Kettlebell Drills With a Dumbbell?
One of the questions most frequently asked by someone new to kettlebells is, “Can’t I just use a dumbbell instead?” The answer is yes and no, but mostly, no. The kettlebell is far more flexible, offering much more than a dumbbell. When I first became interested in kettlebell training, I just went out and bought a 25-pound dumbbell and went to work.
Here’s what I found out. Swings, the most foundational of the kettlebell exercises, don’t work well with a dumbbell. With a kettlebell, the weight hangs below the handle, so it swings easily between the legs. A dumbbell doesn’t work nearly as well. Because the handle is in the center of the weights, a dumbbell is much wider than a kettlebell.
This makes for an awkward swing between the legs. There is a very real possibility of smacking yourself Read more
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Designing a Weight Lifting Routine Part II
In Part I of designing a weight lifting routine, we talked about the cornerstone; a large, multi-joint movement. Training at home, I recommended the deadlift. The next step is to choose another multi-joint movement; a press.
There are a few choices for the press. There’s the classic bench press, the overhead press, the side press, and the bent press, to name a few options. Out of these, I recommend the overhead press or the side press, and I’ll tell you why.
The bent press is a great exercise, but Read more
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Designing a Weight Lifting Routine Part I
Designing a weight lifting routine can be made very simple, or very complicated depending on your goals. Here at NSG, I like to focus on simplicity. My goal is to make exercise simple enough for anyone to meet his or her goals. I’m not talking about designing a training program for elite professional athletes, I’m talking about giving you the information to design your own routine. One that you’ll enjoy doing, stick with, and get results.
The cornerstone of a good weight lifting routine should be a large, multi-joint movement such as the deadlift or squat (yes, even for women). Working out at home, the deadlift makes more sense, unless you have a squat rack. Even then, the deadlift is safer – especially when training alone, as you can just Read more
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Home Gym Exercise Equipment…
So you’ve made the smart decision to start taking better care of yourself, or have gotten fed up with your gym, simply can’t afford a membership, or don’t want a long-term contract. For whatever reason, you want to start working out at home. You’ll need some home gym exercise equipment. You have a lot of options, and what you get will depend a lot on your budget, your goals, and the space you have available.
If you have the means and the space, you can look into a home gym or multi gym, like the Bowflex or one of the sets from Body Solid. These can be a good choice if you want Read more
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