An Alternate Way to Train

by Mike Hanley

Are you bored with your workouts? Do you dread going to the local health club only to wait to use the squat rack that’s being used for barbell curls? Are you ready to mix it up? Then keep reading because I am going to show you how to put a nice twist to some old school exercises.

The exercises in this article can be done almost anywhere including that dreaded health club and you can use them in a number of ways. They can be used together as a form of GPP or you can add them into a body part split routine as assistance exercises. You can use a lighter weight with short rest periods or you can use the big boys to pack some meat on your bones. The exercises that I will show you can benefit anyone from the weekend warrior to the massive all conference linebacker to the mixed martial artist getting ready for his next battle. Whatever way you decide to use these movements, you will reap the benefits of strength, endurance and power.

An added bonus to the exercises below is that they will work on correcting any muscle imbalances – because they can be done in an alternating fashion. This type of training can also be considered unilateral training.

Unilateral training is extremely important for all athletes. When someone trains entirely with bilateral methods they can become more prone to muscle imbalances. One arm or leg can become stronger than the other because there is a compensation for the weaker limb. Eventually what will happen is the weaker limb will cause areas to become tight. It will also cause certain muscles that are not being used due to poor flexibility to turn "off" and not work as efficiently. Think of this as certain muscles (or muscle groups) taking a nap. When this happens, a breakdown in form is also a possibility and that can result in injury.

The remaining parts of the article will go into the explanation and details of several exercises as well as a few sample workouts showing the variety of ways to utilize them.

The Exercises

1. Alternating Kettlebell Rows: This exercise will work your back muscles in particular, the lat muscle. Unlike some rowing exercises the alternating KB row will also work a number of core muscles including the glutes & abs.

In a push up position, feet slightly wider than shoulder width, with each hand holding a kettlebell, brace your body with your glutes and abs and row one kettlebell to your hip by contracting your lat muscle. Under control, bring the kettlebell back to the floor. Once the kettlebell is placed firmly on the floor, continue by rowing with the other arm.

Technique Tips

• Be sure to keep your abdominals and glute muscles contracted the entire length of the set. This will keep your body in a board-like position. Do not raise your butt in the air during the exercise as it can place you in an unsafe position.
• Avoid twisting & turning of the torso during the set. This will determine how well you are contracting your midsection and glutes. If you are twisting than you need to focus on the ab and glute contraction.
• When positioning yourself over the kettlebells, make sure the bells are under your chest area and not in front of your face. This will avoid any falling off the bells as the angle to the floor will be more perpendicular thus more stable.

2. Alternating Kettlebell Floor Presses: The KB floor press is very similar to the famous floor presses taught by Louie Simmons of Westside Barbell. This form of bench pressing is used to strengthen the chest & triceps muscles. There are two ways they can be done which are shown below. The second set of pictures shows a form used to strengthen the core area along with the "pressing" muscles. This exercise is an excellent choice for the athletes who compete on the floor like MMA athletes and wrestlers. It will strengthen areas that are responsible in getting off the floor or getting a body off of you.

Lie with your back on the ground in a sit up position. Position the kettlebells on the side of your chest region with hands in a neutral position (palms facing each other) and elbows resting on the ground. Press one kettlebell in a straight line until arm is completely straight. Bring the KB down under control and begin to press the other kettlebell in the same manner. Once you have gotten comfortable with the KB floor press in the first set of pictures you can use the more advanced method. Take a shoulder width foot position and as you press the right arm up, using your glute muscles press your right heel into the ground to push your body over to its side. This will involve the glutes as

well as the abdominals and obliques. It is almost as if you are pressing your body away from the kettlebell. As the right arm is lowering, start to press the left arm up with the same method, using your left leg to drive off. You will be moving continuously from side to side pressing the bells non stop through the entire set.

Technique Tips

• Make sure to keep your wrist straight while holding the kettlebells. At no time should you allow your wrist to bend either way. This will decrease the risk of any injury to the wrist as well as strengthen your grip.
• When pressing a bell into the air make sure to keep the eyes focused on the bell. This is especially important when doing the more advanced version of moving the body side to side.

3. Alternating Kettlebell Cleans: This exercise is tremendous for the athlete wanting to improve his hip drive. Most athletes could benefit from increasing explosive power in the legs and the next two movements will do just that. The alternating kettlebell cleans will also work the grip, upper back (which is imperative for anyone), as well as do some damage to the anaerobic system. Try a set for 30 seconds non stop and see for yourself.

Squat down and pick up both kettlebells. Once the KB are in hand, do a quarter squat & explode upward pulling one kettlebell up with high pull movement & catch the bell in the rack position (resting on the side of the arm near chest.) When catching the bell in the rack, your body should be going immediately into a quarter squat position. Explode from the quarter squat pulling the opposite bell to the rack at the same time allowing the other bell to drop between the legs. Each quarter squat explosion should release one bell from
the rack and pull the opposing bell to the rack position. The movement should come mainly from the hip drive with some help form the high pull movement of the arm.

Technique Tips

• Make sure you absorb the catch on your heels. Do not allow the kettlebells to pull your forward onto your toes. This will place too much stress on the low back & knees. You want to absorb the force of the deceleration in your muscles not your joints.
• Avoid flipping the bell over your hand when catching them. This will put un-needed stress on the arm muscles and could leave you with some bruises. By turning the wrist while doing the high pull, you will smoothly rotate the kettlebell around your wrist to the desired position.

4. Alternating Kettlebell Snatches: This is another great exercise for hip power which is very similar to the alternating kettlebell clean. The difference comes with the positioning of the arm at the end of the movement.

The alternating kettlebell snatch is almost identical to the alternating kettlebell clean as far as the hips and leg drive are concerned. The only difference is instead of performing a high pull and catching them in a rack position, you will perform the high pull and throw them upward allowing some time to quarter squat, straighten the arm and catch the bell in an overhead snatch position.

Technique Tips

• When catching the kettlebell over head, make sure to have your wrist straight. Do not allow the catching of the bell to bend your wrist as this will put undue stress on the wrist.

Some ways to incorporate the exercises described above would be to use them in a circuit fashion, or select one for a specific body part being trained that day. For example for GPP one could perform all four exercises one after the other with no or little rest between each exercise, until a set of each was completed. This would be done with lighter weights. You could also use heavier kettlebells to allow for some strength increases. This type of training would be ideal for grapplers or mixed martial artists due to the lack of rest & constant strain on the body throughout each circuit. For the athlete working in a body part split fashion you could incorporate the snatch & clean on leg days, the floor press on chest and/or triceps day, and the rows on back day. I have outlined some examples below.

Option A: Strength as a Goal

• A1. Alt. KB Rows
• A2. Alt. KB Cleans
• A3. Alt. KB Floor Press
• A4. Alt. KB Snatches

Perform 6 reps total of each exercises moving immediately to the next exercise. Complete 1 set of each and rest 2-3 mins. Repeat circuit 2-4 times.

Option B: GPP (General Physical Preparedness)

• A1. Alt. KB Cleans
• A2. Alt. KB Rows
• A3. Alt. KB Snatches
• A4. Alt. KB Floor Press

Perform each exercise for a total of 20-30 seconds. Move immediately to the next exercises until all are completed for 1 circuit. Rest 30-90 seconds & repeat.

There you have it. Old school exercises with a new school twist on them. Obviously the options above are only a few of the many ways you could incorporate these exercises into any routine however if you feel that you are in a rut & need something to get you back on the horse give these a try. Believe me you will not be disappointed in the feeling you will get when they tax you beyond anything you are doing now. Any way you include them you will reap the benefits of the alternate way.