Curious about how to use that odd kettle-looking thing at the gym? Well, ponder no more because here are the best kettlebell exercises for basketball.
TL;DR: The best kettlebell exercises to do to get stronger are swings, clean-to-press, squats, lunges and farmer walks.
I first learned about kettlebells many moons ago when I started listening to the Joe Rogan Podcast. Joe Rogan, to me, was one of the fittest non-pro-athletes on the planet.
So when he recommended people do kettlebell workouts, I listened (and these odd-looking weights just looked so fun to use!).
I watched tons of videos on the different exercises, searching for the ones that I wanted to do.
Once I was able to get my hands on a kettlebell (they were a rare commodity back then, unlike now), I tried doing all the exercises that enticed me.
At first, it was difficult to use. I had never used anything like it and needed to learn the movements. I’m pretty sure I hurt myself a few times.
But I just kept watching videos on how to do the exercises properly and continued to work on my form. Eventually, I think I got pretty good at them. I think…
The Benefits of Using a Kettlebell
Anywhoo, what I like about kettlebells is that they are great for circuit training.
You can do multiple exercises in one set and won’t strain your muscles and sap your energy too much, allowing you to do many sets.
This is beneficial because it develops your full-body strength, muscle stamina, and cardio. It’ll help you develop old man strength (which you can learn about here).
Another thing that’s great about kettlebell exercises is that the majority of them challenge your core.
As you do the main movement, you also have to keep your core and stabilizer muscles engaged; you have to maintain your balance.
Additionally, kettlebell circuits will allow you to do a variety of exercises in one set.
You can do power movements, cardio exercises, core exercises, upper body, lower body… both… whatever comes to your mind.
One of my favourite workouts is a Big 3 circuit. I’ll do 10 reps each of kettlebell swings, goblet squats, and push-ups, and I’ll do 3-5 sets.
But you can create any type of circuit you want.
If you want to be more explosive, you can design a circuit that works on that. If you want to improve your cardio, you can design something that challenges your cardio.
The options are endless. You just need to get creative with it.
Need a kettlebell? Click here to buy one from Amazon.
The Kettlebell Exercises for Basketball Conditioning
However, you’re going to need to know some kettlebell exercises first. So here are 9 of the best kettlebell exercises for basketball conditioning:
For the warm-up:
Turn Arounds
How to do: Grab the kettlebell with one hand. Pass it around your waist to your other hand in a circle. Now reverse the motion.
Turn Arounds are great for warming up your upper body. It’s an easy exercise that works your arms, shoulders, and core.
Halos
How to do: Grab the sides of the kettlebell’s handle and flip it so that the bottom is facing up. Now, slowly rotate it around your head. Remember to rotate it in both directions.
Halos, similar to the Turn Arounds, warm up the upper body. The main difference between these two is that this exercise also warms up your chest and upper back.
Figure 8
How to do: Grab the kettlebell’s handle with one hand and get into an athletic stance. Now, pass the kettlebell through your legs, as if you were doing under-the-leg dribbles.
With Figure 8s, you’ll warm up your entire body. The movement and stance will force your entire body to work as one unit.
Turkish Get-Ups
How to do:
Turkish Get-Ups is a full-body exercise that can also be done as a main workout movement. There are multiple exercises in this one single exercise. It will condition your entire body.
For the main workout:
Kettlebell Swings
How to do:
Kettlebell swings are great for basketball conditioning because they will help you develop explosiveness and strength in your legs.
By progressing in this exercise, you will be able to jump higher and have a stronger defensive stance.
Clean-to-Press
How to do:
This is a combo exercise. What I mean by this is that the Clean-to-Press is two exercises in one. There’s a clean and also an overhead press.
This exercise will help you go up to the basket stronger and help you with protecting the rim and rebounding.
For example, if you grab an offensive rebound, it’s going to be hard to get a shot off.
But this exercise will strengthen the muscles needed for you to at least get up a contested shot. Going in or not will depend on your skill level.
Additionally, this exercise will improve your ability to finish at the rim (by strengthening the necessary muscles).
Goblet Squats
How to do:
Goblet squats are a great way to train your legs while also strengthening your upper body.
The kettlebell (or goblet) will put stress on your arms, backs and chest while adding resistance to the squat.
Squats will condition you for basketball because they are the ultimate leg exercise. And basketball requires a lot of leg movements.
You have to constantly run, jump, and stand in athletic stances.
Also, since you’re clutching a weight in front of you as you squat, you will also strengthen your upper body.
This will help you rebound and secure the ball better.
Additionally, goblet squats require you to keep your core and stabilizer muscles tight as well. This will improve your balance and overall strength.
Lunges
How to do:
In basketball, you jump with one leg a lot. So by doing lunges, you can fix the imbalances by essentially doing a single-legged squat.
This will also prevent injuries.
The added kettlebell will challenge your legs more while also strengthening your upper body.
Farmer’s Walk
How to do:
Farmer’s walks are tedious. But they are great for building overall strength and stamina.
This exercise doesn’t work on anything basketball-specific. But it will make you stronger.
And with more strength, you’ll be able to defend, rebound, and possibly score better.
Sets and Reps for the Kettlebell Workout
For the main workout, you are going to split the exercises into two groups: A and B. You will do group A one day and group B another day.
Group A: kettlebell swings and clean-to-press.
Group B: goblet squats, lunges, and farmer walks.
For each exercise, you will do 3 sets of 12-15 reps.
For the farmer walks, you are going to do 2 sets of 24 steps. This can be done by walking a long lane for 24 steps twice or by walking 12 steps forward and 12 steps back twice.
But can’t you use a dumbbell instead of a kettlebell?
I thought this at first too. But there’s something about a kettlebell’s shape and balance that lets you do certain exercises more effectively.
They also have a handle, which makes movements like the swing or cleans a lot more efficient to do.
With a dumbbell, the shape of it makes those exercises feel clunky.
The kettlebell is just more comfortable to use for some exercises.
Kettlebells are a great tool for basketball conditioning. You can do multiple exercises with them. You can also do pretty much any type of workout you want -they’re very versatile.
And, most importantly, they’re super fun to use.
Click here to buy a kettlebell from Amazon, if you need one. And to be transparent with you, this is an affiliate link.
What this means is that if you use it to buy something on the site, I will get a small commission, at no extra cost to you. So, thanks in advance!
Final Thoughts
Kettlebell exercises are great for full-body workouts.
You can do many primal movements consecutively without stressing your body too much, thus allowing you to work out more often (or play more basketball).
So, ditch the heavy barbells, and go and grab a kettlebell and start swinging that weight around!