7KH+RPHPDGH.

HWWOHEHOO
This is pretty easy to make just by looking at the pictures. I use 1" diameter pipes with 3/4"
threading for all the pipes and connectors. I then slide a 3/4" pipe through one "T" fitting,
through the holes in the weights, and into the other "T" fitting. Make sure to get a length of pipe
long enough so that the 3/4" pipe that holds the weights on wont slide out from the inside of
one of the "T" fittings. Also make sure to plug the open end of the "T" fittings so it cant slide
out that way. Easiest thing to do is get an idea from these pics, then head to the local home
depot or Lowes and experiment a bit and put one (or more) together...and this is by no means
the only configuration that will work.
If you want to add more weight, it gets wider and makes it unwieldy...but it does replicate a real
KB better than a dumbbell until you can afford to get the real thing.
This one has four 10 LBS plates, and one 5 LBS plate, add on the pipe and fitting weight and it
weighs nearly 50 LBS.
0267,03257$17Make sure EVERYTHING is secure and tight before EVERY
workout!! As recommended by Seraphim, use plumbers tape or locktite to ensure a solid bond
at all fittings...otherwise your improvised KB could very easily fall apart during a workout and
"improvise" its way through your window, TV screen...or family pet!

I used 1" nipples & elbow s for t he handle. The w eight s are loaded on a 3/ 4" nipple and held
in place w it h a 3/ 4" floor flange. The t ee is a 1" w it h 3/ 4" fit t ing in t he side. The 1" x5" nipple
on t op m ust be cut in half in order t o assem ble it . Tight en up everyt hing else first t hen
t ight en in t he nipple halves. The elbow s t hat t hose halves t hread int o w ill hav e t o be offset
w hile you t ight en t hem . You w ill have about an inch of overlap t hat can be cut out w it h a
hacksaw . Then line ev eryt hing up and t ake it down t o a m uffler shop or m et al fabricat ers and
get t hat cut welded back t oget her. The shop I w ent t o didnt even charge for it . Aft er it s
w elded you cant t ake t he handle assem bly apart w it hout cut t ing it . Use different lengt h 3/ 4"
nipples for different am ount s of w eight . Add in som e 1" w ashers t o get y our w eight s t ight
but m ake sure you get it t hreaded in as far as it w ill go. I ground t he w ide part of t he elbow s
on t op off but it s not really necessary . The t apered st ack is easier on t he forearm s. The t rip
t o Low es, put t ing it t oget her, and t aking it dow n t o get it w elded t ook about t hree hours.
Part s cost about $12.00. Add anot her $12.00 if you have t o buy a hacksaw. Modify, reword,
and post t his info how ever you like. I hope it helps. ACL

.HWWOHEHOOV+RZDQG:K\"
%\ -DPLH+DOHDQG'DYH5DQGROSK
The " ket t lebell" or giry a is a cast ir on
weight t hat looks like a bowling ball
wit h a handle at t ached. The odd
looking obj ect has recent ly been
feat ured on num erous Nat ional TV
shows. For t he past couple of year s
KB t alk has becam e com m onplace on
t he I nt ernet . Num erous com panies
ar e now m anufact ur ing and selling
KBs. Ket t lebell advocat es are
repor t ing out st anding benefit s using
t hese dev ices. I k now a few weight
t rainees who have com plet ely
dr opped barbells and dum bbells from
t heir rout ines in fav or of ket t lebells.
The spor t of k et t lebell lift ing ( gir ev oy
spor t ) is engraved deeply in Russian
cult ur e. Russian st rongm en and
wrest ler s of t he past cont ribut e a
large am ount of t heir success t o KB
t raining. Ket t lebells wer e so popular
in Russia t hat st r ongm en and
weight lift ers wer e refer red t o as
" k et t lebell m en."

*HUPDQVWURQJPDQ
$UWKXU6D[RQSLFWXUHULJKW
LQFOXGHG.%PRYHPHQWVLQ
KLVWUDLQLQJUHJLPHQ

+RZHYHU, wit h t he passage of t im e and t he int roduct ion of m ore

" m oder n equipm ent " t he use of KBs fell from fav or in t he West .
The first official Russian Ket t lebell com pet it ion t ook place in 1948. I n
t he follow ing y ear s KB com pet it ions becam e increasingly popular. I n
1974 m any Soviet Republics recognized Gir evoy Sport as " an et hnic
spor t ." I n 1985 t he fir st USSR Nat ional Girevoy Spor t Cham pionship
t ook place. The com pet it ion consist ed of t wo m ov em ent s. The power

clean and j er k and t he power snat ch w ere used in com pet it ion. The
m ov em ent s were per for m ed while count ing t he m ax im um num ber of
repet it ions t hat could be perfor m ed wit h each m ov em ent .
The or iginal Russian Ket t lebells cam e in poods. One pood is a weight
m easurem ent t hat is equal t o 16kg or 36 pounds. The KBs wer e
m ade in t hr ee different sizes. The t hree sizes included one pood, one
and a half and t wo pods. There was no need t o m ake t he KBs any
heavier because t he sport was a m easur e of m uscular endurance.
A st udy conduct ed in 1983 by Voropayev support ed t he effect iveness
of k et t lebell t raining. Two groups of college st udent s wer e observed
for a few year s. The cont r ol group used a st andar d m ilit ar y regim en;
pull- ups, 100m spr int s, a st anding broad j um p, and a 1k r un. The
exper im ent al group ex clusiv ely used KBs. At t he end of t he
experim ent t he groups were t est ed on t he m ilit ar y exer cises
m ent ioned above. The k et t lebell group had bet t er scores in every
t est , even t hough t hey did not pract ice t hose specific m ovem ent s.
Sov iet Special Operat ions ( Spet znaz) at t r ibut e m uch of t heir
st rengt h, agilit y and st am ina t o KBs. The official Sov iet ar m ed forces
m anual on st rengt h t r aining st at es t hat bodybuilders work loads ar e
not as effect ive in pr om ot ing fit ness as girevik s. The m anual st at es
t hat ket t lebells ar e t he m ost effect ive m eans of developing st r engt h.
When asked t he advant ages of ket t lebell t r aining Mike Mahler
,QWHUYLHZDWZZZPD[FRQGLWLRQFRPr esponded
1. The handles are m uch t hicker m aking ev er y exer cise harder
and giv ing y ou a t r em endous work out . I not ice m y forearm s get
pum ped even on floor presses.
2. The way t he weight hangs t o one side m akes it m uch m ore
difficult t o cont rol. You have t o fight t o st abilize it t hroughout
t he m ovem ent .
3. I t t akes m or e coordinat ion t o m ast er exercises such as t he
ket t lebell clean and snat ch in which t he k et t lebell flips over
your hand. I n addit ion t o increasing coor dinat ion, y ou lear n
how t o brace for t he shock of t he ket t lebell flipping over. This is
very applicable for com bat at hlet es or anyone else t hat t r ains
for m ent al t oughness.
Ot her benefit s offered by ket t lebell t raining include w rist st r engt h,
t endon and ligam ent st rengt h and enhanced flex ibilit y.
A basic k et t lebell workout is shown below which consist s of a v ariet y
of k et t lebell t echniques from t he basic swing m ov em ent t o t he m or e
advanced "grinding" m ov em ent s of t he side press.

7KH6ZLQJ

6ZLQJ%DVLF
6WDUWLQJ3RVLWLRQ

6ZLQJ6WDUWLQJ
3RVLWLRQ6LGH9LHZ

6ZLQJ7RS3RVLWLRQ

As t he m ost basic and essent ial ballist ic t echnique, t heVZLQJ lays

t he foundat ion for t he ot her ballist ic m ovem ent s and carries over t o
st at ic exercises, especially deadlift s. St ar t ing wit h feet about shoulder
widt h apar t , fold at t he waist and sink back ont o t he heels, like sit t ing
in a chair; y ou will feel as t hough you ar e falling back ward. The
ket t lebell st ar t s bet ween your legs and is propelled prim arily by t he
for ce of t he hips driving for ward and snapping/ t hr ust ing, cont r act ing
t he ham st r ings, glut es and, at t he t op of t he m ovem ent , t he quads.
Squeeze hard t hen let t he bell fall on it s own back bet ween y our legs
as y ou fold back t o t he st art ing posit ion. The ham st rings should get
loaded up and, once t he bell is behind you, use t he m om ent um
st ored in t he ham st rings t o t hrust forward again. The arm s should be
kept st r aight at all t im es, act ing sim ply as a lever wit h t he shoulder
as t he fulcrum . Rem em ber t o pr oj ect t he for ce out ward from your
body.

7KH&OHDQ

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HOERZLVDERXWFKHVWKLJK
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DOORZLWWREHQGEDFNZDUG

7KH&OHDQDQG
3XVK3UHVV

7KH&OHDQ
DQG3XVK
3UHVV is
sim ply a
clean t hen
a press t o
t he
ov er head
posit ion.
Make sur e
you lock
t he elbow
and ext end
t he
shoulder.
The press is
done using
t he t ension
t echniques
described
below.

7KH6QDWFK
The VQDWFK is
alm ost t he sam e as
a clean except t hat ,
as you " sneak"
under t he KB, y ou
punch up t oward
t he sky, fully
st raight ening your
elbow and
ex t ending y our
shoulder . The KB
should be in a dir ect
line abov e t he
shoulder , w hich
should be close t o
t he ear.
Wit h t he clean y ou
keep t he elbow
inward and low , but
wit h t he snat ch y ou
should pull t he
elbow t o about
shoulder height
before bringing t he
bell over y our hand.

As w it h t he clean, a slight
knee bend is r equir ed t o
allow t he force t o be
absorbed by t he ent ir e
body , not j ust t he wr ist
and for earm .

2QWRWKHJULQGV
7KH:LQGPLOO

7KH:LQGPLOOVWDUWLQJSRVLWLRQKLSVOLJKWO\FRFNHG7KH:LQGPLOOERWWRPSRVLWLRQ:HLJKWVKRXOG
EHRYHUWKHOHJRQWKHNEVLGH

The windm ill is perfor m ed wit h t he ket t lebell in t he overhead posit ion
and t he feet shoulder- w idt h apart . Assum ing t he KB is in your r ight
hand, your right foot should point slight ly t o t he left , and t he left foot
should point close t o 90 degrees t o t he left . Weight is prim ar ily on t he
right ; shoulder m ust st ay in alignm ent wit h t he hip and leg. Fold t o
t he side and back and t ry t o put your left hand on t he floor. Tension
t hroughout t he body is of param ount im port ance. Always keep y our
eyes on t he bell. Failure t o do so will cause t he ar m t o drift , which w ill
lead t o dam aged shoulders. To ret ur n t o a st anding posit ion squeeze
t he glut es, ham st rings and abs. Adding a m ilit ary press at t he t op
m akes t he windm ill an ev en m ore evil ex er cise.

7KH6LGH3UHVV

The VLGHSUHVV uses t he sam e

t echniques as t he windm ill except t hat
t he bell st art s from t he clean posit ion
and, as y ou fold and go down, t he ar m
st ays put . Basically y ou are falling away
fr om y our arm while it ex t ends. Ret urn
t o t he st anding posit ion t he sam e as
wit h a w indm ill, and t hen pull t he bell
back t o t he clean posit ion. You should
feel it in your lat s.

7KH7XUNLVKJHWXS
The 7XUNLVKJHWXS is a favorit e.
St ar t ly ing on t he ground wit h t he KB
next t o you. Use bot h hands t o bring
t he KB t o your chest and press
upward wit h t he bell now in one
hand, ex t ending t he shoulder. Then,
in any way y ou can, st and up.
Rem em ber t o m aint ain t ension and t o
k eep your eyes on t he bell. Ret urn t o
t he lying posit ion by carefully and
slowly bending one leg and working
y our self back down. Once on your
back, pull t he bell back t o y our chest .

$)DUPHU
V:DON

A )DUPHU
V:DON is sim ply carr ying
any heavy obj ect while w alk ing
ar ound. I t is a gr eat exer cise for grip
st rengt h.

)URQWVTXDWV are t he sam e as a front squat wit h a bar. You are

m erely subst it ut ing eit her one or t wo ket t lebells for t he bar. Pull y our
hips down, k eep t he shins v ert ical and t he knees t racking wit h t he
feet . Dont let t he k nees drift inwar d or y ou r isk inj ury . As y ou st and
cont ract y our abs, hold t he br eat h and again squeeze t he but t ,
ham st r ings and quads. You can use 2 bells in t he clean posit ion or
one bell held in front wit h bot h hands.

'HFN6TXDW
A GHFNVTXDW is sim ilar t o t he front
squat except t hat , once you are
down, roll ont o y our back keeping t he
knees and lower legs in t he sam e
or ient at ion, t hen r olling back t o t he
front squat posit ion and com e back
up. Bot h t he FSq and DSq ar e
ex cellent abdom inal exercises. Hold
one ket t lebell in fr ont of you in bot h
hands. This m akes t he exercise bot h
harder and easier . Harder because
you have t o hold t he weight and
st and up wit h it , easier because it
allow s bet t er cont r ol and giv es
enough forward m om ent um t o r et ur n
t o t he front squat posit ion aft er being
on y our back .

3LVWRO

10

To do a SLVWRO, r aise one leg so it

is out st raight and per pendicular t o
you. Then fold back and down unt il
your calf hit s your but t w it h t he
foot flat on t he floor, t hen st and
back up. Try not t o let t he
ex t ended foot t ouch t he floor as
you st and. I ve found t hat it is
act ually easier t o do a pist ol by
holding a KB in bot h hands in front
of y ou t o act as a count erbalance.

6LQJOH/HJ'HDG/LIW
6/'/, or VLQJOHOHJGHDGOLIW, is
perfor m ed by placing one KB on
eit her side of t he foot and folding over
at t he hips ( not ice a pat t er n her e?) .
You ar e basically in t he sam e posit ion
as a r egular dead lift wit h one foot off
t he floor ext ended behind you. Keep
t he nat ural ar ch in t he back, use full
body t ension, gr ip t he KBs while
m aint aining abdom inal pr essurizat ion
and slowly st and up by st raight ening
t he k nee and unfolding fr om t he hips
at t he sam e t im e.

7KH5XVVLDQ0LOLWDU\3UHVV
The Russian Milit ar y Press is a st andar d pr ess wit h t he feet t oget her .

)LJXUH
V

11

To do t he ILJXUH
V assum e t he
st art ing posit ion for t he swing t hen
st and up a lit t le. Now st ar t m oving
t he k et t lebell around and bet ween
your legs in a figure 8 pat t ern

&RQWLQXHGIURP3UHYLRXV3DJH

All t he pressing/ grinding m ovem ent s are done slowly, t he m ore so

t he bet t er . Rem em ber t o m aint ain full body t ension t hroughout t he

12

m ov em ent . Aft er com plet ing t he rep, pause and br eat he norm ally a
few t im es before doing anot her r ep. Also, unless y ou want t o put on
m ass, keep t he reps and set s low and give yourself 3 m inut es of
act iv e rest bet ween set s.
7KH:RUNRXW
0RQGD\V
5RXQG
6ZLQJV
30 2 handed
30 each hand
rest 1 m inut e
20 each hand
rest 30 sec
15 each hand
rest 15
10 each hand, no rest
5 each hand t hen 4,3,2,1
I f you can go w it hout rest bet ween ex ercises t hen do so
$FWLYHUHVWPLQXWHV
)DUPHUVZDON w it h appropriat ely heav y w eight for 2 m inut es or unt il HR com es
down
)URQW6TXDWV w it h 1 KB or 5 deck squat s.
5RXQG 
5HSHDWURXQGRQH. You m ay want or need t o r educe t he reps or incr ease t he rest
according t o your curr ent st at e of condit ioning
)RU$FWLYHUHVWaft er Round 2GRSLVWROV inst ead of Fr ont Squat s holding a KB.
7XHVGD\V
5RXQG
.EILJXUH
V around/ bet ween legs 2 m inut es, go in bot h direct ions
3UHVVLQJ7XUNLVKJHWXSV each side 30 sec rest
6LGH3UHVV 5 each side 30 sec rest
:LQGPLOOV 5 each side 30 seconds r est - For m or e ev il, pull t he bell t o shoulder
and press it back up aft er you r et ur n t o t he upr ight posit ion
$FWLYHUHVW 3 m inut es
/LJKWMRJ unt il HR com es down

13

6/'/ w it h 2 KBs
IURQWVTXDWV
5RXQG
%RWWRPVXS 3 t o 5 reps each hand
&OHDQ SXVKSUHVV 5 each hand
$FWLYHUHVW 3 m inut es
/LJKWMRJ unt il HR com es down
6/'/ w it h 2 KBs
IURQWVTXDWV w it h 2 KBs
:HGQHVGD\V - More ballist ics
5RXQG
&OHDQV 30 each arm , 20 each arm , 10 each arm 5,4,3,2,1. 0LQLPDOUHVW
$FWLYH5HVW as on Monday
5RXQG
6QDWFKHV 20,15,10,5,4,3,2,1. Minim al r est
$FWLYH5HVW as on Monday
5RXQG
$OWHUQDWLQJFOHDQV as m any as you can do w it hout rest .
$FWLYH5HVW as on Monday
7KXUVGD\V

5RXQG
7XUNLVKJHWXSV 5 each arm
:LQGPLOO 5 each arm w it h pr ess at t he t op
$FWLYHUHVW as on Tuesday
5RXQG
5XVVLDQ0LOLWDU\SUHVV ( feet t oget her ) 5 each side.
)DUPHUVZDON w it h 2 KBs ov erhead!
$FWLYHUHVW as on Tuesday
5RXQG
7RILQLVKRII do SXOOXSV eit her ladder down 5,4,3,2,1 or 3 t o 5 set s of 5 w it h
bodyw eight only. Som et im es I like t o t hrow in one or t w o low rep set s ( 5 t o 10) of
DOWHUQDWLQJFOHDQV t o get a lit t le cardio pum p.

Each work out should t ak e no m ore t han 45 m inut es. I f it t akes longer
t hen cut back on som e of t he set s unt il you can rest less t im e
bet ween exercises or swit ching of sides.

14

Rem em ber t hat if you feel fat igued before st art ing, back off a lit t le.
Do heavy workout s one day and light t he next . You dont have t o do
t hese MW/ TTh; you could do MT/ ThFr if y ou pr efer or any ot her
com binat ion. Plent y of r est is t he key t o gaining gr eat er st rengt h and
im proved fit ness. Do t hese rout ines for 3 t o 4 weeks t hen back off
and do v er y lit t le for a week t o rest , or swit ch t o som e ot her rout ine
t o keep fr om over t raining.
For m ore det ailed descript ions of all t hese exer cises, check out t he
GUDJRQGRRU Web sit e. I t offers a w ealt h of infor m at ion, not only
about ket t lebells but st r engt h t raining in general.
I incor por at e KBs in m y t raining pr ogr am s and t hey hav e pr oven
beneficial. They present at hlet es wit h a different neur om uscular
st im ulus t han a dum bbell or barbell. As I m ent ioned earlier som e
t rainees hav e dropped all t heir ot her m odes of t raining t o use KBs
ex clusively. I do not support t his belief. Bar bells, dum bbells, agilit y
ladders, j um p r opes and m any ot her t ools hav e t heir place in
developing at hlet es. The addit ion of KBs is a w onderful addit ion t o a
com prehensive program . On a final not e, coaches and at hlet es
bewar e of t he Overuse Syndrom e when using KBs.

5HIHUHQFHV

7VDWVRXOLQH3 ( 2001) 7KH5XVVLDQ.HWWOOHEHOO&KDOOHQJH.

'UDJRQ'RRU3XEOLFDWLRQV.
+DOH- ( 2002) Mike Mahler I nt erv iew. ZZZPD[FRQGLWLRQFRP

$ERXWWKH$XWKRUV

&RDFK+DOH is t he owner of 7RWDO%RG\)LWQHVV, St rengt h and

Condit ioning Consult ant , writ er for num er ous exer cise and sport s
publicat ions and t he aut hor of Opt im um Physique.
'DYH5DQGROSK5.&is a Russian Ket t lebell Cer t ified I nst ruct or in
Louisv ille Ky . Visit Daves sit e at IXOFUXPILWQHVVFRP or call 502727- 4247.

15