COMMUNITY: Why the Kettlebell falls short

Editor's note: Adam Rees is Founder of GRIT GYM, a gym based on results, creating a culture and lifestyle of performance, strength, health and freedom. Rees attended Wartburg College, worked under nationally recognized strength coach Matt McGettigan and is a glutton to information and improvement in all forms.

By Adam Rees, community contributor

There's no doubt the Kettlebell is a great tool, but it is not the magic many proclaim it to be - and nothing else is either.

We regularly use them at Grit Gym, however the Kettlebell has a very limited use.

Here are the five - and only five - uses for Kettlebells

Conditioning tool

l Kettlebells are a great way to safely perform high rep power endurance type work during conditioning circuits. It is extremely irresponsible and dangerous to use Olympic lifts, plyometrics, loaded squats or loaded dead lifts for any kind of conditioning circuit. None of these, under any circumstance, is safe for endurance/conditioning activities. Using the previously mentioned exercises is how people get injured and it's 100 percent the fault of their instructors encouraging them to participate.

Teaching how to load the hips

l Teaching this can be challenging and over cuing athletes is rarely affective. Sometimes athletes simply don't understand. The swing can, but not always, help athletes learn to safely load their hips, and renegotiate the momentum of the bell with the movement of their body so we can further their athleticism and get more from other movements and lifts. However, this is only useful in the very initial stages of training. After a week or two, this is hardly useful.

It's good for hip hinge movement

l Hinging is one of our main movements. Without hinging, you'd have a difficult time tying your shoes. Another common hinging pattern is the dead lift. Extension of the hips is pivotal for speed, strength and overall movement. Because hinging is one of our main movements, we are going to practice and enhance it in the weight room, and therefore certain exercises done with Kettlebells can satisfy this. There's almost always a better option, but it is a useful tool.

Power development

l Training for power accumulates to about 12 minutes (at the most) of an entire week of training for an extremely advanced athlete

, and this amount decreases with training age. The body simply doesn't need significant time training power. The training affect is acquired in relatively short amounts of time compared to strength and speed. This is the problem with operations that emphasize the Kettlebell because the Kettlebell is almost entirely 'power” training, not strength or speed. In essence, a ton of talent and ability is left untapped.

Power would consist of moving light weight fast. However, training it is a waste in any athlete who doesn't have significant strength, which is almost every athlete under 18, even ones with a significant training age. Train for strength first and everything else will fall into place. Most Kettlebell exercises are not for 'strength” - they are for 'power”.

Almost all athlete's would waste their time working for power. Power movements include Kettlebell swings/cleans/snatches, weighted jumps, Olympic lifts (clean/snatch/jerk), etc.

And when an athlete has significant strength and body control she or he needs to add in more speed work, not more power work. The athletes who really make strides are the ones who lift this way, and sadly almost all coaches teach the opposite. Everything changes when training an extremely advanced athlete, but the extremely talented athlete is extremely rare, waiting on such to come along is a shame when coaches could be accepting this idea and see all their athletes progress staggeringly.

Bottoms up position

l This is turning the Kettlebell upside down and is the true genius of the Kettlebell (partly because the above can be satisfied with a rope and iron plates). It is so overwhelmingly affective for so many exercises that have nothing to do with traditional kettlebell exercises.

Holding the kettlebell in this position forces the hand and arm to coordinate themselves as well as with the rest of the body. It's also great for assessments/testing, slowing athletes down during certain exercises (such as the Turkish Get Up) and positioning for core/shoulder/grip work in differing positions, such as a one-arm overhead bottoms up press in a half kneeling position (1 knee down). This is where the Kettlebell sets itself apart. Everything else written above pales in comparison.

Other than the aforementioned, the Kettlebell simply is a weight just like anything else and easily replaceable. The convenience factor is one thing, but as a fad it has done extremely well. The problem is enthusiasts learn the moves and think they're an expert. Sadly, this kind of person is common and very dangerous.

Be careful who you are trusting with your body, it is the only one you have.

l For more of Rees' advice go to www.GRITGYM.com/resources and adamrees.blogspot.com