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What Weight Kettlebell Should You Buy?
If you’re thinking of buying a kettlebell soon, first let me say congratulations! My brain goes two directions whenever someone asks me, “What size kettlebell should I buy?” One direction is excitement because kettlebells open up a whole new world of movement possibilities and dynamics, making certain lifts more accessible to people with limited mobility. The other direction is curiosity about what you’ve been lifting up until this point. To help you figure out what kettlebell weight to buy, I like to ask these questions:
In that video I talk about several factors that can help you decide what weight of kettlebell would be safe to buy. It’s important that you don’t purchase a kettlebell that weighs too much, or you could quickly injure yourself before you have time to build the strength to match that weight. It’s also crucial to choose a weight that pushes you to the point of getting stronger, but – again – without injury. There’s a fine line here, and I hope you watch the video to learn the smartest way to select a safe weight of kettlebell to use in your home fitness workouts.
But I also just really need to rant for a hot minute about something…
There’s a brain block some women seem to have about picking up any “hand weight” like a dumbbell or kettlebell that weighs more than 2 lbs… Meanwhile, y’all are lifting far more than that on the daily! C’mon, ladies!!! I can name 17 things in your life that weigh more than 2 lbs right now…
- your purse or diaper bag
- your cat or dog
- that jug of milk
- pot of soup
- stack of books
- pot of coffee
- bag of groceries
- laundry basket
- that one big blanket
- a soaking wet towel
- your dining room chair
- stack of plates or bowls
- pitcher of juice
- bag of pet food
- bundle of bananas
- your car door
- your loved one…
The amount of pressure you need to exert to close your car door, slide your chair in and out, fold a big blanket, carry your laundry is FAR greater than 2 lbs. Yet when you do those things here and there throughout your life, they may feel heavy to you if they are the biggest loads you carry.
Story time: As I’m writing this, I’m also water bath canning two batches of homemade salsa. I just now found myself balancing a full pot of boiling water while trying to take off my house slippers and put on my barn boots. I was carrying the hot water outside to pour on the dandelions that insist on growing in the concrete around our house (it’s a non-herbicide way to keep them at bay) and I couldn’t put the pot down because it would scorch the floor. Imagine me carefully holding a VERY hot canner full of water away from my torso while repeatedly balancing on one foot at a time.
I could NOT have done that without hurting myself or losing my balance if I hadn’t been regularly training my balance, coordination, and muscle strength.
Weight training twice a week hits all the high notes for toning your physique, preventing injuries, improving your core strength, bettering your balance, preventing brittle bone disease, balancing your hormones, and so. many. other. things like sleep, mental health, and more like carrying hot pots of water out to kill weeds … but if you’re not picking up weights that compare to the loads you’re carrying in real life, you may not see results because your muscles will be like, “What even is this?”
Now, I know many of you are scared of getting bulky or injuring yourself. The way I teach in our videos is slow and gentle and strategic, and – unless they’re on steroids – females cannot bulk up like males. Plus, it takes a while to build muscles! You’re not going to pick up heavier weights and wake up the next day or even the next year looking like Arnold Schwarzenegger!
Please lift weights. Please. Start wight those 2 pounders, sure, but get some 5’s and 8’s and then 10’s and 12’s on that wish list of yours, okay?! Please? End rant.
No Kettlebell? No Problem!
If you can’t afford a kettlebell right now, or maybe you just wanna see if you’ll even enjoy this type of training without investing yet, we’ve got another blog with a free tutorial on how to easily make your own!
Here on Fit2B, we have a lot of fun workout videos that teach you how to use a kettlebell safely and effectively to get stronger and leaner. Here are just 5 of our kettlebell workouts that our members rave about and love to use to get stronger while having fun working out at home.
Kettlebell Workout 1 Kettlebell Workout 2 Kettlebell Core Ballistic Bells Green GertieIn addition to kettlebell workouts, you’ll find EVERY kind of workout video imaginable here on Fit2B where we specialize in helping busy moms exercise safely and confidently at home. We have everything from barbell workouts to dumbbell workouts, dance aerobics to step aerobics, Pilates to Yoga, Tai Chi to Tabata, baby wearing workouts to bedrest routines, and so much more in all lengths and levels!
