The top 10 reasons why you should strength train with a kettlebell, any other resistance tool, or just work out, period.
All the stuff you need to hear but don’t want to hear. Basically, if you are currently sedentary, unhealthy, obese, or unhappy, you need to hear this truth. Or if you’re unsure whether you should continue with what you’re doing and are considering giving up on strength training, you need to read this no-holds-barred backed by science. Whether you are young or old, this applies to you.
1) If you don’t keep your muscle mass or work on increasing it, you will lose it and then your skin becomes saggy, especially around the triceps, buttocks, and belly. Your chest will lose shape and the nipples will start hanging down. [supporting article]
2) If you strength train, you could avoid many things that have a negative impact on your life, one being: If you gain fat and you let it go past a certain point, you will get stretch marks that could be irreversible. The same applies to saggy skin that could remain once you lose the fat and the skin never returns to its original state. Don’t let it ever get to that stage. [supporting study]
3) If you strength training, and build muscle you increase your metabolic rate. If you increase your metabolic rate, you burn more calories at rest and for an extended period of time after your workout. [supporting study]
4) If you strength train and build muscle, even if your scales don’t show it, you can appear leaner and more defined.
5) If you strength train, you decrease the risk of injury, especially the risk of accidents. Strengthening the muscles around important joints like the hips, knees, and ankles highly reduces the risk of falls, sprains, or broken bones no matter what age. [supporting study]
6) If you strength train, you will feel more confident and have a better outlook on life. The mental benefits of training are sometimes even more important than the physical benefits it delivers. Not only do you feel more confident but it also highly increases your overall mood. [supporting study]
7) If you strength train, you are improving your flexibility and mobility. The flexibility is your range of motion, this especially improves if you aim to go full range on the exercises. Mobility is the ease of movement which is drastically improved by the fact that most of the hypertrophy strength exercises are performed slow and controlled and the ability to control and stabilize plus strength is all part of mobility. [supporting study]
8) If you strength train, you will sleep better than when not strength training. The body is designed to move and lift things. When it’s put to work, it needs sleep to recover, when it’s not put to work and especially paired with no stimulation of the brain, the body does not need the same amount of sleep.
Six trials were eligible for inclusion and provided data on 305 participants (241 female). Each of the studies examined an exercise training program that consisted of either moderate-intensity aerobic exercise or high-intensity resistance exercise. The duration of most of the training programs was between 10 and 16 weeks. All of the studies used the self-reported Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index to assess sleep quality. Compared to the control group, the participants who were randomized to an exercise program had a better global Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index score, with a standardized mean difference (SMD) of 0.47 (95% CI 0.08 to 0.86). The exercise group also had significantly reduced sleep latency (SMD 0.58, 95% CI 0.08 to 1.08), and medication use (SMD 0.44, 95% CI 0.14 to 0.74).
9) If you strength train, you get stronger! When you are stronger, daily tasks in life get easier, like walking up stairs, carrying groceries, lifting your kids, playing with your kids, your performance in sports increases, and so on. Consider the effect it has on your family, and especially your kids when you’re not able to function as you were intended to function. Your lack of strength and movement can actually lead to your children becoming diseased or injured later in life. [supporting study]
“Back in 2021, I had my kettlebell collecting dust. I was in Colombia with a year-old baby and a hard national strike started. It was scary, took over the country, and there was anarchy on the streets.
As I sat there watching the news at 117 kilos, I couldn’t help stop thinking if I was going to be able to protect my family. I was watching how the police and the army were killing people, were beating them up and the regular criminals taking advantage of the situation
Long story short, I picked up my kettlebell and started training, this time, not only for health or aesthetics but to have the strength to show up as a man of the moment come. To be able to carry my child for kilometers and kilometers without a problem.
Long story short, that focus on mind and strength conditioning took me to see my doctor and have her confirm that I had an insulin resistance issue and it took me to finding out a thyroid cancer very early.
Kettlebells are the best way to reach a strength that is complete, from core muscles to stabilizing muscles we don’t even know they existed. It had helped me with my lower back pain by strengthening my core, abs, and back.”
Some highly effective and common kettlebell strength training exercises are:
Double kettlebell racked squat
Double kettlebell strict press
Single kettlebell bent-over row
Double kettlebell chest press
Some more exciting kettlebell strength combos are:
Asgard strength combo
Poseidon grind strength combo
The Balder for strength and power
The classic WBKC
Two of these are for power as well, power is a combination of speed and strength, i.e. strength training with the objective of moving that heavy weight faster. There are plenty of ways to strength train with kettlebells. If you want maximum strength then it’s recommended that you work with 1 rep max, and also 2 to 3 rep ranges within 80% of your 1RM. For explosive strength, it’s recommended that you reduce the weight and work within 60 to 70% of the 1RM range. For strength and hypertrophy, it’s recommended to work within 70 to 80% of your 1RM range and a completely different rep range and sets.
The other kettlebell strength combos are listed at the bottom of the page.
Kettlebell split workouts are great to work on hypertrophy, you can split them over 3, 4, 5, 6, or more days. What type of split you do generally depends on the time and days you have available to work out. Prometheus Phase II is a great 3, 4, and 6-day split for people with a lot of time on their hands. Prometheus Phase III is an awesome 5-day split for people who only have 5 days and 45 minutes a day to work out.
10) And finally, number ten! Strength training is the key to longevity. If you combine all the benefits like reduced risk of high blood pressure, decreased risk of injury, fat loss and maintaining a healthy weight, improved quality of sleep, happier outlook on life, and:
“Trying to put this into words. I’m 57 post-menopausal which right off the bat puts me at higher risk for heart disease osteoporosis pretty much every chronic disease. Plus I grow my own food, and use wood heat. Basically, I need to be able to perform heavy labor to sustain my way of life. But I cannot perform these activities without maintaining a certain level of fitness throughout the year. to be sedentary for months then then expect (especially when you get older) that you are going to be able to jump in and shovel dirt lug water lift rocks haul logs etc without repercussions. Plus isn’t there this Japanese researcher who has shown that regardless of what medications you take resistance exercise is the only real way to prevent bone loss. Kettlebell really trains the posterior chain. Most of my friends can’t believe the physical labor I’m able to do without hurting myself. The form of kettlebell really trains you well for function.”
There are, of course, way more benefits to strength training than these top 10 benefits of strength training, but these should give you enough reason to start with kettlebell strength training today, not tomorrow, not next week, and not when you’re in better shape, not after the holiday, but today.
If the above reasons have not convinced you to keep training then this should. If you stop training, it’s easier to lose all the work you put in than it is to get it back. Don’t stop training, tone it down, and change it up. Change it to just one day a week at least, and build back up from there. Enter the kettlebell, one of the biggest benefits of working with kettlebells is that they’re so versatile and so much fun. Fun is often overlooked and yet such an important part of training, so important that it should be on the list of priorities as number one.
Think that you’re too old to continue or start training? You’re never too old to start and there is no time to ever stop. If you believe that your body is not capable any longer then the problem is that your training is not focused on incremental progress but rather on incremental destruction. Fitness training should build you up step-by-step and allow you to keep training forever.
Other Important Training
Strength training is super important, but it doesn’t stop there. We also need speed, as already mentioned, speed and strength equals power, power training is also a key to a healthy functional life. Flexibility training, working on improving range of motion; endurance training, working on being able to perform the same thing repetitively for longer; mobility training, working on improving the ease of movement, and the list goes on. All of these things can be and should be worked on with a kettlebell.
And, last but not least, don’t let any woke media or group of people tell you that strength training is toxic, the only thing that’s toxic is people who put that which mother nature intended us to use down for an agenda or because of jealousy.
Our kettlebell community members said the following about strength training with a kettlebell:
“If you don’t strength train you won’t be able to open that jar when the lady asks, and that is a shame because she is expecting you to be able to 😁 on a more serious note, for me strength training is important because it makes me feel stronger, which in turn makes me feel more confident in myself and my abilities and makes me want to train more to see more results. And repeat the cycle…”
“It’s a fun and versatile way to train with many varieties. Kettle bell training is about strict form and techniques which involves a lot of focus and mind on the job which keeps me intrigued and enthused. Can be an art to kettlebell training as to the traditional weight training in gyms which require so much more equipment. More functional fun way of training.”
“One and done! All you need is a shower afterward. Cardio and strength train in one workout. Ladies, listen up! Osteoporosis prevention should have started yesterday!”
Linda Lord Wilson
“Was always athletic growing up, screwed up my knees and shoulders in HS and college. Got I to kettlebells because they didn’t hurt my shoulders. When I started I could barely parallel squat, after a few months…ass to grass, strongest knees and shoulders in my life.”
Jason Bridwell
“Very versatile, you don’t need much room and pretty inexpensive.”
Carel David Wentzel
“It’s versatile, functional, affordable, challenging, life changing.”
Rob James
“It’s primal, I feel more invigorated after a KB session than going to a gym.”
Sean Bryant
“Affordable and accessible. Gets the heart rate up quick. I can squeeze in a 5-10 min workout before work and feel like I did something.”
Christina Finn
“It’s the only positive aspect of my life that I’m fully in control and responsible for (my health and fitness)”
John Mcalister
In summary, strength training is pretty much the answer to avoiding a lot of bad things that could happen in life.
Shaming or Facts?
All the points listed are backed by facts. For those that feel this is about shaming, it’s not, and there is a difference between stretch marks from having a child or from becoming obese. There is a difference between growing too fast and being lazy which turns into being obese. Yes, if you let yourself go, you should be ashamed of yourself, not only for what you do to yourself but also to your family. After acknowledging your shame, you pick yourself up and turn it around rather than being angry at someone else for pointing out the cold hard truth.
Of course, we all have times when we let ourselves go for a bit, but there is a difference between bouncing back or letting go with no intention of getting back on track anytime soon. Knowing where that point of no return is and staying well away from that point is key.
Of course, there are people who do everything right and still aren’t ‘what they believe’ is perfect. There is a difference between being overweight from being lazy and being overweight because that’s what the world has decided is you.
There is nothing to be proud of when it comes to being lazy, this is a fact, and the opposite of pride is ashamed. Case closed.
StrongFirst Certified Kettlebell Instructor (SFG), Russian Girevoy Sport Institute Kettlebell Coach, IKSFA Kettlebell Sport Coach, IKFF Certified Kettlebell Teacher, Kettlebell Sport Rank 1, HardstyleFit Kettlebell Level 1 Instructor., CrossFit Level 1 Trainer, CrossFit Judges Certificate, CrossFit Lesson Planning Certificate, Kettlebells Level 2 Trainer, Kettlebell Science and Application, MMA Fitness Level 2, MMA Conditioning Level 1, BJJ Purple Belt and more. Owner of Cavemantraining and IKU™ (International Kettlebell University). Featured in 4 issues of the Iron Man magazine.
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