A Clean Variation

 Circular cleans are a great exercise to improve your core stiffness and full body tension. However, it is certainly an advanced drill.  The idea behind the movement is to force the kettlebell outward away from the body along the frontal plane, and then cleanly redirect the bell back toward your rack position in a downward arcing motion.  The difficulty will be in staying tight through your abdominal brace and staying grounded with your feet.  Even a modest size bell will pull your center of gravity away from you, and fighting to stay still, tight, and fluid is where the major benefit comes from.

As If Your Swings Weren't Hard Enough

 So we all know there are a lot of variations of kettlebell swings. You can swing with two hands, one hand, switching hand to hand, etc.  Most variations have you change with your hands are doing.  The traveling swings do the opposite.  The focus is on moving your feet, rather than your hands, which makes them great for athletes who need to improve explosive power and agility.  Traveling swings can be performed in any direction, whether it be forward, backward, or laterally.  Be sure that when you try them, you completely extend your hips before you move your feet.  The tempo and chant to yourself should be, "Swing! Step! Step!" 

Overhead Lunges For Awesome Abs!

 Everyone is always arguing over the "best" abdominal exercises.  Some stick with situps and crunches, others go with planks, and still others get fancy specialized equipment involved.  Me? I say learn to squat, deadlift, lunge, etc.  Nothing engages your abdominal muscles better than a heavy deadlift, squat, or lunge.  Why? Because our abdominal muscles are not meant to primarily bend, flex, and twist our torso.  Like Dr. Stuart McGill has proven, our abdominal muscles are primarily responsible for transfering energy from the ground, up...through utilization of "super stiffness." 

The overhead lunge is a great variation of a lunge that significantly activates the core musculature, as well as improves shoulder girdle strength and stability.  As you will see once you try it, the lunge portion is not usually that difficult.  Rather, the difficulty lies in maintaining a stable, erect spinal column and preventing your arms from moving at the shoulder.  Try using no weight at first, and then progress to very light weight next.  Don't even think about trying a weight anywhere close to what you can press, unless your are He-Man of course!

Press Variations: Static Hold and Press

One of my previous posts showcased a pressing variation called a seesaw press. This one is about the static hold and press.  This variation requires an isometric contraction in one arm, while actively pressing with the opposite arm.  The higher the repetitions,  the longer the isometric contraction.  Much like your turkish getups that require maintenance of a static press position, this pressing variation improves the stability of the entire shoulder girdle.  This improvement in shoulder girdle function and stability directly improves your other upper body strength movements, as well as significantly lowers your risk of shoulder injuries, such as rotator cuff tears, impingements, etc.

Plank Presses

Prone and side planks are among the most effective core exercises around.  For those unfamiliar with how to properly perform a plank, refer to my video here.  You must know how to perform a proper side plank before attempting a plank press.  Furthermore, you should clearly understand the purpose of the plank exercises, which is to strengthen your ability to create "super stiffness" between your rib cage and your pelvis.  For those unfamiliar with Dr. Stuart McGill's research on the necessity of "super stiffness" for lower back protection and performance, do some homework.  I use his core principles everyday, and they are certainly applicable to any athletic endeavor.  Visit his website, www.backfitpro.com, for more information.

A great advanced variation of a side plank, and another opportunity to develop super stiffness, is the plank press shown below.  Start with a very light weight, since most people's initial struggle is with the stability of the supportive shoulder on the bottom arm.  You'll want to be certain that your forearm of the top pressing arm stays at a perpendicular angle to the floor at all times, just as you would with a bent press.

Thumbtack Review

Please post reviews and testimonials of my training and kettlebell classes here. You may also include reviews on chiropractic services and rehabilitation as well.  Thumbtack is a site I am attempting to use to help generate interest in kettlebell classes and drive business, so any help is appreciated.

New Class Option

I am considering adding a new class during the week on thursday evenings at 6pm.  I ran a poll at the top of the blog for a while, and that seems like a popular option for participation.  However, there is the possibility that some of the people who voted are not actually attending classes here or even local.  So, I want anyone who is currently attending classes, or who lives locally wishing to attend classes, to reply to this post if you would like me to start that class option.  In your reply, please post your real name and your response, so I know that it is legitimate.  If I end up adding a thursday night class, I will also add a few hours before it for 1-on-1 training for those interested.  I figure I need about 6-8 people to commit to this class addition before I commit to it myself.  Thanks for your support!

Press Variations: Seesaw Press

 There are many different variations of your kettlebell press.  This version adds an element of coordination and shoulder/core stability to the mix, as one arm moves overhead while the other arm moves to the "rack."  Usually people need to start with a weight slightly less than what they can use correctly in one arm, just to develop the coordination for the exercise at first.  Try it out...

Basic Kettlebell Routine

Here is a great kettlebell routine using just the 5 basic exercises (getup, swing, clean, snatch, and press).

1 Turkish Getup : 5 One Arm Snatches - use a getup to climb to your feet, perform 5 snatches with that same arm, and after the 5th snatch, return to the floor using your getup technique.  Perform for 5 minutes straight.

 5 One Arm Swings, 5 Cleans, and 5 Presses - perform 5 reps of your swing, followed by 5 cleans, and finally five presses...all on one arm.  Then switch to the other arm and repeat.  Perform this for 5 minutes straight.

1 Goblet Squat : 5 Two Handed Swings - perform 1 goblet squat, followed by 5 swings immediately.  Keep moving back to back in that ratio for 5 minutes straight.

Total time spent exercising is 15 minutes, plus a warmup and cooldown.  This might be short, but it will not be easy!

Figure 8's

 One of the greatest lessons that kettlebell training provides is the "interconnectedness" your body and mind develop. Most novice lifters have very little body awareness and proprioception.  They have no "body flow."  Like a martial artist, gymnast, or other highly trained athlete, frequent kettlebell training develops a person's ability to utilize their body in dynamic and fluid ways, showcasing their power, strength, and mobility all in one. 

This is particularly important in daily life tasks.  Imagine if you stumbled on the curb and just abruptly plummeted face first while trying to brake your fall with your hand.  The emergency room visit to repair the broken bones, lesions, and tissue sprain would be quite expensive and painful.  Instead, imagine that same fall, but you learned to redirect your body on its side, tucking and rolling on impact, absorbing the energy through your core and hips.  You would simply brush yourself off and laugh at how disastrous the episode could have been! 

The kettlebell figure 8 teaches you that necessary proprioception and body flow.  You learn to combine rotary torsion with hip extension, while redirecting energy from your legs to your arms.  It take some time to get the coordination of the movement down, but you'll get it.  Now get to work!