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You'll also be building and bulletproofing your entire posterior chain
The kettlebell is one of the greatest tools available for the fitness minimalists. With just a single weight, a handful of exercises and a few choice bodyweight movements thrown into the mix, there aren’t a lot of boxes that can’t be ticked on the road to building muscle, strength and stamina.
This protocol pairs two of the simplest, yet most effective movements in existence for a one-two punch that will pump up your chest and arms, while building and bulletproofing your entire posterior chain (i.e. all of those incredibly important muscles that you can’t see in the mirror).
Promising a combination of a swole chest, perky glutes and a powerful hip drive, with *ahem* plenty of ‘real-world benefits’, you’d be hard pressed to find a more efficient way to spend thirty minutes in the gym.
You’re going to be working in a ‘ladder’ protocol, performing a high-rep set of both exercises back to back, lowering the reps of both in each passing round. You’ll begin with twenty swings, followed by twenty dips, resting just as necessary to keep your technique sharp. Next you’ll perform eighteen of each, then sixteen, then fourteen; working your way down the ladder to a final two rep set and two-hundred and twenty reps in the bag.
1. Kettlebell swing x 20, 18, 16, 14… etc.
With a kettlebell on the floor in front of your body, hinge at your hips to reach down and grip it with both hands and a flat back. Swing the weight backward between your legs (A). Drive your hips forward to explosively blast it up to eye level (B). Let the momentum return you back into the hinge position and explode straight up into rep two.
Jump up on two parallel bars or a set of rings with your palms facing inward and your arms straight (A). Use two boxes or the backs of two sturdy chairs if you’re at home. Slowly lower until you feel a stretch through your chest. Pause here (B) before driving yourself back up to the top and repeating.