Kettlebell Exercises - Safety first.
There’s nothing more exciting than swinging a huge weight around your body. It’s a strangely exhilarating feel as you feel it flying through the air with momentum and thrust.
But, getting wrapped up in the moment while losing concentration isn’t a good thing. While kettlebells are perfectly safe to use in a kettlebell training program, they need to be treated with diligence and respect. Here’s a few tips to make sure your kettlebell training is both safe and productive.
First of all, stay in the moment. This is a very zen concept, but it’s crucial. Focus on your form, technique and breathing instead of thinking about things that don’t matter in that moment, like the bills that came through the letterbox that morning or what you’re going to have for dinner tonight. When working out, you should be thinking about kettlebell exercises and nothing else.
Secondly, never try recover a bad rep. It’ll only lead to disaster. If the kettlebell starts to go of on its own path, let it! Move out of the way and leave it to its own devices. Then, once it’s come to a rest, start the exercise again. Make sure to train in areas with loads of space. You never know when you’ll need it.
Thirdly, don’t get cocky. Even light kettlebells need to be used carefully. If you find yourself training with a 12kg kettlebell having used a 16kg for a long time, you should focus more than ever on the technique. “Light” kettlebells are still a force to be reckoned with. Don’t learn this the hard way.
Fourthly, push yourself, but do it sensibly. If you’re new to kettlebell training, starting with a 24kg kettlebell and performing 500 swings is not a good idea. Build up gradually, listen to your body and exercise good judgement when it comes to progressing to more difficult kettlebell exercises and heavier kettlebells.
And, finally, focus on technique rather than number of reps. If you find yourself tired, exhausted and physically unable to do another rep, then switch temporarily to another less strenuous exercise or take a breather. There’s no shame in performing a few sumo deadlifts to catch your breath because you can’t physically do another swing. Performing an additional rep while being physically unable to do so is simply asking for trouble.
Kettlebells are really, really fun to train with. They’re also very effective at building strength and conditioning. When you’re injured, you don’t improve your strength or your conditioning. It worsens.
Train hard. Train well. But don’t train stupid. It works out better in the long run.
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