We’re back for a mid-week workout tip from TAC Fitness trainer William McAlpine, here to teach us his Move of the Month: The Bottoms-Up Kettlebell Squat. Not only is he going to teach us a great move you can do at home, but some fancy words, too. Time to dust off your kettlebells and work your muscles (including your brain). Just in time for ski prep season.
Why this move? William says, “One of the most beneficial aspects of this particular hold is that it requires a very high level of tension through the body in relation to the weight being used. Practically speaking, this means that you can do an intense workout even though constrained to the lighter weight (and very likely, lower rep scheme) this movement demands, all while using the body’s own mechanisms to actively protect and train the joints involved.”
Basically, this exercise looks easy but is hard work. Time to make our move.
The Bottoms-Up Ketttlebell (BU/KB) Squat has numerous progressions, beginning with the kettlebell ‘couched’ at your shoulder for the whole movement and ending with the kettlebell held overhead for the whole movement, with advancing degrees of shoulder extension in between. These progressions then start back from the beginning, but with a kettlebell in each hand.
Here is what it looks like in practice in the bilateral (both hands) configuration:
Starting with ipsilateral moves (fancy for one-handed), the progressions are:
BU/KB squat with the kettlebell held at shoulder level
BU/KB squat with the kettlebell held at head level with a 90-degree bend in both elbow and armpit
BU/KB squat with the kettlebell held overhead through the entire range of motion
BU/KB squat with the kettlebell starting and shoulder level, and extending all the way up overhead as you sit down into the squat
Repeat with other hand
Next, do the order of progressions with bilateral moves (fancy way to say with a kettlebell in both hands):
BU/KB squat with the kettlebells held at shoulder level
BU/KB squat with the kettlebells held at head level with a 90-degree bend in both elbow and armpit
BU/KB squat with the kettlebells held overhead through the entire range of motion
BU/KB squat with the kettlebells starting at shoulder level, and extending all the way up overhead as you sit down into the squat
Tips for the squat portion:
Keep both your shoulders and hips square to the wall in front of you and make sure they remain level throughout the whole movement.
Keep your chest tall, and keep your shoulders ‘packed’ behind you (by bringing them up into a shrug, rolled back, and then drawn back and down towards each other).
Holding a kettlebell by the handle in one (or both hands), rotate the bottom of the bell so it sits upside down over your fist.
Actively engage your core to help stabilize the weight through your shoulder.
Sit your butt DOWN (not back) in between your heels.
Brace your core hard as you drive through your heels to stand back up
William says that, “because your whole body will be actively working to keep the kettlebell balanced as you move through the squat, coordination and neuromuscular connection are also trained.”
Which means if we start now, we’ll look a little more coordinated come slope season. Thank you, TAC Fitness.
