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How One Kettlebell Exercise Broke Me

By Greg Brookes

Happy Monday to you.

About 9 years ago I found myself on top of a roof terrace in London.

I was with a personal training colleague of mine and we were discussing kettlebell training.

“Have you ever used the Clean as an exercise on its own” he asked me.

“No” I replied and he promptly pointed me to a 32kg kettlebell that was on the floor nearby.

“Try 60 seconds of just Cleans and see how many you can crank out” he said.

Up to this point I had used the kettlebell clean a number of times but never really as an exercise on its own, and certainly not for 60 seconds straight.

Well I grit my teeth, grabbed the bell and cleaned hard for the full 60 seconds!

I think I manged around 27 reps.

With my heart now in my mouth I took a few seconds to get my breath back before subjecting my other arm to exactly the same treatment.

I can honestly tell you that after just 2 minutes of heavy kettlebell cleans I was totally done for.

I remember travelling back on the underground feeling all shook up, a little sick and generally all over the place.

The next day I ached from head to toe and this was from just a 2 minute workout.

Kettlebell training can be brutal, it can be highly effective and it doesn’t take hours in the gym or miles running the streets.

If you want to try the same workout that I did all those years ago then choose a kettlebell that is heavy but you can lift safely.

Then….

  • Clean Left – 60 seconds
  • Clean Right 60 seconds

Watch my Clean tutorial video below (do not include the press part):

See if you can reach 30 reps per side.

If you find this too easy then the kettlebell is not heavy enough. Try 2-5 rounds to really push yourself.

Give it a try and let me know if this totally rocks your world for a few days ๐Ÿ™‚

Take care and enjoy the rest of your day,

Greg

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