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Physiorun
The Classroom
Your Weekly Running Strength Class
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This Week’s Class
Kettlebell For Runners
A full kettlebell strength and power circuit — built for runners, from the ground up.
3 rounds throughout · 9 exercises
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Ask a runner about strength training and you’ll usually hear about squats, lunges and bodyweight circuits. The kettlebell rarely gets a mention, which is a shame — very few bits of kit combine strength, power and balance training as efficiently in one piece of equipment.
The swing in particular trains almost exactly the movement that drives you forward on every stride — explosive hip extension — just loaded and made explicit, rather than happening automatically at speed. Add in the single-leg and rotational work in this circuit, and you’ve got a session that maps closely onto what running actually demands.
One kettlebell, nine exercises, three rounds — strength, power and balance, all in one session.
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The Circuit · 3 rounds
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Load & Drive
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1
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Side Lunge with KB × 30 seconds each side × 3
Holding the kettlebell at the chest, step wide to one side and sink into a lunge while the other leg stays straight, then drive back to centre. Builds strength and control in the frontal plane — the sideways stability that forward-only running training rarely touches.
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2
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Sumo Squat with High Pull × 1 minute × 3
Wide stance, squat down holding the kettlebell between your legs, then drive up explosively and pull the kettlebell to chest height. Combines lower body power with an upper body pull, training the hips and shoulders to fire together in one movement.
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3
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One Arm KB Swing × 30 seconds each side × 3
A hip-hinge movement, swinging the kettlebell forward through powerful hip extension with one arm. Builds explosive hip power and adds an anti-rotation core demand, since one side is loaded while the other stays level.
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4
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High Knee A-Skip with KB × 1 minute × 3
Holding the kettlebell at the chest, skip forward driving the knees high while staying light on your feet. Trains the same high-knee drive your stride uses, with the kettlebell adding load to the hip flexors working to lift the leg.
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5
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Lunge to Knee Drive × 30 seconds each side × 3
Step into a forward lunge, then drive back up through the front leg and pull the trailing knee high into a knee drive. Links a strength movement straight into a power movement, training the transition from loading to driving forward that every stride requires.
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6
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Russian Twist × 1 minute × 3
Seated with feet off the floor, hold the kettlebell at your chest and rotate it from side to side. Trains rotational core control — the muscle work that stops your trunk twisting too far when your arms and legs are working hard.
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7
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Single Leg Stance Around the World × 30 seconds each side × 3
Balancing on one leg, hold the kettlebell out and trace a wide circle around your body. Challenges balance and hip stability under a shifting load — exactly the kind of unpredictable demand your standing leg has to cope with mid-stride.
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8
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Single Arm Row with KB × 30 seconds each side × 3
Hinged forward at the hips, row the kettlebell up towards your ribs on one side, keeping the torso still and square. Builds upper back and arm strength while training the core to resist rotation — the stability behind an efficient arm swing.
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9
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Calf Raises Single Leg with KB × 30 seconds each side × 3
Holding the kettlebell for added load, rise onto the toes of one foot and lower under control. Builds the single-leg calf and Achilles strength that has to produce push-off power on every single stride, on both the way up and the way down.
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Watch the full class
Follow Along on YouTube
▶ Watch the Class on YouTube
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Weekly Blog
Why Kettlebells Belong in Every Runner’s Strength Programme
Ask a runner about strength training and you’ll usually hear about squats, lunges and bodyweight circuits. The kettlebell rarely gets a mention, which is a shame, because very few tools combine strength, power and balance training as efficiently in one piece of equipment.
The swing in particular — explosive hip hinge, ballistic hip extension — trains almost exactly the movement pattern that drives you forward on every stride, just loaded and made explicit rather than happening automatically at speed.
Because the kettlebell’s weight hangs below and away from your hand, it also challenges balance and core control in a way a dumbbell or barbell doesn’t. Every single-leg or rotational exercise in today’s circuit asks your stabilisers to work overtime just to keep the weight under control.
That combination — power through the hips, stability through the core and single-leg strength through the legs — maps almost exactly onto what running demands, which is why this is a genuinely running-specific strength session rather than generic gym work borrowed for runners.
Nine exercises, three rounds, one kettlebell — training the hip power, balance and single-leg strength that running asks for, all in one session.
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Top Tip of the Week
Let the Hips Do the Work
On the kettlebell swing especially, it’s tempting to muscle the bell up with your arms and shoulders. Don’t. The power should come entirely from a sharp hip extension — the arms are just along for the ride, guiding the kettlebell rather than lifting it.
If your shoulders are burning more than your glutes by the end of a set, the hips aren’t doing enough of the work yet. Slow down, hinge properly, and let the snap of the hips throw the kettlebell forward.
Get that pattern right here, and you’re training the exact hip-drive your running stride relies on.
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Nine exercises, three rounds, one kettlebell — hip power, core control and single-leg strength, built the way running actually uses them. Pick up the bell and put it to work.
James
Physiorun
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Runner’s Injury Guides
Dealing With Something Specific?
If you’re carrying a niggle right now, these dedicated guides walk through what’s going on and how to work through it:
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