What is the kettlebell really made for ?

Today, there are many articles and videos presenting the many benefits of the kettlebell : total body strengthening, grip strengthening, cardio development, core strengthening and more. All these benefits are real. However, they could just as easily be brought in with other tools like the Olympic barbell, dumbbells, etc.

The aim of this article is to identify the real benefits of the kettlebell. Is there really any benefit to be gained from the kettlebell that can’t be achieved with other tools ?

Make no mistake : in our opinion, the kettlebell is indispensable. But maybe not for the reasons you might imagine.

What the kettlebell is not the best tool for

We’ll start with the benefits that we believe the kettlebell can actually deliver, but which could be achieved just as effectively with other tools.

Here’s what the kettlebell is NOT the ideal tool for :

• For grip strengthening : Kettlebell training will indeed develop your grip, thanks in particular to the long sets, and also in the rack position compared to the position of the kb on the forearm, but this is a secondary benefit. Your forearms and hands can be worked more efficiently with other tools.

• For building muscle : Yes, a weight is a weight, so you can build muscle with the kettlebell. But you can do it more effectively with other tools like machines, barbells and dumbbells.

• For getting stronger : It all depends on how you define “being strong”. As with muscle gain, a weight is a weight, so it’s perfectly possible to get strong with kettlebells. But you can do it just as effectively with other tools, especially the barbell.

• For improving cardio : Yes, but as with any other tool. It’s how you work with the weight that will make or break your cardio, not the nature of the weight. You can achieve the same results with a dumbbell, barbell, etc.

• For building core strength : Here again, you can develop your abdominal muscles just as effectively with other tools.

• For improving flexibility and mobility : Yes, but can be done just as effectively with other tools.

• For burning calories : Yes, but can be done just as effectively with any other tool. It’s the amount of effort that’s important, not the tool.

• For correcting muscle imbalances (aka unilateral work) : Yes, but can also be done with a dumbbell or any other one-handed tool.

The point here is not to say that the kettlebell is useless, but on the contrary to prove to you that it is indispensable. It’s just that it’s not particularly so for all the points we’ve just mentioned.

What the kettlebell is indispensable for

The real advantage of the kettlebell lies in its particular shape. As the handle is above the mass, the center of gravity is not in the hand, but rather below it. This configuration enables the execution of pendulum movements, the main one being the famous swing.

Introduction to plyometrics

Before being an exercise category, plyometrics is above all a muscular contraction regime. This is the linking of the eccentric and concentric phases of a movement, without stopping and in an explosive manner.

When a muscle is stretched rapidly, the so-called myotatic reflex occurs. The myotatic reflex acts as a muscle protector : it tries to resist the change in length by causing the stretched muscle to contract. The faster the muscle is stretched, the stronger the contraction.

This is the advantage of plyometrics : the “involuntary/unconscious” elastic force is added to the “voluntary/conscious” muscular force of the exerciser, enabling maximum muscle contraction speed compared to other types of exercise or contraction regimes.

This very fast muscular contraction enables optimum development of explosiveness and power.

Heavy plyometric hip work : the “what the hell” effect

Chances are you’ve already heard about the “what the hell” effect of kettlebell training. This is the effect seen by new kettlebell users after the first few months of training.

These practitioners generally observe a significant increase in their overall athletic ability : they feel sharper, more agile, faster and more powerful.

This effect is often attributed to the fact that the kettlebell works the whole body : improving grip, strengthening the core, strengthening stabilizing muscles and so on. These elements certainly contribute to the general feeling.

But in our opinion, the main factor in the “what the hell” effect is the hip extension power developed by the discipline’s flagship exercise : the kettlebell swing (and possibly associated exercises such as the clean and snatch).

Hip extension is one of the key elements of athletic performance, as it enables the transfer of force from the lower to the upper limbs. And swinging is one of the best exercises for developing this quality.

In fact, the swing is a plyometric exercise par excellence : an abrupt stretch of the posterior chain during the negative phase of the exercise, followed by a powerful, rapid contraction during the ascent phase. And as we saw in the previous section, plyometrics are ideal for developing explosiveness and power.

So new kettlebell users don’t feel more athletic because the kettlebell works the whole body (you might as well work the whole body with other tools), but because they’ve spent time practicing the kettlebell swing and thus developing their hip extension power.

What the kettlebell is really made for

This brings us to the conclusion of this article : what the kettlebell can do that can’t be done with other tools (or at least not as well). As you can see, the kettlebell is the most suitable tool for swing training, and therefore for working the loaded hip extension at maximum speed.

Jumps and sprints also work the hip extension at maximum speed, but are not heavily loaded.

Olympic Weightlifting exercises such as the clean and snatch work the loaded hip extension, but at a slower speed as they are not plyometric exercises and therefore do not benefit from the elastic strength of the posterior chain muscles.

The kettlebell swing combines the best of both worlds : high load and maximum contraction speed.

So swing, swing often, swing heavy !