Best KB weight to start with?
94coco2010
Posts: 9 Member
What is a good weight of kettlebell to start with? I have never done these exercises before but am looking to get in to it. Thanks!
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Replies
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I know Pavel (the guy who wrote Enter the Kettlebell amongst other things) recommends 35 lb for men and *i think* 18 lb for women (closest weights in kg would be 16 & 8). I may have that weight wrong & i'm not near my copy of the book. The trick is not to start too light. I started with 25 lb and it was too light. It took only a few workouts for me to realize that for me 25 lb was not challenging enough to force me to stick with proper form. No doubt there are women & men out there who could start heavier or lighter than those weights & still be challenged as everyone is different.
Take the 2 handed swing. If you start too light, you can get away with using your arms/shoulders more than you should be using them to move the weight, instead of forcing your hips to do most of the work. You can't get away with that so much if the weight is challenging.0 -
As above, but in video form
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pBVix24GKG0 0 -
I started with 4 kg (= 8.8 pounds), but I'm a total wimp. I think someone of average strength could start higher. I'm trying to move up as I'm able, and can now do some of the exercises with 8 kg (= 17.6 pounds) or 12 kg (= 26.4 pounds).0
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I started with 4 kg (= 8.8 pounds), but I'm a total wimp. I think someone of average strength could start higher. I'm trying to move up as I'm able, and can now do some of the exercises with 8 kg (= 17.6 pounds) or 12 kg (= 26.4 pounds).
What exercises can't you do with 8kg?0 -
I agree with the 8kg-12kg recommendation for women who are just starting with KBs. If funds permit you to purchase two kettlebells to get started with, those are the two.0
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I started with 4 kg (= 8.8 pounds), but I'm a total wimp. I think someone of average strength could start higher. I'm trying to move up as I'm able, and can now do some of the exercises with 8 kg (= 17.6 pounds) or 12 kg (= 26.4 pounds).
What exercises can't you do with 8kg?
Anything that involves lifting it above my head. Like I said, total wimp. But trying to get stronger!0 -
Great advice everyone - thanks!! I was nervous of starting too light or going. too heavy and injuring myself. so excited to start0
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When I started out with KB training my teacher handed me a 35 lb (recommended starter for guys) kettlebell and gave my wife a 12 lb kettlebell. But my wife is an athlete with prior strength training experience, so lighter may be exactly what you need.
He told us to work on form first. My instructor said something like: "The relative safety of kettlebell training is HIGHLY dependent on form." So we worked on form and kept an eye on our heart rate monitors. I tried moving up a size as long as I could keep my form together. But boy when I did I noticed a big increase in my heart rate (which is good, that means I'm getting a workout.)
At this point my wife is swinging a 35 lb kettlebell but sometimes switches to a 44 or down to a 26 lb kettlebell. I modulate up and down as well depending on the exercise. For example, I can swing a 28 kg kettlebell, but there's no way given an old elbow injury I got bicycle racing that I can do more than half that for Turkish getups. I just keep working at it and am slowly able to increase my weight and/or reps.0 -
Hey there,
I've just recently started training with Kettlebells, I don't have much arm strength due to a past shoulder injury so was unsure which weight I would need. To start with I only wanted a cheap kettlebell, and found that my local sports store sold them so I could feel the weight myself before buying.
I actually ended up getting a 4,6 & 8 kg to begin with. At first I used the 6kg bell for my swings and cleans, and 4kg for presses, after around a week of getting used to the feel and getting my posture right I now use the 8kg for swings and the 6kg for clean's and presses. The 4kg I now use for warm-up etc and it also make a great doorstop! lol.
I'm actually about to purchase a 10kg kettlebell soon, and then will look at a 12kg one soon after that. It;s amazing how much you progress, and you can swing more weight than you think.
Hope this helps :-)
xxx0 -
When I saw the Kettlebell trainer, he put me on a 30lb (not kg) bell. He told me that he thought one of the reasons I may have hurt my back was because I was using kbs that were too light. So, I went out and bought a 30lbs kb at Play It Again Sports. Before I saw him, I was using a 10 and 15lb Kb, but I was also doing dvd workouts that are probably not very form friendly.0
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So, I went out and bought a 30lbs kb at Play It Again Sports.
I keep reading online about people buying Kbells from Play It Again Sports. Are they new or used and which brand?0 -
Play it Again sells York kettlebells, at least around here. Not a lot of used ones, mostly new. They sell them in 5 lb increments, cast iron style. Word to the wise: check the inner seams on the handles. Sometimes you get a York that is good, and other times you get one with bad burrs or seams that rip the living hell out of your hands. A dremel tool can help with that but until you see it, ouch.0
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It's actually those 4 kg kettlebells that I fear more than anything else. My kettlebell teacher has me hook them over my feet and do abdominal exercises. If you have to hold 1 leg aloft while I doing a 1 legg/1 arm situp it's time for battle.0
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I started with a 10lb and worked on form. Just moved to a 15lb and going to get a 20lb soon. Switching from the 10 to 15 I can tell a big difference in the way the moves feel. The swing is much more intense and wears me out.0
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I think it largely depends on the workouts that you'll be doing. My first kb was 20lbs just for working on form. However, me and my husband started doing some really high cardio workouts with kbs and initially I had to drop down to 10lbs for the first few workouts to ensure that I kept good form with how fast paced the workout was. Definitely work on your form first prior to getting into any of the mainstream workout dvds. If you don't and you take their instruction, you'll most likely get hurt.0
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Take a few lessons (if possible) you will get a good idea at where to start -- you also will learn proper form.0
