Kettlebell Crazy: Bring on the Turkish Get-Up!

8/25/08 Posted in Kettlebell Crazy  |  0 Comments

Funny, but it seems that whenever I introduce people to kettlebells, they’re intrigued with the notion that they can burn fat and tone up their muscles, if all they ever do is the swing (and that other…thing). They seem to go hard of hearing on the Turkish Get-Up (One of the few who’ve dared this drill for me on the first try– with a kettlebell–has been Sherri Powers–staying true, no doubt, to the family name).

To be sure, the TGU is a very technical drill, but one that reaps enormous benefits. It works virtually every muscle in the body, strengthens the core, and is wonderful for developing shoulder flexibility. And it doesn’t take much weight or many reps get those fat cells crying–which is another way of saying “you worked up a good sweat”. If all you can do is one per side to begin with, you’re doing well. Remember, the name of the game here is good form.

There are two ways to perform the TGU: the lunge style and and squat style. The lunge style seems to be more popular, because you get a little more boost from the back leg to get yourself into a standing position. It starts with you lying on your back with the knees locked and the kettlebell on the floor next to your shoulder–say it’s your left shoulder.

Grip the kettlebell by the handle with your left hand and guide it, together with your right hand, to get it safely overhead. From this point on, your elbow will be locked out for the entire rep. Keep your eye on the bell!

Bend the knee on the weighted side. The opposite hand and knee will be on the ground.

Push the weighted foot “through the floor”, rolling your body to a 45-degree angle into a near-sitting position.

At this point, there are three things going on at once. You’re pushing yourself up with your free hand; punching up with the weighted arm, still straight, with the elbow locked; and the opposite leg is sweeping back behind the weighted leg. The opposite knee and hand are resting on the ground to offer stability, while your weight is placed on the bent leg that is on the side of the weight.

Now from the lunge, push yourself up to a standing position. Repeat these steps in reverse order, till you’re lying on your back again.

Pass the kettlebell around to the other side, but never over your body or face–for obvious reasons–and do it again.

Needful to say, this is a move that must be seen to be appreciated. You can check it out on a good kettlebell video by Sarah Lurie, Lisa Shaffer or Anthony DiLuglio (forget YouTube–there are a lot of ways to learn it wrong)You should also practice this with an imaginary weight till you feel confident enough to do it with the real thing. It’s truly worth the practice and trouble to do it the right way, and safely. As you progress to the actual weight, you’ll find it difficult to do very many reps at all, but that’s okay. The max you should do on these shouldn’t be more than five to a set; but however many or few you do, you’ll have the shoulder flexibility to reach around and pat yourself on the back for a job well done.