Working with a kettlebell takes core strength, stability and power, and you’re working with a great deal more range of motion than dumbbells, barbells, or gym machines, so you’ll need to focus on control and coordination, too.
For that reason, a full-body kettlebell workout can help you boost power and chisel stronger muscles all over your body, and I highly recommend this effective double-kettlebell session using one of the best kettlebells for weightlifting.
Curated by kettlebell legend Eric Leija in collaboration with Adidas, the “gorilla Kettlebell Killa” fires up your core and strengthens muscles from head to toe. Here’s how to follow the workout, the benefits and ways to scale to your ability.
If you’re working with a health condition or injury, we strongly recommend clearing exercise with a qualified health professional before trying this workout. Otherwise, grab your weight and get ready for a full-body strength training session.
Watch Eric Leija’s 4-move kettlebell workout
Leija says this is one of his favorite kettlebell workouts and it only consists of four movements and eight rounds. “Have fun and push the pace but take the full rest for quality reps every set,” he adds.
You’ll work for 40 seconds per exercise with 20 seconds of rest between moves. Take 60 seconds of rest between sets and repeat for rounds.
The moves combine like a kettlebell complex so we recommend watching the video, familiarizing yourself with each one, then setting your timer and jumping in. For example, the first exercise combines a bodyweight push-up and row, similar to a renegade row, while keeping one hand resting on the kettlebell, the other on the ground, and then switching sides.
The second exercise combines a single-arm kettlebell swing with a dual kettlebell clean and squat, the third exercise is a lateral shoot-through using just your body weight and the fourth exercise is a three-move attack — dual gorilla row into a combo swing high pull and kettlebell snatch. Leija controls the descent from overhead to shoulders, then ground.
If you're lost already, don't be put off, because you can follow the video to learn each one. Think of each combo as one move, flowing for 40 seconds and taking your recovery to reset. There’s no rep count for this workout, so to stay consistent, consider counting your reps on the first round and maintaining them throughout.
Leija — known to his followers as Primal Swoledier — is famous for his creative and challenging kettlebell flows and complexes, tapping into the benefits of functional movement to build well-rounded strength and explosive power. We love his incorporation of bodyweight primal movements, derived from the workout style known as “animal flow.”
Animal flow works with the whole body in natural and primitive ways, improving the quality of your movement patterns and building more robust muscles, ligaments, bones and joints. Think bear crawls and loaded beasts, if you're already familiar with the style. As you age, retaining the quality of your movements becomes even more important for performing exercise and daily tasks.
This kettlebell workout sums up Leija’s workout style perfectly — a combination of kettlebell exercises strung together with bodyweight work. In particular, the lateral shoot-through is a bodyweight exercise that strengthens the abs, obliques and hips without weights or much skill required.
You’ll learn to kick your leg beneath the body while rotating to the side and lifting one arm into the air, testing core strength, stability, balance and coordination, as well as your body’s ability to control your body weight and work with it — a great way to access your relative strength and bring an element of calisthenics training into your routine.
Ways to scale this kettlebell workout
We try our best to spotlight kettlebell workouts suitable for beginners. If that’s you, we recommend learning how to hold a kettlebell properly before you begin this workout, which provides some basic grips and techniques you can use for different types of kettlebell exercises.
But grip aside, we think these kettlebell exercises can be scaled to all abilities. If you haven’t got full-range push-ups yet, start on your knees and focus on lowering your chest as far toward the ground as possible rather than delivering half or quarter reps.
Work slowly on the lateral shoot-throughs and build speed as you improve. Work with a lighter weight during kettlebell exercises until you feel confident, and again, slowly build up as your ability improves. You could also reduce the rounds if you’re still building stamina and endurance.
