As someone who works alone, swinging a kettlebell for 90 seconds every hour is exactly what I need to break up a techie, sedentary, life. Starting with just 12-minutes every day. Really, easier said than done.
Get Fit, Get Fierce with Kettlebell Swings
I am very sedentary. They tell me that sitting kills. So, I took to kettlebells. I work from home so I can workout during the day. At first I would do one 45-60-minute kettlebell workout but then I discovered Get Fit, Get Fierce with Kettlebell Swings: Just 12 Minutes a Day to Lose Weight, Prevent Sitting Disease, Hone Your Body and Tone Your Booty! and feel like I won the lottery.
I could get off my butt every hour (I am using a GymBoss interval timer to keep track of it) and swing my kettlebell for 90-second every 60-minutes. They say that the two-handed kettlebell swing is all you need to get oneself into phenomenal shape, both fitness and strength.
I don’t even really break a sweat, though I am only running a 12kg kettlebell until I can slowly build to my 16kg, my 20kg, and ultimately my 24kg bells. Even though the workouts are for only 90-seconds every hour, maybe 6-12-times-a-day, they really build up and I can feel it in my glutes and hamstrings almost immediately.
The only thing that one must do is to be sure to stretch and not to just sit down on the couch right afterwards. As kettlebell god Pavel likes to say, after you do kettlebell swings, you need to make sure you don’t hunch forwards, that you should sit or stand proudly upright.
So, if you decide to add Get Fit, Get Fierce with Kettlebell Swings into your workout routine, be sure not to underestimate their effects on your entire body. Warm-up, cool down, stretch, and be sure not to allow your body to seize up.
If you give maybe 90-seconds to stretching and cooling down after every 90-second workout, you’ve still only “wasted” a total of 3-minutes every hour on exercise, a combined 18-36-minutes/day, max! More like 9 minutes if you don’t stretch and 18 if you do.
About Get Fit, Get Fierce with Kettlebell Swings
This ebook shows you how to benefit from kettlebell swings as a key to achieving your fitness and weight loss goals. Called the “most perfect single exercise,” kettlebell swings offer not only cardiovascular conditioning but also serve as strength training for losing fat and building great body composition.
The book acquaints readers with kettlebells, round weights with handles, and the kettlebell swing, a quick exercise that takes about a second and a half per repetition. With this simple weight and this single exercise, the basic requirements to gaining outstanding conditioning and weight loss are yours.
The book encourages you and makes it easy to take on the goal of 12 minutes per day of kettlebell swings. This is roughly the cardiovascular equivalent of a mile and a half run, but spread out across the day. Ideally, your swings are accomplished in one to 2 minute segments of 36 to 72 repetitions.
You will learn the basics of both the kettlebell weight and the key exercise, the two-handed swing. The book aids you in determining good kettlebell weights and helps you find them.
Although this wellness book does advocate other aerobic exercise, e.g. walking 10,000 steps per day and does present nutritional guidelines for weight loss and maintenance, the 12 minutes of kettlebell swings are the revolutionary element that can deliver exceptional fat loss and body toning. Weight loss and body composition goals that have long been elusive can quickly be achieved with your kettlebell swing sessions.
Your one-minute to two-minute kettlebell swing sessions are uniquely and powerfully timed to avoid and fix “sitting disease” maladies. Simply sitting has been found to be a cardiovascular and metabolic risk factor. Sitting too long confuses your metabolism. A quick kettlebell swing session is the postural and metabolic opposite of sitting and a perfect 90 second antidote to sitting diseases.
This book promotes and guides other wellness lifestyle changes to complement improvement from the kettlebell workouts. Choices of food and drink are critical to helping new muscles build while carving away fat. A chapter leads you through the what, why and how of eating choices that inoculate you from obesity and help develop and maintain a healthy, muscular and lean body.
On a personal note, I am not a certified kettlebell trainer and I do not attempt to instruct in kettlebell workouts. The kettlebell swing, one simple exercise, is all we work on in this book. We just do a lot of swings, more than you would do in a certified course. I have completed the 10,000 Swings monthly challenge. At 63, I find the exercise a great source of vitality. Swings are foundational to all kettlebell training, but just one of a dozen kettlebell exercises. For cardiovascular and strength training the swing is perhaps the most useful of all exercises.
You need only this ebook and a few kettlebells (the book helps you shop for them) to begin to gain the strength and weight loss that a few daily minutes of kettlebell swings will provide you. Get fit! Get fierce! Get swinging kettlebells.
About Get Fit, Get Fierce with Kettlebell Swings
In recent years, the popularity of kettlebell training has grown significantly, and for good reason. Kettlebells are a great tool for improving your fitness, strength, and overall health. One of the most effective exercises using kettlebells is the kettlebell swing. Don Fitch’s book, “Get Fit, Get Fierce with Kettlebell Swings: Just 12 Minutes a Day to Lose Weight, Prevent Sitting Disease, Hone Your Body and Tone Your Booty!” provides an in-depth guide on how to use kettlebell swings to achieve these benefits. In this article, we will review the book, including the recommended kettlebells and weights.
Chapter 1: The Basics of Kettlebell Swings
The first chapter of the book covers the basics of kettlebell swings. Fitch starts by explaining the difference between the Russian kettlebell swing and the American kettlebell swing. The Russian kettlebell swing is a two-handed swing that stops at shoulder height, while the American kettlebell swing is a one-handed swing that goes overhead. Fitch recommends the Russian kettlebell swing for beginners and the American kettlebell swing for more advanced users.
Fitch goes on to explain the proper form for the kettlebell swing. He emphasizes the importance of maintaining a neutral spine, engaging the glutes and core, and keeping the arms straight. Fitch provides helpful tips on how to avoid common mistakes, such as using the arms to lift the kettlebell and rounding the shoulders.
Chapter 2: The Benefits of Kettlebell Swings
The second chapter of the book focuses on the many benefits of kettlebell swings. Fitch explains how kettlebell swings can help you lose weight, prevent sitting disease, and tone your body. He also discusses how kettlebell swings can improve your cardiovascular health, increase your flexibility, and boost your overall strength.
Fitch provides research to back up these claims, citing studies that have found kettlebell training to be more effective than traditional weight training for improving strength, power, and endurance. He also cites research that has found kettlebell training to be an effective tool for improving balance and coordination.
Chapter 3: The 12-Minute Kettlebell Swing Workout
The third chapter of the book provides a 12-minute kettlebell swing workout that you can do every day to achieve your fitness goals. Fitch recommends starting with a light kettlebell and gradually increasing the weight as you get stronger.
The workout includes a warm-up, followed by several sets of kettlebell swings with rest periods in between. Fitch recommends performing the workout at least five days a week to see results. He also provides modifications for those who may have difficulty with the full workout, such as performing fewer sets or using a lighter kettlebell.
Chapter 4: Nutrition and Kettlebell Training
The fourth chapter of the book covers the importance of nutrition when it comes to kettlebell training. Fitch explains how a healthy diet can help you achieve your fitness goals faster and improve your overall health.
He provides guidelines for a healthy diet, including the importance of consuming lean protein, healthy fats, and complex carbohydrates. Fitch also recommends avoiding processed foods and sugary drinks, as they can negatively impact your health and fitness.
Chapter 5: Advanced Kettlebell Training
The final chapter of the book covers advanced kettlebell training techniques. Fitch provides instructions on how to perform more complex kettlebell exercises, such as the snatch and the clean and press. He also provides guidance on how to use kettlebells for more advanced workouts, such as high-intensity interval training (HIIT) and circuit training.
Recommended Kettlebells and Weights
Fitch recommends starting with a light kettlebell, such as a 12 kg (26 lb) kettlebell, and gradually increasing the weight
as you get stronger. He suggests choosing a weight that allows you to perform the exercise with proper form and without excessive strain.
For women, Fitch recommends starting with a 12 kg (26 lb) kettlebell and progressing to a 16 kg (35 lb) kettlebell as they get stronger. For men, he recommends starting with a 16 kg (35 lb) kettlebell and progressing to a 24 kg (53 lb) or 32 kg (70 lb) kettlebell.
Fitch recommends choosing a kettlebell with a smooth, rounded handle that is comfortable to grip. He also advises choosing a kettlebell with a flat bottom to prevent it from rolling around during exercises.
Conclusion
“Get Fit, Get Fierce with Kettlebell Swings” is a comprehensive guide on how to use kettlebell swings to improve your fitness, strength, and overall health. Don Fitch provides detailed instructions on the proper form for kettlebell swings and explains the many benefits of incorporating them into your workout routine.
The book also includes a 12-minute kettlebell swing workout that you can do every day to achieve your fitness goals, as well as guidance on advanced kettlebell training techniques. Fitch emphasizes the importance of nutrition in achieving your fitness goals and provides guidelines for a healthy diet.
If you are looking to improve your fitness and health, kettlebell swings are a great exercise to incorporate into your workout routine. “Get Fit, Get Fierce with Kettlebell Swings” provides a thorough guide on how to use kettlebell swings to achieve your fitness goals, and is a must-read for anyone interested in kettlebell training.
Glossary of Terms:
- Kettlebell: A ball of iron with a handle, used for ballistic exercises that combine cardiovascular, strength, and flexibility training.
- Sitting Disease: A term coined by the medical community to refer to metabolic syndrome and the ill effects of an overly sedentary lifestyle.
- Two-handed kettlebell swing: A basic kettlebell exercise where the kettlebell is swung from between the knees to anywhere between the upper abdomen to overhead, using both hands.
- Russian kettlebell swing: A type of two-handed kettlebell swing where the motion stops at shoulder height.
- American kettlebell swing: A swing variation where the kettlebell goes overhead.
- Cardiovascular conditioning: Exercises and activities that promote heart health.
- Body Composition: The proportion of fat and non-fat mass in your body.
- Repetitions: The number of times an exercise is performed.
- Nutritional guidelines: Recommended dietary advice to optimize health.
- Aerobic exercise: Physical exercises that increase heart rate and lung capacity.
FAQ:
- What is the main premise of Don Fitch’s book?
- Don Fitch’s book focuses on the benefits of kettlebell swings, advocating for a 12-minute daily routine to improve fitness, lose weight, and prevent the negative effects of a sedentary lifestyle.
- How can kettlebell swings benefit me?
- Kettlebell swings offer cardiovascular conditioning, strength training, and are effective in fat loss and body toning.
- How long does each kettlebell swing session last?
- Each kettlebell swing session in the book’s recommended routine lasts for 90 seconds.
- What’s the difference between Russian and American kettlebell swings?
- The Russian kettlebell swing is a two-handed swing that stops at shoulder height, while the American kettlebell swing is a one-handed swing that goes overhead.
- How often should I perform the kettlebell swing workout?
- The book recommends performing the 12-minute kettlebell swing workout at least five days a week to see optimal results.
- Are there any nutritional guidelines in the book?
- Yes, the book provides guidelines for a healthy diet to complement the kettlebell workouts, emphasizing the importance of lean protein, healthy fats, and complex carbohydrates.
- What weight of kettlebell is recommended for beginners?
- Women are advised to start with a 12 kg kettlebell, while men should begin with a 16 kg kettlebell, progressively increasing the weight as strength improves.
- What is the “sitting disease”?
- The “sitting disease” is a term used to describe the ill effects of prolonged sitting, which has been identified as a cardiovascular and metabolic risk factor.
- Are there any other exercises recommended in the book?
- While the primary focus is on kettlebell swings, the book does advocate other aerobic exercises, such as walking 10,000 steps per day.
- Who can benefit from this book?
- Anyone looking to improve their fitness, combat the effects of a sedentary lifestyle, and achieve weight loss goals can benefit from the exercises and guidelines provided in the book.