlebell so you can get working on your core and grip strength and read more on how these old school weights can give you new growth.
Muscles Targeted: This exercise works almost everything in your body in a dynamic way. The prime movers for the first part of the movement are your erector spinae and your gluteus maximus. Your hamstrings are synergists to this action as well. Your rhomboids and trapezius pull the weight up in the second phase of the movement. Your core remains tight throughout the entire exercise. The thick handle on the kettlebell works your grip strength too.
Exercise Instructions: Take a shoulder width stance. Hold one kettlebell with both hands with an overhand grip (palms facing in). Squat down and position the kettlebell between your feet and just behind your knees. From the squat position, swing the kettlebell forward while raising your arms up to the top position. Slowly lower the kettlebell down to the starting position and repeat.
Why This Exercise is Important: Using the kettlebell as a substitute for barbell or dumbbell exercises reduces the stress felt by the lower back. Studies have shown less shearing forces are involved with the kettlebells. This can be a great help to a lifter who feels strain in the lower back. Lifters usually use lighter weights when using kettlebells and lift them quicker. Using lighter weight can be a great way for your body to get a rest from heavier poundages. The swing in this exercise promotes a greater range of motion and will improve flexibility. Many athletes need to have explosive hips to succeed in their sport. This exercise focuses the stress there and can have a strong carry over for athletic events.
Things To Avoid: Don’t use a kettlebell that is too heavy since it will shorten your range of motion on this exercise. Avoid lifting the kettlebell up with your shoulders and keep the focus on your hips. Don’t allow your upper back to round at any point during the lift. Maintain an arch to your upper back when pulling. Keep your core tight throughout and do not allow it to loosen at the top or bottom of the lift. Don’t get sloppy and jerk the weight up.
Reps and Sets: Kettlebell double arm swing squats are a good exercise to get in some extra reps on. Going heavy would defeat the purpose of this exercise and turn it from a dynamic full body exercise to more of a push press. Keep the weights light and go for sets of 1-3 and reps in the 10-15 range.
Other Exercises To Use: Another variation of a kettlebell exercise to use in place of the double arm swing squat is the kettlebell swing clean. If you’re getting warmed up and feeling powerful, go heavy and do some barbell deadlifts after the swing squat. The power clean is another exercise that closely resembles the swing squat and can be used as a substitute. View our extensive database of exercise guides for a comprehensive list of exercises that target the entire body.
Kettlebell double arm swing squats are a great way to pump up your workouts and get yourself out of the standard workout routine. This exercise provides an excellent way to stretch and strengthen muscle groups that are targeted heavily by basic exercises like squats and deadlifts. Mixing in the kettlebells will provide relief and stimulation to the target muscles.
Exercise: Figure 8s
Exercise Advice: Take a wider than shoulder width stance with your knees bent. Hold a kettlebell in one hand with an overhand grip (palms facing in). Position the kettlebell in front of your right knee. Move the kettlebell back behind your left knee while reaching around with your opposite arm. Pass the kettlebell to your other hand and move the kettlebell in front of your left knee. Continually repeat this process so its one fluid motion to form the figure 8 movement. Perform approximately 8-12 full rotations and then rest.
Exercise: High Pull
Exercise Advice: Take a shoulder width stance and hold one kettlebell in both hands with an overhand grip (palms facing towards you). Squat down and position the kettlebell on the ground between your feet. From the squat position, extend your legs and raise the kettlebell up to just below your chin. Slowly lower the kettlebell down to the starting position and repeat.
Exercise: High Pull With One Arm
Exercise Advice: Take a shoulder width stance and hold a kettlebell in one hand with an overhand grip (palm facing towards you). Squat down and position the kettlebell on the ground between your feet. From the squat position, extend your legs and raise the kettlebell up to about chin level. Slowly lower the kettlebell down to the starting position and repeat.
Exercise: High Pull With Two Kettlebells
Exercise Advice: Take a shoulder width stance and hold two kettlebells in both hands with an overhand grip (palms facing in). Squat down and position the kettlebells on the ground between your feet. From the squat position, extend your legs and raise the kettlebells up to just below your chin. Slowly lower the kettlebells down to the starting position and repeat.
Exercise: Lunge Press With One Arm
Exercise Advice: Take a shoulder width stance and hold a kettlebell in one hand with an overhand grip (palm facing towards you). Curl the kettlebell up and position it at shoulder level with your elbow tucked into your side. Begin by striding forward with one leg to execute a regular lunge while keeping the other leg set in place and press the kettlebell up and over your head. Your knee should not pass over your toe with your leading leg in the down position. Bring that leg back to the start position and slowly lower the kettlebell back down to the start position. Repeat with the opposite leg and arm.
Exercise: Lunge Press With Two Arms
Exercise Advice: Take a shoulder width stance and hold two kettlebells in both hands with an overhand grip (palm facing towards you). Curl the kettlebells up and position them at shoulder level with your elbows tucked into your sides. Begin by striding forward with one leg to execute a regular lunge while keeping the other leg set in place and press both kettlebells up and over your head. Your knee should not pass over your toe with your leading leg in the down position. Bring that leg back to the start position and slowly lower the kettlebells back down to the start position. Repeat with the opposite leg.
Exercise: Military Press
Overview: Do the kettlebell military press to give your shoulders a unique workout. Using the kettlebells forces your body to stabilize the weights as they go up providing additional stress to the shoulders. This particular variation uses both arms at the same time which is an interesting variation, but you could also do the exercise with one arm. Keep reading about an exercise you should probably already be doing.
Muscles Targeted: Performing a military press with kettlebells provides a new stimulus to your shoulder capsules. The prime movers in this exercise are still your anterior deltoids and triceps. The trapezius and serratus anterior make an appearance in a stabilizing role. This particular variation forces your rotator cuff to constantly correct against the kettlebell.
Exercise Instructions: Take a shoulder width stance and hold two kettlebells using both hands with an overhand grip (palm facing in). Curl the kettlebells up and position them above your shoulders with your elbows tucked into your sides. Squat down to the bottom position and then explode up with your legs while extending your arms and press the kettlebells above your head. Slowly lower the kettlebells down to the starting position and repeat.
Why This Exercise is Important: The kettlebell military press is an important part of the puzzle in preserving your shoulder capsule’s integrity. Mix these in to balance out the effects of continually keeping your arms pressing in motions locked in by barbells and machines. There’s always a benefit to performing unilateral exercises as they are a great way to correct imbalances between the right and left arm. Unilateral exercises also cause your muscles to contract harder and this can lead to increased gains in strength and size. Kettlebells force your body to move in unstable pathways which can lead to activation of smaller stabilizing muscles that don’t get worked adequately when using exercises that are in a more stable pathway. Using your whole body is also a great way to tax your cardiovascular system. This system rarely gets pushed in a normal weightlifting routine, but can be enhanced with the addition of kettlebell movements.
Things To Avoid: You’ll want to keep your emphasis on the whole body in this movement and don’t turn it into an arm movement. Get your legs involved. Kettlebells only come in certain sizes and the jump from one to the next can be steep. Avoid going up too soon in weight. Don’t let the kettlebells pull you off track too much; keep your arms in as straight a path as you can to avoid stressing your joints. Don’t let your core loosen in this movement and expose your lower back to injury.
Reps and Sets: For kettlebell military presses stick with lighter weights that you can control well. The benefit here is in the stabilization of the weight, not the poundage. Stick with sets of 2-4 and repetitions from 8-15. When you can get 15 strict repetitions with both arms, then you are ready to make the jump to the next kettlebell.
Other Exercises To Use: Swap kettlebell military presses out for regular standing deltoid military presses. If your lower back is strained then opt to use the incline bench instead. Or you sit down and do seated military presses. View our extensive database of exercise guides for a comprehensive list of exercises that target the whole body.
The kettlebell military press will give you an opportunity to work your pressing motion with a weight that is off of the line that you press through. This gives you additional benefits in stabilizing your arm and can lead to increased stability in your shoulders. Increased stability means stronger shoulders and bigger lifts on other exercises. Get unstable in your shoulder workouts to keep moving your progress forward.
Exercise: Military Press With One Arm
Exercise Advice: Take a shoulder width stance and hold a kettlebell in one hand with an overhand grip (palm facing in). Curl the kettlebell up and position it at shoulder level with your elbow tucked into your side. Squat down to the bottom position and then explode up with your legs while extending your arm and pressing the kettlebell above your head. Slowly lower the kettlebell down to the starting position and repeat.
Exercise: Push Press
Exercise Advice: Take a shoulder width stance and hold two kettlebells using both hands with an overhand grip (palm facing out). Curl the kettlebells up and position them above your shoulders and squat down to the starting position. Explode up with your legs while extending your arms and pressing the kettlebells above your head. Slowly lower the kettlebells down to the starting position and repeat.
Exercise: Push Press With One Arm
Exercise Advice: Take a shoulder width stance and hold a kettlebell in one hand with an overhand grip (palm facing out). Curl the kettlebell up and position it at shoulder level and then squat down to the starting position. Explode up with your legs while extending your arm and pressing the kettlebell above your head. Slowly lower the kettlebell down to the starting position and repeat.
Exercise: Side Press
Exercise Advice: This is an advanced kettlebell exercise, so be careful when performing this movement. Take a shoulder width stance and hold a kettlebell in one hand. Curl the kettlebell up and position it at shoulder level with an overhand grip (palm facing out). While you are lowering yourself, extend your arm and press the kettlebell up over your head. Continue to bend to the side until the kettlebell is locked out at the top position. Slowly lower the kettlebell down to the starting position and repeat.
Exercise: Snatch With One Arm
Exercise Advice: Take a wider than shoulder width stance while bending your knees. Hold a kettlebell in one hand with an overhand grip (palms facing in). Position the kettlebell on the ground between your feet. Explode up while raising the kettlebell up above your head to the top position. Slowly lower the kettlebell down to the starting position and repeat.
Exercise: Step Back Lunge Press
Exercise Advice: Take a little less than shoulder width stance and hold a kettlebell in one hand. Position the kettlebell at shoulder level with your elbow tucked into your side. This exercise is basically a reverse lunge so instead of lunging forward, you will be going backward with your lead leg. Slowly step back with your lead leg while extending your arm and pressing the kettlebell up over your head. Slowly lower the kettlebell down while stepping back to the starting position and repeat.
Exercise: Swing Clean
Overview: Kettlebell movements are a great way to add some fun and variety to your workouts. Your muscles and lower back will thank you for the change of pace by getting stronger along with your hips and core. This particular article is going to shed some light on the kettlebell swing clean. Keep reading to break out of your usual workout routine and start doing a few of these unique exercises.
Muscles Targeted: The kettlebell swing clean is another great total body exercise you can work into your routine. This exercise is broken into two parts. The first part is the hip drive which is powered by your lower back, glutes and hamstrings. The second part is the pull and this is when your rhomboids and trapezius come into play. Your posterior deltoids and biceps also play a small part in the pull portion of the lift.
Exercise Instructions: Take a shoulder width stance. Hold a kettlebell in one hand with an overhand grip (palms facing in). Squat down and position the kettlebell between your feet and just behind your knees. From the squat position, explode up with your legs while swinging the kettlebell forward and raising your arm up to the top position. At the top position, flip the kettlebell with your wrist so that your palm will be facing out and squat back down to the bottom position while bringing the kettlebell down to shoulder level. This exercise is one fluid motion so be very careful when first performing it to make sure your technique is correct.
Why This Exercise is Important: Kettlebell exercises train your body in what is termed functional fitness. This references the ability of these exercises to carry over in a greater way than some isolation or machine exercises. These exercises improve your general athletic ability and your day-to-day life is improved too. The kettlebell swing clean improves your cardiovascular system at the same time as strengthening the involved muscle groups. Using lighter weight can improve your joint health and give them a break from other compound movements. You also build explosive strength when lifting kettlebells because of the acceleration involved. This trains your body to be more explosive.
Things To Avoid: When performing the swing clean, do not let the kettlebell itself get too far away from your body. It can be helpful to picture a wall in front of you to follow the proper path. Avoid your elbows going too far from your body or you will have too much of your shoulders and biceps in the lift. Don’t let your core get loose at any part in this lift. Don’t let the kettlebell dip too far below the knees in between lifts. Lastly, keep your upper back from rounding at the bottom of the lift.
Reps and Sets: You’ll want to avoid lower reps on this exercise. You can perform this exercise by changing hands between each rep or wait until you’ve done all the reps you are going to do for that arm. On kettlebell swing cleans you’ll want to stick to sets of 3-4 and reps in the 10-12 range per arm.
Other Exercises To Use: You can switch the kettlebell cleans for regular cleans of the one-armed or two-armed variety. Another kettlebell variation that will substitute for swing cleans is the double arm swing squat. Go heavy and throw in barbell deadlifts in place of swing cleans. View our extensive database of exercise guides for a comprehensive list of exercises that target the whole body.
Have fun with this exercise and keep your elbows close to your body and your core tight. Kettlebells are great for recovery from hard workouts or to work around injury. It is also a great way to boost your cardio with weights. Give these a try today!
Exercise: Swing Clean Push Press
Exercise Advice: Take a shoulder width stance. Hold a kettlebell in one hand with an overhand grip (palms facing in). Squat down and position the kettlebell between your feet and just behind your knees. From the squat position, explode up with your legs while swinging the kettlebell forward and raising your arm up to the top position. At the top position, flip the kettlebell with your wrist so now your palm will be facing out and squat back down to the bottom position while bringing the kettlebell down to shoulder level. From the bottom squat position, explode back up with your legs and extend your arm to press the kettlebell up above your head. This exercise is one fluid motion so be very careful when first performing it to make sure your technique is correct.
Exercise: Swing Squats Alternating
Exercise Advice: Take a shoulder width stance. Hold a kettlebell in one hand with an overhand grip (palms facing in). Squat down and position the kettlebell between your feet and just behind your knees. From the squat position, explode up with your legs while swinging the kettlebell forward and raising your arm up to the top position (about eye level). At the top position, bring your other arm up and grab the kettlebell with your other hand. Squat back down to the starting position and repeat.
Exercise: Swing Squats With One Arm
Exercise Advice: Take a shoulder width stance. Hold a kettlebell in one hand with an overhand grip (palms facing in). Squat down and position the kettlebell between your feet and just behind your knees. From the squat position, explode up with your legs while swinging the kettlebell forward and raising your arm up to the top position (about eye level). Squat back down to the starting position and repeat.
Exercise: Turkish Get Up
Exercise Advice: Lay flat on your back with your legs fully extended. Hold a kettlebell in one hand and position it directly above your face with your arm fully extended. Place your opposite arm on the ground to stabilize yourself. From this position, raise your upper body off the floor while using your opposite elbow to assist you while holding the kettlebell and keeping your arm fully extended. Push yourself up until you’re resting on your knee and then continue until you’re in a standing position, with your arm fully extended overhead. Lower yourself back down to the starting position while keeping your arm extended.
Exercise: Windmill
Exercise Advice: This is an advanced kettlebell exercise, so be careful when performing this movement. Take a shoulder width stance and hold a kettlebell in one hand. Fully extend your arm and position the kettlebell directly above your head. While keeping your arm extended and the kettlebell overhead, push your butt out in the direction of the kettlebell. Lower yourself until your opposite hand touches the floor. Pause for a moment and then reverse the motion back to the starting position. Be very careful when first performing this exercise to make sure your technique is correct.
