Using the 16 kg Kettlebell to Kick Ass

I don’t know anyone of us who does not want be kick ass strong. It’s cool to be able to side kick open a door, knock someone out with one punch, carry a ridiculous amount of groceries with one arm, and do a one-legged squat holding your 25 lb. toddler. Yeah, right, you say. I don’t have time for that. Relax! You do!

What do you think you need to do to attain the aforementioned skills? Train for a marathon? Ha! That’s the greatest joke of all. It doesn’t take much time at all. It’s a mindset. It’s a mindset of where you learn how to use your nervous system. And it can be done in short bouts throughout the day, or, through focused workouts that leave you ferruling stronger at the end of them.

This can all be learned with the 16 kg kettlebell.

The following program, done with the 16 kg kettlebell, will show you a whole new potential you never knew before (assuming you haven’t done this type of training before).

  1. Pass around body
  2. Pass between legs
  3. two hand swing 3×15 (or one hand 3×15 l,r)
  4. clean and press 3×5
  5. windmill 2×8
  6. goblet squat 3×5
  7. turkish get up 2×5

Man. You’ll be feeling great. Do this once a week and then do a similar program on another day or two. That is, train 2-3 days per week – depending on age and recovery. Or train 3 days every 10 days. On the other days, switch out the presses for pull ups, the goblet squats for pistols (or exercises that lead up to the pistol), and replace 2 sets of the Swings with 2 sets of snatches (after warming up a bit with a set of swings). Rest for one minute between all sets after the pass between legs.

Kettlebell training makes you strong all over. This type of program hits your entire body. And this type of program won’t take you a lot of time. 2-3 days per week, and your week can be 10 days—it’s all about your recovery. And your age. If you’re younger, with less responsibility and more time, you have greater recovery capacity. If you’re older, have a kid and you’re in grad school… well, I don’t need to spell it out for you, do I?

Anyway, the point is that this is not a complicated program. The thing is, you need to treat this like the yoga of weights. Like Iyengar yoga, where you are super-focused on the details and alignment. Those asanas are hard core—and so is your laser-like focus when you train with this kettlebell. Look, you can piddle around and complain about lack of time, or, with the time you have, you can be super-focused and not fuck around. This is a general principle that helps in all areas of life.

You can be the type of guy who can easily open any jar. You’ll be the kind of guy who can do 10 pull ups, when most other men can’t do one. You can be the dad playing sports with the kids instead of watching them on TV and dreaming about the past. And, you won’t get old and decrepit. You’ll just get old. And old does not mean decrepit—it just means more experience.

Now, I know plenty of guys will blow beyond this. But plenty won’t, and even if you can destroy this weight, using the 16 kg for a short period of time will refine your skill if you take it seriously and it’s easier on your joints.