dumbells

The grip on a dumbbell is almost always knurled so it doesn’t slide around in your hand. The grip on kettlebell is smooth so you as you transition from exercises the handle rotates in your hand. The downside of this rotation is that some people will get blisters.

Because of the way you hold the handle, you’ll also improve your grip strength more than you would with dumbbells.

If you have wrist problems, kettlebells may be better for certain exercises. With dumbbells when you do a chest press all the weight is in your hands and wrists. With kettlebells the weight is distributed against your forearms.

However, the way you hold kettlebells makes things like chest presses a little awkward. Therefore you may lift less weight and less weight lifted means less muscle developed.

Unique Exercises

Due to the shape of ​kettlebells you can also do exercises that would not be possible or safe with dumbbells.

Take the Kettlebell Swing for instance, where you swing the Kkettlebell between your legs. Technically you could hold one end of a dumbbell and swing it but there’s a better chance you could lose your grip doing this, plus it is harder on your wrists so they may tire out before you get a good workout in.

According to Senior Onnit Kettlebell Coach Eric Leija, the Kettlebell Swing exercise is the “ultimate exercise”. Why does he say that? Because the swing can be performed anywhere, there are lots of variations, it increases power, improves endurance, and is an effective fat loss tool.

Says Leija, “Kettlebell exercises have immense physical benefits but the ease of use and ability to get a full body workout in anywhere makes it extremely practical, separating it from other exercises.” (2)

For the kettlebell swing, it’s best to purchase a ​kettlebell of a lower weight so you can focus on form rather than ​get one too heavy for you. If you are a man and new to kettlebells, or even working out, get one that is about 16 kg (35 lb.). Even if you quickly grow in strength you can just do more reps and therefore, you’ll get a better cardio workout in.

Another benefit of the Kettlebell Swing, especially as you get older, is that it has been proven to help lower back pain. A research study in a 2016 volume of the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research showed that kettlebells were a more versatile and cost-effective alternative approach to addressing back pain than using expensive and hard to find isolated lumbar extensions (ILEX) machines.  (3)

Muscle Targeting

Using kettlebells provides an unstable workout. That sounds like a bad thing but it’s really good for developing muscles you normally wouldn’t target.

When you pick up a dumbbell it is very balanced from one side to another. In contrast, the handle on a kettlebell is very light compared to the heavy ball end. The unbalanced nature of a kettle bell lets you do exercises that aren’t possible with dumbbells.  The kettlebell also better simulates picking up objects in real life since most items you pick up are unbalanced.

This unbalanced nature of kettlebells make them a little more challenging to use for newbies so using dumbbells may be less risky.

Endurance and Speed

Kettlebells are great resistance training if you do sports that have explosive movements like basketball or hockey. ​ You typically move much faster when ​doing kettlebells exercises, whereas dumbbells are more slow and methodical.

There are several kettlebell exercises where you do rapid whipping movements that would just not be safe with dumbbells. You also get better cardiovascular exercise with these fast movements.

With either kettlebells or dumbbells you can activate more muscle groups than with barbells, which then builds those muscle groups, which then burns more fat. The fast movements are great for building endurance and that may be more suited for whatever sport you want to partake in rather than having big, beefy muscles.

When you think about life it’s not very often you’ll have to lift a car off someone, but if you want to go hiking, kayaking, play softball, go cycling, or a myriad of other activities, endurance is going to be much more important.

Dumbbell Benefits

Dumbbells may be better for people who have not had training in using kettlebells. The movements with dumbbells are slower and smoother and they are easier to hold for non-swinging exercises. Quite frankly, you could knock yourself silly doing some of the kettlebell exercises that swing past your head.

Bigger Muscles

According to a research study by Frontiers in Physiology, lowering a weight (eccentric contractions) produces a greater force than lifting it (concentric contractions). (4)

This is why competitive rowers don’t produce huge muscular arms. They are only doing concentric contractions by pulling the oar through the water and then returning the oar to position in the air with very little eccentric contraction.

So if you compare movements of kettlebells to dumbbells, with the mostly faster swinging motion of kettlebells you are more focused on the lifting of the weight (eccentric) and gravity lowers it. Dumbbell movements are usually done more slowly so lowering the weight gets more time (concentric).

Of course, you can do slower, more deliberate movements with kettlebells too so if you decide to use them keep this research study in mind and focus on getting the most out of letting the kettlebell down after you lift it.

More Like Barbells

If you eventually want to become a bodybuilder then you will have to switch to using barbells, and dumbbells are essentially a barbell cut in half.

So you can get similar results as a barbell with the added benefit of a little more instability between the left and right arms, which will cause muscle development in muscles that may not have been developed with a barbell.

Conclusion

So like I said at the beginning, the decision between kettlebells and dumbbells depends on what your goals are. If you really want to develop your endurance, lose weight, and get overall fit, then kettlebells are a great choice. If you really want to develop strong muscles, then dumbbells are a great way to start that.

Regardless of whether your final choice is to purchase dumbbells or kettlebells, you should consider having at least one kettlebell for the kettlebell swing since this is such a beneficial exercise.  So in reality you could get the best of both worlds by purchasing a set of dumbbells and one kettlebell.

For ​losing weight and getting fit you really can’t go wrong whatever your choice is.

​Research:

1. Greg Brookes, personal trainer and kettlebell instructor at ​https://www.gbpersonaltraining.com/
2. Eric Leija: Why The Kettlebell Swing Is The Ultimate Exercise: https://www.ericleija.com/why-the-kettlebell-swing-is-the-ultimate-exercise/
3. Journal ​ Strengthe and Conditioning Research: May 2016 - Volume 30 - Issue 5 - p 1189–1195A; Comparison of the Effect of Kettlebell Swings and Isolated Lumbar Extension Training on Acute Torque Production of the Lumbar Extensors, https://journals.lww.com/nsca-jscr/fulltext/2016/05000/A_Comparison_of_the_Effect_of_Kettlebell_Swings.3.aspx
4. Frontiers in Physiology: Skeletal Muscle Remodeling in Response to Eccentric vs. Concentric Loading: Morphological, Molecular, and Metabolic Adaptations: Front Physiol. 2017; 8: 447.  https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fphys.2017.00447/full