Ankle weights = adjustable kettlebells
First written for Dan John’s website in 2022
Double, Double, Now with Less Toil and Trouble
“There is a niche in this industry for One Kettlebell Workouts,” Dan writes. Personally, I find these thought experiments quite useful. Like the ‘prisoner’s dilemma’—that is, what would you do if you could only train for fifteen minutes, three times each week? —thinking of what you would do with just a single kettlebell is a great drill to remind yourself what is truly indispensable and thus, what to prioritize.
For single bell minimalism, I like 5 minutes of alternating singles as a format.
5 minutes: clean and press right arm, put the bell down, clean and press left arm. Use about a 10RM press bell and go nonstop for the 5 minutes.
1 minute: carry something, do some OS resets, etc.
5 minutes: clean and front squat right arm, switch and repeat same as before.
1 minute: move around
5 minutes: snatch and overhead squat, same format.
Other possibilities are a clean + thruster or push press, a suitcase deadlift (pick it up on one side, turn around, pick it up on the other side), a single arm row (put your free arm on your knee). Very good for a prisoner’s dilemma type situation.
Here’s the thing. If you did have the option of double bells, would you do something different? That’s a sizeable ‘if’! Getting a set of bells with 4kg jumps, say, 16-20-24-28-32, is pricey enough. Doubling that isn’t necessarily an easy option.
Adjustability is another well-known factor with bells. 4kg is almost 10 pounds and when you’re lifting an implement with one hand, that is a very noticeable increase. Again, necessity is the mother of invention and there are a ton of great ideas to bridge the 4kg gaps. Still, if you could progress in more standard increments of, say, 2 kilos… would you?
You in fact do have the choice and can decide for yourself. It’s a simple fix, one that I kicked myself for not realizing before! Right this minute you can get a 10lb set of ankle weights (5lb each) for less than $15. Loop one around each horn of your bell. That’s it.
For example, if you want a second 24kg, tie the ankle weights to the 20kg. Now you have a second 24kg. Ideally, the ankle weights are 2kg, but a pound or so shouldn’t make that much difference. Switch the heavier bell from left to right every set.
Here’s the next step: get a second pair of those ankle weights. Now you can put three on the lighter bell and one on the heavier bell. Say hello to your new pair of 26kgs. Instead of a single set of bells with 4kg increments, you have a double set with 2kg increments. It’s like magic.
Personally I like this approach more than duct taping barbell plates to the bells. First, it’s less unwieldy and doesn’t affect the center of gravity in odd ways. Rack a bell with a 10lb plate on the bottom and it wants to torque your arm out to the side. Second, it takes time to undo the tape. The frankenbell isn’t adjustable, it’s stuck at its bigger size. The ankle weights are relatively easy to undo and wrap back on.
Concerning the mechanics of the bells, having 2kg-10lb on the horns doesn’t really make them feel any different and the center of gravity is roughly the same. Unlike magnetic plates, the ankle weights won’t randomly fly off if you decide to do ballistics. And if you need to work on your technique and have been banging your forearms, you get a little extra cushion.
If you do want to put just one ankle weight on the bell for a 2kg addition, put it on the thumb side. This feels somewhat like a stacked press and is more comfortable than having the weight hanging off of the bottom.
Regarding our initial question of “would you do things differently?”… I would. Single bells do have some disadvantages in terms of overall loading. I've had a long term love affair with heavy single arm swings (going up to 56kg) and snatches (up to 40kg). But these are a little less efficient and useful for the average person. Same goes for the various methods of overloading the press pattern (very heavy TGU, bent press, etc). For someone who might be tempted to go that route and buy monster bells... just use double 32s.
With doubles of any size, the almighty combo of clean, press or push press, and front squat becomes the obvious way to go. The armor building complex is great, so is the moving target idea. Throw in some farmers or racked carries and you’re covered!
-Lift things off the ground
-Lift things overhead
-Carry things around
Programming wise, doing the complexes on a timer can work, as can density training. I love Bryce Lane’s 50/20, just be careful not to overdo it. Jeff Steinberg had an excellent idea called ‘Heavy-ETK’ wherein he used the ladder format from the Rite of Passage program in Enter the Kettlebell but with double bells, implementing an on-the-minute format. Thus, the ladders are progression by the book but paced a set per minute. 5x(1,2,3,4,5), or twenty-five sets, would be done in twenty five minutes. Personally I’d advise doing a single clean for each press set. Front squats and some farmers carries after the C&Ps one day, double swings and racked carries after the next, and a third day for single bell work rounds things out. On your off days, take it easy—hang from a bar, get down and up from the ground and go for a walk.
Whether you want to use double bells or not this little cheat opens the door for you in terms of at-home and efficient training options. I don’t want to do the math on a second set of bells! But two pairs of ankle weights cost less than a dinner out and the way bells are priced, that deal can’t be beat.
