Fitness Tip of the week with Dave Marsh

1. Hold the kettle bell with two hands, the bell should be resting in front of your hips, at arm's length. Set a timer or watch a clock face to complete 20, 30 or 60 seconds of swings depending on your conditioning level and the weight of the bell (8kg beginner, 12kg intermediate, 16kg advanced).
2. Take an athletic stance, hips should be a few inches wider than your shoulders.
3. Squat to start the kettle bell moving, sit back low enough to start the bell swinging while keeping your spine neutral and your head and chest up.
4. Thrust your hips forward to swing the bell, your chest should stay up throughout the swing, at no time should you use the strength of your arms to lift the bell.
Keep your arms relaxed and allow the kettle bell to swing.
5. Swing the bell up to eye level with a forceful hip thrust. Allow the kettle bell to gain momentum gradually rather than forcing it with your arms.
6. When you have completed your set, stop the swinging of the bell by absorbing the momentum of the downswing with your legs, do this by squatting without reversing the direction into the hip thrust.
Place the kettle bell on the floor.
Benefits are:
* Increased anaerobic capacity;
* Increased muscular endurance;
* Greater aerobic capacity;
* Increased power; and
* Strengthening posterior chain: hamstrings, glutes and lower back.
Adding The Kettle bell swings to your workout raises your heart rate as high as running an eight-minute mile.