YOU NAME IT AND KETTLEBELLS HELPS IT
A kettlebell is a cast iron ball with a handle that has been used in Russia for hundreds of years. Kettlebells Help: |
|
| KETTLEBELLS are an awesome
tool for REHABILITATION and REJUVENATION! To hear more about this, check out Dr. Mark Cheng's site: kettlebellrehab.com |
 |
The Top Five (Extremely Boring) Reasons RKC Kettlebell Training Is Great for Your Back
McGill On Kettlebells
World's Premier spine biomechanist Prof. Stuart McGill lists the following kettlebell benefits:
- "steering strength" from drills like the bottom up get up.
- balanced development of strength. Kettlebell exercises reveal your weaknesses - (grips, hips, etc.) - and fix them.
- The lateral component offers a unique challenge for the obliques and the QL - very healthy for your back.
- The ability to train "kime" or karate style focus of explosive effort with exercises like the hard style swing.
1. Kettlebell exercises strengthen the glutes.
The late Vladimir Janda, MD, from the Czech Republic observed that people with low back
dysfunction often exhibit "gluteal
amnesia." And if not overcome with proper recruitment pattern practice, it is
likely to lead to more back problems, since the back has to take over the lifting
task of the powerful glutes. The glutes are strongly emphasized in kettlebell training.
2. Kettlebell exercises stretch the hip flexors.
In Janda's research, weak glutes were associated with tight hip flexors. The RKC system
is second to none in promoting hip flexor flexibility.
3. Kettlebells develop back extensor endurance.
Professor Stuart McGill, PhD, the number-one spine biomechanist in the world, concluded
that while lower-back strength surprisingly does not appear to reduce the odds of
back problems, muscular endurance does (Luoto et. al, 1995). I dare you to find a
better developer of the back extensors' endurance than the high-repetition kettlebell
swing or snatch.
4. "Bracing" is superior to "hollowing" for spinal stability.
Misinterpreted research has lead to the currently popular recommendation to "pull
your navel in toward your spine"
to protect your back. Dr. McGill has demonstrated that
"bracing" the abdominal wall is the superior technique. For more on this, get
your copy of his breakthrough book, Ultimate Back Fitness and Performance, from
backfitpro.com. The RKC system of kettlebell training teaches many innovative techniques
to improve your bracing skill.
5. Sensible ballistic loading appears to reduce the odds of arthritis.
Repetitive ballistic loading of kettlebell swings and other quick lifts appears to be
highly beneficial to your joints—provided you do not overdo it. In Supertraining,
Drs. Yuri Verkhoshansky and Mel Siff state: "Joints subjected to heavy impact
are relatively free of osteoarthritis in old age and those subjected to much lower
loading experience a greater incidence of osteoarthritis and cartilage fibrillation...
as one progresses up the lower extremity, from the ankle, to the knee, the hip and
finally to the lumbar spine, so the extent of fibrillation increases at any given
age. It appears that the cartilage of joints subjected to regular impulsive loading
with relatively high contact stresses is mechanically much stiffer and better adapted
to withstand the exceptional loading of running and jumping than the softer cartilage
associated with low loading. Thus, joint cartilage subjected to regular repetitive
loading remains healthy and copes very well with impulsive loads, whereas cartilage
that is heavily loaded infrequently softens... the collagen network loses its cohesion
and the cartilage deteriorates."
Excerpt taken from "Enter the Kettlebell!" by Pavel Tsatsouline
for a heart of elastic steel!
... even Lance does it!"The
buff cycling superstar is offering fans a sneak peek at his training
regimen
|
"appearance is a consequence of fitness"
The cast and stunt crew of the movie "300" adopted this as their mission statement while training to develop dense, sinewy, 'live-off-the-land' muscle. Using Kettlebells, and other old-world tools, the men reached top levels of conditioning and accomplished their goal: to look and fight like SPARTANS.
See the whole story of how they trained here.