Kettlebells    Good  Things  to  Look  For  when  selecting  a  Kettlebell      

       Terminology:    

• The  ‘Bell’  part  of  the  Kettlebell  is  the  usually  round  in  shape  and  is  the  part  that  looks  like  a  cannonball.  The  bell  is  the  area  where  the  majority  of  the  weight  is  housed.  

• The  Handle  is  the  horizontal  section  above  the  bell,  which  can  be  straight  or  slightly  curved,  and  is  held  by  the  user  with  either  one  or  two  hands.  

• The  two  Horns  connect  the  Handle  to  the  Bell,  and  again  may  be  straight,  slightly  curved,  vertical  or  at  a  slight  angle.    

 Choosing  a  well-­‐designed  bell  will  make  it  easier  to  learn  the  correct  positions  and  techniques  for  many   of   the   drills,  whilst   a   poorly   designed   bell  will  make   it   virtually   impossible   to   acquire   the  correct  skills  for  the  Clean,  Press,  Squat,  Snatch,  Turkish  Get  Up  and  variations  of  these.    Handle  Length  A  long  handle  will  make  it  very  difficult  and  uncomfortable  when  performing  Cleans  and  Snatches.  Although  it  may  not  make  as  big  a  difference  on  exercises  like  the  2  Hand  Swing,  it’s  better  not  to  choose  a  bell  that  is  only  good  for  a  few  drills.  You  should  be  able  to  comfortably  hold  the  handle  with  one  hand,  with   a   very   slight   gap  between   the   little   finger   and   the  end  of   the  handle.   This  length  of  handle  will   be   ideal   for  Cleans,   Snatches,   Jerks  and  Presses.  When  holding   the  handle  with  two  hands,  you  should  find  that  the  little  fingers  and  maybe  the  ring  fingers  do  not  really  grip  the  handle.  If  you  can  get  both  hands  fully  on  the  handle,  then  it  is  too  long.    Horn  Length  The  horns  connect  the  handle  to  the  bell,  and  will  dictate  the  gap  between  the  two.  This  is  quite  important  since  if  this  gap  is  too  small  it  makes  it  virtually  impossible  to  achieve  correct  technique  with  many   common   drills   -­‐   Snatch,   Press,   Turkish   Get   Up   and   the   Clean.   This   is   because  when  holding  a  bell  with  a   short  horn   in   these  drills   the  bell  will  end  up  sitting  between,  or  near,   the  condyles  (bony  prominences)  of  the  wrist/forearm.      

 

       This   is   quite   uncomfortable,   so   people  will   subconsciously   cock   their  wrist   into   an   extended   or  hyper-­‐extended  position  so  that  the  bell  sits  lower  on  the  forearm  with  more  muscle  'cushioning'.  With  the  wrist   in  a  straight  position,  the  bell  part  of  the  Kettlebell  should  sit  more  on  the  fleshy  part  of  the  forearm  just  below  the  wrist.  Some  of  the  more  angular-­‐shaped  horns  are  particularly  bad   for   this   and   I  would   recommend   trying   a   few   repetitions   of   exercises   such   as   the   Clean   or  Snatch  for  wrist  comfort  before  purchasing  a  Kettlebell.   If   the  handle   is   too   long  then  the  horns  will  usually  be  quite  long  and  will  stick  out  at  quite  an  angle,  making  it  easier  for  you  to  recognize  this.    Size  of  Handle  Choose  a  handle  that  is  a  comfortable  diameter  for  the  size  of  your  hand.  Although  Competition  Kettlebells  will  have  a  uniform  handle  size  for  all  weights,  some  of  the  Fitness  Style  Kettlebells  will  have  slightly  thicker  handles  for  the  heavier  weights  of  16  or  20kg  upwards  and  slightly  thinner  for  the  12kg  and  below.  Excessively  thick  handles,  although  great  for  hand  and  forearm  strength  and  endurance   improvements  with   drills   like   the   Farmers  Walk,  will   cause   your   forearm  muscles   to  fatigue  too  quickly  during  repetitive  Swings  or  Snatches  and  can  be  counterproductive.        Handle  Texture  A  cast  iron  handle  should  have  a  slightly  grainy  texture  to  it,  allowing  the  user  to  get  a  good  grip  when  performing  certain  drills.  Although  the  Kettlebell  doesn’t  need   to  gripped  rigidly   for  many  drills,  it  is  for  some  (such  as  the  Bottoms  Up  Clean,  aka  Pistol  Grip)  and  for  the  other  drills,  such  as  the   Swing   and   Snatch,  we   don’t  want   the   handle   to   slip   out   of   the   loose   grip.   Some   Kettlebell  designs   have   a   very   prominent   ridge   on   the   underside   of   the   handle.   This   will   be   somewhat  inconsequential  for  certain  exercises,   like  the  Press,  Squat  and  the  Swing,  but  for  two  of  the  key  drills   -­‐   the   Clean   and   the   Snatch   -­‐   the   handle   will   have   to   rotate   through   around   180   degrees  through   a   loosely   held   grip.   This   ridge   can   cause   excessive   discomfort,   blistering   and   calluses  forming  as  a  result.      There  are  some  Kettlebells  with  knurling  (the  criss-­‐cross  patterning  effect  that  is  seen  on  Barbells  and  Dumbbells),   but   these   should  be   avoided.   For   drills  where   the  Kettlebell   is   relatively   static,  such  as  a  Press  or  Windmill  or  Turkish  Get  Up,  this  isn’t  an  issue.  However  for  all  dynamic  drills  –  Swings,   Cleans,   Snatches   etc   –   it   is   critical   that   the   handle   rotates   within   the   palm.   A   coarse  surface   is   fine   but   knurling   is   designed   to   grip   and   a   Snatch   or   Clean   with   a   knurled   handled  Kettlebell  will  just  rip  the  skin  from  your  hand.  Although  you  can  perform  a  Snatch  or  Clean  with  a  knurled  handle  Olympic  bar,  the  difference  is  that  the  bar  doesn't  spin  within  the  grip,  but  on  the  bearings  instead.