If I wanted to strengthen my core and improve my posture, I’d do this kettlebell workout

Woman exercising with kettlebell in domestic setting. She sits on an exercise mat with her feet raised and a kettlebell held to one side by her hip.

A lot of my personal training clients come to me wanting to build core strength, particularly the deskbound workers who spend most of their time in an office chair. A weak core can put extra pressure on the spine, leading to back, hip or knee pain, poor posture and even trouble breathing because the core muscles include the diaphragm.

If you want to build core strength but get bored by doing multiple sets of the same exercise, then you’ll love this no-repeat kettlebell workout created by NASM-certified personal trainer Kaitlin Heaney. It features 13 moves, including unilateral and anti-rotational exercises, which are particularly effective at building core strength and stability.

Some of these exercises are done kneeling and that’s more challenging for the core muscles, because they are forced to work to keep the body in an upright position. Heaney is using a kettlebell but if you don’t have one you could also do these moves with a dumbbell. Scroll down to see how to do the workout.

How to do this workout

Before jumping into this workout it's important to warm up first and you should know how to engage your core, otherwise you may put too much pressure on your lower back muscles.

A post shared by Kaitlin Heaney (@kaitlinzuloaga)

A photo posted by on

Why you should train your core with unilateral and anti-rotational exercises

Research published in the European Journal of Applied Physiology found that unilateral (one-sided) exercises activate the superficial core muscles (the rectus abdominis, external oblique and erector spinae muscles) more effectively than bilateral ones. Unilateral moves are also great for improving balance and promoting better functional movement patterns, while helping to correct muscular imbalances where one side is stronger than the other.

Anti-rotational core exercises meanwhile help to train one of the essential functions of the core that can be easily missed when exercising—resisting a rotational force. By training to resist movement, you engage multiple muscle groups so that they work together and get stronger. This type of exercise also promotes better posture during daily activities and exercise.