Kettlebells are one of the most popular ways to get strong, especially if your training at home. You really don’t need many exercises in your tool kit to get very strong using kettlebells. Here we offer 6 exercises that can be used as the focal points of your kettlebell programming.

How To Get Strong Using Kettlebells

Lift Heavy, Often

Getting strong really isn’t a very complicated endeavour, it requires you to lift weights that are heavy for you (close to the maximum weight you can lift) on a regular basis through all the key movement patterns. These include, squat, hinge, horizontal press, horizontal pull, carries, vertical press.

Use A Variety Of Weights

If you’re looking to get very strong just through using kettlebells it’s likely you'll need a large variety of kettlebell weights as each of the aforementioned movement patterns will require very different weights to create overload. For example the hinge movement pattern will need to be loaded much heavier than the vertical press movement pattern.

The 6 Best Kettlebell Exercises For Strength

Common Questions

Are Kettlebells Workouts Good For Strength Training?

Yes, kettlebells can be a great way to get strong. That being said, using barbells is the traditional route as they are easier to manipulate as typically you can make smaller progressions. Personally, I love using kettlebells for training the back , especially alternating gorilla rows .

How Do You Use Kettlebell Exercises For Strength Training?

Kettlebells follow the same principles as any sort of strength training, lifting a weight that is heavy for you (80% or more of your max) for repetitions close to failure. This means that you’ll need to have a large variety of kettlebells as you’re max will change based on the movement pattern you’re working.

How Heavy Should Your Kettlebell Be For Kettlebell Strength Training?

If you want to get genuinely strong using kettlebells the best option is to have a large variety of kettlebells, otherwise you’ll end up doing high rep work and reach your strength ceiling in some movement patterns. But if you take a very heavy kettlebell you wont be able to perform reps on movements that are traditionally more difficult.