The Kettlebell Deadlift
The foundation for the swing
The Kettlebell Deadlift (this is technically the Kettlebell Romanian Deadlift)is an extremely useful exercises that targets the back side of the lower body, helps get used to the Kettlebell Swing movement,strengthens the lower back lumbar muscles. Primarily targeting the hamstrings, the Kettlebell Deadlift essentially turns your body into a lever where your hip is the fulcrum and where you can (in a controlled manner) raise and lower a weight through your core using your legs as the driving force.
Summary
Fantastic for beginners and very relevant for even the most advanced kettlebell users, this exercise works very well towards the beginning of the workout as well as towards the end to help warm-up and cool-down the body within a fast-paced kettlebell workout.
Key Points
Movement
You begin bent-over with your back straight as can be seen in #1, making sure that your feet are shoulder-width apart holding the kettlebell by the horns. with a slight bent to the knees as can be seen in #2.
Slowly, keeping your back and arms straight, raise the kettlebell until your back is straight and you can extend your hips out completely as can be seen in #3. Try and make sure that your shoulders are also pulled back and not pushed forward – see #4.
Muscles Worked
The Kettlebell Deadlift focuses on the leg prime movers or larger muscles including the hamstrings, quadriceps, glutes, and calves. Additionally the exercise works the lower back and also tones core and upper back.
Primary
Secondary
Conclusion & How to incorporate
Being the foundation for the Kettlebell Swing, the Kettlebell Deadlift is another key element to Kettlebell Workouts. It engages your lower body and core and uses the typically underused hip as a pivot point to lift dead weight off the floor. It helps create overall strength as well as toning the legs and bringing stability to the core. The Kettlebell Deadlift goes well towards the end or beginning of the workout also as a way to segway into more difficult movements or towards the cool-down.
Similar Exercises
We encourage you to check out these other kettlebell exercises if you have not done so already.
