Creating a Full-Body Workout with Adjustable Kettlebells

Your Adjustable Kettlebells have arrived

A notification has just popped up on your phone: Your new Adjustable Kettlebell has just been delivered to your door. Regardless of the size you ordered, it’s time to take your purchase and put it to good use, which leads you here to learn more about full-body training with your Adjustable Kettlebell. 

To build out your programming you’ll need to understand the different types of programming and the benefits behind them. The time it takes you to complete your workout depends on the time you want to dedicate to them.

Programming With Adjustable Kettlebells

When it comes to programming, it’s important to understand two things: HIIT and Hypertrophy.. The HIIT style of training helps with endurance. Hypertrophy style of training builds muscle. 

HIIT With Adjustable Kettlebells

HIIT stands for High Intensity Interval training. For the most part, you go from a burst of all-out movement for some time to a short rest period. The benefit of HIIT is that it can increase your endurance and your body's ability to use the air you’re breathing in. In essence, improving your cardiovascular fitness. HIIT is a time-focused training style, with most sets looking like 30 seconds on, 30 seconds off, or 30 seconds on 60 seconds off. With this time frame, you have two options for the exercises that are in your workout. To keep it simple, let's say you’re performing 4 total movements and 4 total sets for each of those movements. Your first option is to do it in a circuit, meaning you perform each exercise in order and then restart. For our HIIT example, let's create a lower-body circuit: 

Exercise	Set Time	Rest
Kettlebell Goblet Squat	30 sec.	30 sec.
Kettlebell Romanian Deadlift	30 sec.	30 sec.
Kettlebell Backwards Lunge	30 sec.	30 sec.
Kettlebell Wide Stance Pulse Squat	30 sec.	60 sec.

After performing the first round of the circuit and having gotten a minute of rest, you would start the process over, for 3 more sets. 

The next option is the more traditional training style, meaning you would perform each exercise for 4 total sets, not moving to the next movement until you’ve completed all sets. Looking something like this:

Exercise	Sets	Rest
Kettlebell Goblet Squat	4	30 sec.
Kettlebell Romanian Deadlift	4	30 sec.
Kettlebell Backwards Lunge	4	30 sec.
Kettlebell Wide Stance Pulse Squat	4	30 sec.

HIIT-style training can keep your workouts short but intense. Leaving each session you do with a feeling of accomplishment. 

Hypertrophy With Adjustable Kettlebells

Hypertrophy training is a rep-focused training style. Keep your rep range within 6-12, with the sweet spot being around the 8-10 mark. The difference is that with hypertrophy, you’re choosing a weight that you couldn’t get more than 8 reps (for example) if you tried, that you’ve hit muscle failure. Failure isn’t a bad thing. The point of failure just means that you’ve maxed out your muscles' ability to move a certain weight. This in turn causes our bodies to adapt, to become stronger. Now, this isn’t to say that a HIIT workout can’t do this, it’s to say this is what hypertrophy is designed for. Let’s take from our workout example above and you’re performing the goblet squat. Your goal is to pick a weight that you can perform 10 times, no more, no less. Where you’re explosive in the standing-up portion, but slow and controlled in the squatting motion. Each rep can take anywhere from 4-6 seconds to perform, leaving you with a crazy pump in your quads. For our hypertrophy example, let’s create an upper-body workout:

Exercise	Sets	Reps	Rest
Kettlebell Renegade Row	4	8-10	1 minute
Kettlebell Floor Press	4	8-10	1 Minute
Kettlebell Seated Shoulder Press	4	8-10	1 Minute
Kettlebell Triceps Extension	4	8-10	1 minute
Kettlebell Biceps Curl	4	8-10	1 minute

This workout is much more similar to our second HIIT workout example but is much more focused on reps compared to time. Hitting failure between the 8-10 rep range. This isn’t to say that if you were to fall short or go past that, it's bad. Remember, the range is from 6-12, so your rep range is dependent on you, your strength levels, and how heavy the weight is that you're moving compared to your current strength levels. 

A Full-Body Adjustable Kettlebell Workout for You to Try

In our workout examples for HIIT and hypertrophy, you’re welcome to use those workouts for your training or mix and match the two to create something totally new. With that, let's break down the process of creating your own Full-Body Kettlebell workout. 

When creating any workout, you have to consider the time it will take to complete the workout, what muscle groups will be hit, and the variety of movements within the workout. Since we’re focusing on a full-body workout, we need to remember the four types of movements that our bodies typically perform. They are a squat, a hinge, a row, and a press. Each one of these movements is included in the examples above. But let's add some variety to this full-body day so that you have three workouts to use the next time you grab your Adjustable Kettlebell. 

Kettlebell Squat

To start, the squat. We’ll be keeping the goblet squat but combining it with the wide stance squat pulse. You’ll start with a goblet squat with your feet about hip-width apart. Once you complete the squat, with either your left or right leg step out and perform 2 pulse squats. Bring your legs back together, and that’s one rep. The next rep, alternate which leg steps out.  

Kettlebell Swing

Let's shake things up for the hinge movement and do a kettlebell swing. Start with your kettlebell in front of you, with both hands holding on. Then hike it back like a football and use your hips and momentum to thrust the kettlebell forward. Control the weight going down and don’t push your hips back until the kettlebell reaches you. 

Kettlebell Row

For our row, we’ll do a bent-over single or alternating row. Get your body as parallel to the floor as possible and grab onto your kettlebell. Then, with your kettlebell at about the midline of your foot, drive your elbow up towards your torso, controlling the weight on the way down. If you have two kettlebells, alternate, if you only have one complete the set on one side, then switch. If you’re doing a HIIT workout and you have one kettlebell, switch arms at the halfway point.  If you're doing hypertrophy, switch arms after you’ve completed all of the reps on one side of your body. 

Kettlebell Press

Finally, the press, we’ll do a standing rotation press. Get your kettlebell in a racked position, meaning the kettlebell is lying on your forearm with the handle running across your palm. Start to press upward and outward while twisting your body. If the Kettlebell is in your right hand, twist to the left, if it’s in your left hand twist your body to the right. If you’re doing a HIIT workout, switch at the halfway point. If you're doing hypertrophy, switch arms after you’ve completed all of the reps on one side of your body. 

Let’s put it together for both a HIIT and Hypertrophy day:

Kettlebell HIIT Circuit: Perform 4 rounds

Exercise	Set Time	Rest
Goblet Squat step-outs	30 sec.	30 sec.
Kettlebell Swing	30 sec.	30 sec.
Bent Over Kettlebell Row	30 sec.	30 sec.
Kettlebell Twist Press	30 sec.	60 Sec.

Kettlebell Hypertrophy 

Exercise	Sets	Reps	Rest
Goblet Squat step-outs	4	10	60 sec.
Kettlebell Swing	4	10	60 Sec.
Bent Over Kettlebell Row	4	10	60 sec.
Kettlebell Twist Press	4	10	60 sec.

 

Now You're Ready For Your Adjustable Kettlebell Workout!

There you have it, a full-body kettlebell workout you can do with your PowerBlock Adjustable Kettlebell, some new knowledge on how to build out your program, and 2 additional workouts you can add to your arsenal. Now what’re you waiting for, go grab your Adjustable Kettlebell and get to work. If you are looking for an additional adjustable kettlebell workout try our kettlebell chest workout look at