Thursday, November 27, 2008

Build Muscle Up and Improve Range of Motion with Kettleballs

By Jared Conley

While kettleballs have been around for over a century in places such as Russia, their use was not common until recently. In America, kettleball training is simple exploding, thanks to some very unique benefits that you can achieve with kettleballs. For anyone looking for muscle weight gain, kettleballs make a versatile addition to your workout routine.

Kettleballs look like small bowling balls with thick, large handles. They come in many weights from around 4 pounds to 70 pounds, but the heavier weights aren't used often, because kettleball training is more focused on conditioning, explosive strength, and movement, instead of sheer strength.

The incredible aspect of kettleball training is their versatility. In one short session you can achieve many different goals. Some of the numerous benefits you'll obtain from kettleball workouts include:

* Strength increases

* Explosive power improvements

* Improvement in your conditioning level

* Improved flexibility and range of motion in your muscles and joints

* Anaerobic conditioning gains

* Core strength increases

* Balance and stabilization improvements

* But wait, I've saved the best for last: kettleball training can boost your metabolic rate for quite some time after a workout is over, making kettleballs ideal candidates to help you build muscle up and shed fat.

Kettleballs do have drawbacks, however, but they can be overcome. The one cited most frequently is that kettleballs are only effective for upper body and core conditioning, and not your lower body. To make up for this you'll need to pair your kettleball session with a good lower body routine, or perhaps even a quick interval training workout.

Keep in mind that ketteballs will work best in interval-based workouts, so traditional body building workouts aren't the best fit. However, if your goal is to build muscle up and you stay abreast of advances in fitness science, you're probably aware already that traditional strength training exercises aren't the most appropriate option.

With the many advantages that kettleballs offer, they should be added to your workout workout, provided that your workout already emphasizes recent advancements in exercise science and is a good fit for your goals and body type. - 16004

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