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How Heavy A Weight Should Your Kettlebell Be?
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If you’re looking into buying yourself some kettlebells, you might want to check first which weight you should be lifting. Kettlebells aren’t cheap, so investing lots of money into something which is too heavy or too light for you can be problematic.
Choosing the right weight is important since you can tailor your workout to suit you and also make it as effective as possible.
Are there different types of kettlebell?
There isn’t just one version of a kettlebell, although they are all a very similar shape in that they look like a kettle and can be lifted easily from the sturdy handle at the top.
However, not only can you buy kettlebells ranging from 1-50 pounds (or even heavier), but you can buy them in slightly different shapes too.
It might be worth visiting a store and seeing which versions and shapes you like best. You can either buy them there or check online to find a better deal.
Problems with lifting kettlebells which are too light
Getting the right weight of kettlebell is very important, especially when you start out.
Lifting weights which are too light could mean that you’re wasting a lot of your time.
You won’t be wasting all of your time entirely, but it will make your workout less effective than it could potentially be.
You should always start off with lighter weights, as this will give you a good indication as to how much you can handle and how many reps you can do.
You should be able to do at least eight repetitions of one exercise without feeling totally exhausted. Aim to do 10-12 reps when you start off.
Problems with lifting kettlebells which are too heavy
When you start lifting any weights which are too heavy for you, you run the risk of doing yourself an injury.
This could be a minor injury or strain which lasts a few days and prevents you from lifting any weights for a while, or it could be a serious injury which can last for years.
Apart from straining yourself, you won’t enjoy your workouts since it will be too much of a struggle to lift the weights properly.
So how much weight should I start with?
If you’re new to weightlifting and/or kettlebells, you should start off with a weight of 5-8 pounds, depending on your fitness levels.
If you can do 8-10 reps comfortably, think about increasing the weight by one or two pounds.
Each week, when you feel like it’s getting easy to do the same amount of reps, you can either increase the weight to build more muscle or increase the amount of reps in order to tone up.
3 Reasons to Workout with Kettlebells
A kettlebell is a metal or cast-iron weight with a handle attached.
Although at first glance you would assume that a kettlebell is supposed to be used like any other weight, there are actually unique exercises that you can do with a kettlebell.
But you may be wondering if it is worth it or not to incorporate yet another type of exercise into your workout regimen.
Here are three reasons that may convince you…
1) Kettlebells let you do both cardio and strength training at the same time
Usually, when it comes to exercise, you have to make a choice between cardio and strength training. You can either burn fat with cardio or build muscle with strength training.
Well, with kettlebells, you do not need to make that choice. Kettlebells combine the benefits of cardio with the benefits of strength training. When you do kettlebell exercises properly, you will burn plenty of fat and get your blood pumping.
At the same time, because the kettlebell is a weight, you will be exercising your muscles and helping them to grow.
Now, kettlebell exercises alone will not build the same amount of muscle as pure strength training.
But, for those of you who are trying to build muscle and are worried that you are not getting enough cardio, kettlebell exercises are a good way of doing both.
2) Kettlebells save you time
One of the big advantages of doing kettlebell exercises is that because they combine both cardio and strength training, and because they burn so many calories, you can actually cut your exercise sessions short.
20 minutes of kettlebell exercises could have the same effect as 30 minutes of another kind of exercise.
So, doing kettlebell exercise can actually save you some time and allow you to either do other things or add even more exercises into your workout regimen.
If you find that you are constantly having to choose between cardio or strength training because of time issues, then kettlebell exercises can be a way of getting a good workout in a timely manner.
3) Kettlebells put less stress on the body
If you have ever seen a kettlebell workout, then you will know that the movements involved are all very fluid and natural. Kettlebell exercises put very little strain on your joints and your bones.
Regular strength training exercises can result in serious damage being done to joints, muscles, bones, etc., if they are not done properly. But, with kettlebell exercises, the risk of injury is extremely low.