While working out with kettlebells you will want to create a well balanced physique. This article covers some kettlebell leg workouts to lose weight and gain muscle. When doing kettlebell workouts you typically have 3 to 4 different types of exercises which you form together to create a round of workouts. You would then complete several rounds with scheduled rests between which will give you the opportunity to catch your breath. Working out like this allows your muscles to recuperate between rounds and allows you to work on your cardio unilaterally.
Below you will find 5 Kettlebell Leg Workouts I do when I work on my legs strength and conditioning. You will find my bonus workout at the end which is a full lower body workout designed to be done once per week, just keep in mind that bonus workout is more intense!
Make sure that you keep your workouts diverse and fresh, being consistent doesn’t mean you have to do the same workout every time, try something new and fresh. If you need help with your upper body then check out my Upper Body Kettlebell Workout guide here.
Kettlebell Leg Workouts Warmups
Typically I like to spend 5-10 minutes warming up with a full body simple workout drill. This usually consists of basic two handed swings.
Warmup One
Two Handed Single Kettlebell Swing
12 Reps, 5 Sets, 90 second rests.
Warmup Two
Figure of Eight Through the Legs Front to Back
Around the world for 20 reps, 5 sets, 60 seconds rest.
Warmup Three
Around the World Kettlebell Turns Around the body
15 Reps, 5 Sets, 90 second rests.
Getting Started with Kettlebell Exercises
Before we get started you will need to either have access to a kettlebell, multiple kettlebells or purchase a kettlebell. When buying a kettlebell try to avoid smooth gripped kettlebells and aim to get a cast iron powdered finish, this will be the best quality. My suggested kettlebell can be found below.
Best Kettlebell for You!
Important Kettlebell Tips to Prevent Injury
Firstly always be careful, if you don’t know the technique for a workout below then ask a gym instructor or YouTube how to complete that exercise with correct form. At the bottom of this article I have linked videos with all the exercises with correct form.
I want you to know I personally follow the workouts below and have done for over 6 months now, they work incredibly well for me and I hope they work well for you too. If you have any alternative workouts, share them in the comments below this post.
Kettlebell Leg Workout Glutes Focused
7 sets, 90 seconds rest and use a medium weight for this workout, you will only need one kettlebell.
Make sure you do a Kettlebell Swing Warmup before this workout.
10 Kettlebell Goblet Squats
8 Kettlebell Reverse Lunge
8 Kettlebell Single-Leg Romanian Deadlfit
Kettlebell Leg Workout: Iron Glutes
Complete 6 rounds of these workouts with 90 seconds rest between each round.
Make sure you do a Kettlebell Swing Warmup before this workout.
10 Kettlebell Swings
10 Romanian Deadlifts
10 Sumo Deadlifts
10 Goblet Squats
Kettlebell Ab Workout: Abs of Steel
5 Rounds, 90 seconds rest between rounds and you just need one kettlebell.
Make sure you do a “Around the World” Warmup before this workout.
10 Kettlebell Chop and Lifts
10 Around the Worlds
10 Hold and March
10 Plank Pull Throughs
Kettlebell Leg Workout: Burning Thighs
Complete 6 rounds of these workouts with 90 seconds rest between each round.
Make sure you do a Kettlebell Swing Warmup before this workout.
10 Goblet Squats
10 Forward Lunges
10 Sumo Squats
10 Lateral Lunges
Kettlebell Leg Workout Super Set
Complete 6 rounds of these workouts with 90 seconds rest between each round.
Make sure you do a Kettlebell Swing Warmup before this workout.
10 Squat Press
10 Dual Deadlifts
5 Deadlift Cleans (Per Side)
5 Step Through Chops (Per Side)
10 Plank Pull Throughs
How to Recover from your Kettlebell Leg Workouts
Doing kettlebell workouts will leave you feeling extremely achy and it’s so important that you find the balance in taking time to rest and recover. I know myself personally after a good kettlebell leg workout I don’t want to move the following day, so here are some personal suggestions I use to recover from kettlebell workouts faster.
Stretch the specific muscle groups you worked out at the end of your kettlebell workout, stretching before bed will also help recover these muscles even faster! If you really want to recover faster then stretch before your lower body workout, after your workout and even when you wake up in the morning after a long sleep. The idea is to get your blood flowing to the muscles which need repairing.
Sauna: If your gym has a sauna, use it for 5-10 minutes after your workout. Sitting or standing in the sauna has an incredible effect on your body, releasing recovery cells which only happens when in extreme climates such as extreme heat or extreme cold, these will repair your muscles that much faster!
Protein powder: Consume 25g – 50g of protein powder 30 minutes before and after your workout. This is possibly one of the most important tips. Protein is a simple food group and protein powder is just you giving your body the nutrition it needs to repair muscles. Kettlebells are extremely calorie consuming, its important you get protein in your body to repair your muscles and burn calories. You wont suddenly become a body builder over night from having some protein powder, it will simply help your muscles have the nutrients to repair.
Sleep 7-8 hours, even if it means you lie in bed awake just make sure you are moving minimally in this time period so your body can work on repairing itself without moving around. Sleep is important and directly correlates to how long you will live! Getting good sleep is important so if you aren’t getting good sleep, go see your local doctor to find out why.
Morning Protein: The following day when you wake up take 25g – 50g of Protein Powder, your body would have used up all your stores for this and it’s a good idea to get more into your stomach fast so it can work on repairing your muscles. Getting enough protein will mean your body will repair faster and you will be able to workout again with no aches or pains.
Creatine: Taking 5g of creatine in some water everyday allows your body to recover faster from workouts and is generally really good for your hydration and health. Tons of science to back this up too!
Go for a walk! Sounds crazy right? Your legs are going to be aching! Well going for a 20 minute walk will get the blood flowing around your body to the muscles which are sore. Even if it hurts to walk, still do it and you will definitely recover faster.
Rest Days: No more than two days off. We often get so achy from the gym we feel like we need to take a whole week off the gym to recover, the simple fact is we don’t. Being a little bit achy is fine and natural, going for another workout at a slightly lower effort level will help your body recover even faster, sounds counter intuitive but it works!
Product Suggestions for Working out with Kettlebells
Over the years I have tried around 40 different brands for protein powders, gym supplements and gym equipment. I’ve come to see that quality is the most important thing to me, which is why I now exclusively get my products from Onnit. My suggestions for Kettlebells, Protein Powder and Creatine are below:
Kettlebells
Kettlebells
High Quality Kettlebell designed by experts.
Powdered grip finish.
Perfect balance.
Protein Powder
Protein Powder
Different Flavors.
Grass-fed high quality protein.
Whey Isolate.
Creatine
Creatine
Creatine is the best nutrition supplement.
Supports recovery.
Improves workouts
Correct Form when Exercising with Kettlebells
As I mentioned in a previous section its vitally important you are being careful when working out with kettlebells, make sure you know the correct form of an exercise and you stop to evaluate if you ever get a slight muscle twinge. When I started with kettlebells my lower back would often twinge and it was because I wasn’t bending my legs enough in exercises, it took me taking a moment to pause and evaluate to find the problem.
If you need to work on your coordination when using kettlebells, I have designed a really good workout routine with kettlebells to improve your hand-eye coordination. For kettlebell beginners, it’s definitely worth checking out. Kettlebell Coordination Workout.
Kettlebell Exercise Video Vault – Kettlebell Leg Workouts
Completing kettlebell exercises with good form can be really difficult to both do and explain through written word. Understanding good form for kettlebell exercises is best explained through video, so I have spent the time researching and finding the best videos which you will find below.
The videos show the correct form for each exercise mentioned throughout this article:
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