I have trained many military, fire, and law-enforcement personnel over the years, but one soldier in particular comes to mind. For security reasons, we’ll call him Mark. Mark was a career soldier in the Special Forces and bravely served in Afghanistan, Iraq, and other places around the world. He was in his early thirties and very fit. He wanted to improve his physical fitness scores, which were already excellent to begin with.
I said to him, “Let me show you something that is completely different from anything you have ever done. If you don’t like it, I won’t bring it up again.” Mark, always up for a challenge, agreed. I taught him basic kettlebell posture, then two-hand swings, one-hand swings, snatches, double cleans, kettlebell presses and rows, and squat-pulls. Mark was completely drenched with perspiration. With his hands on his knees, breathing loudly and chest heaving, he said, “That was awesome! We definitely need to bring that workout back to my team.”
I said, “That was just technique and warm-up—the workout hasn’t started yet.”
I worked with Mark for a month while he was on leave, and not only did his general physical conditioning improve with kettlebell training, but so did his physical fitness scores. We used the kettlebells, in conjunction with particular bodyweight exercises, to get Mark used to working at a higher heart rate. This greatly reduced his overall fatigue when running and helped give him more muscular endurance for chin-ups, push-ups, and sit-ups.
I use Mark as an example to illustrate how kettlebells can be used as tools to condition anyone who desires to improve his or her physical condition. Soldiers, firefighters, and police officers bravely serve every day. Although what such people do professionally transcends sport, I want to address the conditioning that would enhance their physical job performance. These men and women are usually forced to look for advanced physical conditioning information in fitness magazines, but those articles are usually not written with them in mind.
Here is a sample of a training program that can give soldiers, firefighters, and police officials some direction in designing their own programs. Follow the same set and repetition scheme for each exercise, unless otherwise noted in parentheses. For timed exercises, perform as many repetitions as possible within the allotted time.
Three days per week
Figure 8 (20)
Side bend (5 each side)
Deadlift
Two-hand swing
One-hand swing
Single snatch
Chin-up (5)
Single press
Bent-over row
Push-up (1 minute)
Sit-up (1 minute)
• Perform one set each for 10 repetitions.
• Add 1 repetition per exercise each workout.
• Reduce weight, repetitions, or both by 20 percent in Week 4.
• Rest 3 minutes between exercises.
• Work through the list of exercises one time, top to bottom.
Three days per week
Figure 8 (20)
Side bend (5 each side)
Two-hand swing
One-hand swing
Single snatch
Chin-up (5)
Double clean
Single press
Kettlebell forward lunge
Bent-over row
Squat-thrust (1 minute)
Push-up (1 minute)
Sit-up (1 minute)
• Perform 1 set each for 10 repetitions.
• Add 1 repetition per exercise each workout.
• Reduce weight, repetitions, or both by 20 percent in Week 8.
• Rest 3 minutes between exercises.
• Work through the list of exercises two times, top to bottom.
• Rest 3 minutes between cycles.
Three days per week
Overhead towel swing (20 each side)
Side bend (5 each side)
One-hand swing
Single snatch
Chin-up (5)
Double clean
Single press
Alternating clean
Kettlebell forward lunge
Bent-over row
Kettlebell pass (forward)
Squat-press
Squat-thrust (1 minute)
Push-up (1 minute)
Sit-up (1 minute)
• Perform one set each for 10 repetitions.
• Add 1 repetition per exercise each workout.
• Reduce weight, repetitions, or both by 20 percent in Week 12.
• Rest 3 minutes between exercises.
• Work through the list of exercises three times, top to bottom.
• Rest 3 minutes between cycles.
Three days per week
Overhead towel swing
Single snatch
Push-up
Chin-up
Double floor press into leg raise (arms extended)
Double snatch
Double press
Double row
Side shuffle
Alternating clean
Kettlebell forward lunge
Kettlebell pass (all directions)
Sidewinder
Squat-thrust (1½ minutes)
Sit-up (1½ minutes)
• Perform one set each for 10 repetitions.
• Add 1 repetition per exercise each workout.
• Reduce weight, repetitions, or both by 20 percent in Week 4.
• Rest 2 minutes between exercises.
• Work through the list of exercises three times, top to bottom.
• Rest 3 minutes between cycles.
Four days per week
Single snatch
Alternating press-up
Chin-up
Double floor press into leg raise (arms extended)
Double snatch
Double press
Double clean-squat
Double row
Side shuffle
Alternating clean
Kettlebell forward lunge
Kettlebell pass (all directions)
Sidewinder
Squat-thrust (1½ minutes)
Sit-up (1½ minutes)
• Perform one set each for 10 repetitions.
• Add 1 repetition per exercise each workout.
• Reduce weight, repetitions, or both by 20 percent in Week 8.
• Rest 1 minute between exercises.
• Work through the list of exercises three times, top to bottom.
• Rest 3 minutes between cycles.
Four days per week
Weighted chin-up (5)
Two-hand swing
Double swing
Double press
Double snatch
Double row
Side shuffle (over step) (20)
Sidewinder
Alternating press-up into leg raise (arms extended)
Squat-pull
• Perform one set each for 10 repetitions.
• Add 1 repetition per exercise each workout.
• Reduce weight, repetitions, or both by 20 percent in Week 12.
• Do not rest between exercises.
• Work through the list of exercises three times, top to bottom.
• Rest 3 minutes between cycles.
Three days per week
Double clean-squat
Squat-thrust (2 minutes)
Weighted chin-up (5)
Squat-pull
Sit-up (2 minutes)
Kettlebell pass
Side shuffle (20)
• Perform one set each for 10 repetitions.
• Increase resistance by 5 to 10 percent as you are able.
• Add 1 repetition per exercise each workout.
• Reduce weight, repetitions, or both by 20 percent in Week 3.
• Do not rest between exercises.
• Work through the list of exercises three times, top to bottom.
• Rest 3 minutes between cycles.
Three days per week
Double clean-squat
Squat-thrust (2 minutes)
Push-up (2 minutes)
Alternating floor press into leg raise (arms extended)
Squat-pull
Sit-up (2 minutes)
Kettlebell pass Side shuffle (20)
• Perform one set each for 10 repetitions.
• Increase resistance by 5 to 10 percent as you are able.
• Add 1 repetition per exercise each workout.
• Reduce weight, repetitions, or both by 20 percent in Week 6.
• Do not rest between exercises.
• Work through the list of exercises three times, top to bottom.
• Rest 3 minutes between cycles.
Three days per week
Double clean-squat
Squat-thrust (2 minutes)
Weighted chin-up (5)
Alternating floor press into leg raise (arms extended) (start at 20 sweeps each side)
Squat-pull
Kettlebell push-up–row
Sit-up (2 minutes)
Kettlebell pass
Side shuffle
Kettlebell crawl
Squat-thrust (2 minutes)
• Perform one set each for 10 repetitions.
• Increase resistance by 5 to 10 percent as you are able.
• Add 1 repetition per exercise each workout.
• Reduce weight, repetitions, or both by 20 percent in Week 9.
• Do not rest between exercises.
• Work through the list of exercises three times, top to bottom.
• Rest 3 minutes between cycles.
Three days per week
Alternating clean
One-stays-up press
Squat-thrust (2 minutes)
Weighted chin-up
Alternating floor press into leg raise (arms extended)
Push-up (2 minutes)
Squat-pull
Kettlebell push-up–row
Sit-up (2 minutes)
Kettlebell pass
Side shuffle
Kettlebell crawl
Yoga plank (for time)
• Perform one set each for 10 repetitions.
• Increase resistance by 5 to 10 percent as you are able.
• Add 1 repetition per exercise each workout.
• Reduce weight, repetitions, or both by 20 percent in Week 12.
• Do not rest between exercises.
• Work through the list of exercises three times, top to bottom.
• Rest 3 minutes between cycles.
Complete rest
Three days per week
One-hand swing
Figure 8
Side bend (5 each side)
Kettlebell pass (all directions)
Single snatch
Single press
Bent-over row
• Perform one set each for 10 repetitions.
• Add 1 repetition per exercise each workout.
• Rest 3 minutes between exercises.
• Work through the list of exercises one time, top to bottom.
Three days per week
One-hand swing
Double press
Double row
Single snatch
Push-up
Squat-pull
Overhead towel swing
Figure 8
• Perform one set each for 10 repetitions.
• Add 1 repetition per exercise each workout.
• Rest 3 minutes between exercises.
• Work through the list of exercises one time, top to bottom.
Three days per week
Two-hand swing
One-stays-up press
One-stays-up row
Single snatch
Double clean
Kettlebell back lunge
Chin-up (1 minute)
Push-up (1 minute)
Sit-up (1 minute)
Squat-pull
• Perform one set each for 10 repetitions.
• Add 1 repetition per exercise each workout.
• Reduce repetitions by 20 percent in Week 12.
• Rest 3 minutes between exercises.
• Work through the list of exercises two times, top to bottom.
• Rest 3 minutes between cycles.
Upon the completion of R&R, go back to Basic Training to begin a new training cycle. Keep a training log, and try to begin your new cycle at a slightly higher level than the same phase in the previous cycle. Also, when kettlebells are not available, try using sandbags instead. Not all of the kettlebell exercises will translate perfectly, but sandbags make a great, cost-effective substitution and work well in developing the same kind of functional strength as kettlebells do.