The Magic Of The Kettlebell Swing (Guest Post)

Pat’s Notes: Srdjan (just call him “Serge”) is a friend of mine. He runs a lovely, inviting, and informative blog over at Bloom To Fit. I don’t take guest posts often, and even less oftener do I pimp other blogs, but I’m pimping Srdjan’s because I believe in his service, and he is genuinely here to help, and is.

I would encourage most–if not all of you–to give his 21 day swing challenge a try. Even those who are enrolled in The Becoming Minimalist Masterclass could still work the 100 swings a day to no deleterious effect; at least until phase-2…

The Magic of The Kettlebell Swing (and the 21 Day Swing Challenge) by Srdjan Popovic

The kettlebell swing has given me more than I could ever give back. It has helped me strengthen my back which had been severely weakened after an accident left me with multiple herniated discs. The swing has helped me develop exceptional functional strength and athletic-like core strength. It’s given me powerful glutes that my girlfriend can’t stop complimenting and the hamstrings to rival Seabiscuit. It has given me warrior-like conditioning and explosive hip drive that I’ve leveraged in so many different aspects of my life.

Last year, to help spread the word about the powerful kettlebell swing, and to help others see the magic instilled inside this exercise, I decided to run a simple kettlebell challenge through my blog.

The objective I set was simple: perform 100 kettlebell swings every single day for 30 days straight.

What happened was nothing short of expectation.

Dozens of courageous participants put themselves and their bodies on the front line and made magic happen with the kettlebell. Within 30 days, they experienced incredibly positive results.

Here are just some samples:

“I felt the complete strength AND cardio effects of using kettlebells. I finished my workouts completely drenched, and sweat pouring out of me during the workouts…better than any 60 minute treadmill torture, or weight lifting workouts.” – Paul

“See where you took me!!!! You gave me a taste for working harder, moved me into a non-comfort zone that’s continually changing and I’m even helping other people with their workouts. My entire body is so much stronger!!!!!!! Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!!!!!” – Beth

“What I have to say is this: The benefits of Swinging a Kettlebell, to Deadlifts and Squats were quite impressive for me! Not only because of the better hip-mobility but also because of more explosive force/power I can produce. That’s why I could add 40 Pounds to my Deadlift and 20 pounds to my Squats! Just because of swinging that nice Ball of iron!” – Robert

“The toughest thing for me (given my work and party schedule) was finding time to do the exercise and having the diligence to actually do it). Most of the time I did it at night after coming home. Sometimes as late as 12pm. Once I passed out when i got home and woke up at 3am in cold sweat from the fear that I forgot to do something!.. and then did 100 swings!” – Dennis

“When I finish 3 rounds of the machines with increasing weights along with the kettlebells, my shirt is soaked. Every woman who comes into the room gets really excited about what I’m doing and they all want to try. I have fun with them by getting them to just try it and then I explain the correct form…..they are hooked when they feel what happens to their bodies!!!!” –Beth

This, of course, was not surprising to me.

The kettlebell is the perfect blend of effectiveness and efficiency. The effort one puts into mastering and utilizing this exercise is returned one hundred fold. Minimum.

Once again, my ambition has gotten the best of me. I want the world to once more see the power of this exercise. I want my readers to experience the magic that the swing has to offer.

Therefore, I’ve decided to kick 2014 off with a bang. Starting January 8^th (2014), I’ll be kicking off a 21 day kettlebell swing challenge. While it won’t be exactly the same as the one I ran last year, you can definitely expect the same kind of magic.

If you’re ready to kick start your fitness goals this year, I encourage you to give this challenge a try. All the details on how to join can be found here.

Let’s make magic happen in 2014.

Srdjan Popovic is the founder of the health and fitness blog Bloom to Fit, a unique community of amazing people all striving to build a better body and live a better life.

Pat’s Note: Comments are closed this time around, because I want to encourage you to leave any specific questions for Srdjan over at his blog, where he will be happy to answer them for you. Happy swinging!