How to Do The Turkish Get Up

The Turkish Get Up Kettlebell Instruction

I was one of those people who hated the Kettlebell Turkish Get-Up and does not seem to get anywhere even though I know how to do it. But I really only got to know how to do it the best way after attending the Dragon Door Hardstyle Kettlebell Certification and Russian Kettlebell Challenge workshops. Since then, I’m more fluid in the Get-Ups, getting more weight overhead and my core and shoulders have never felt better. And I love this exercise and it is a must-do kettlebell exercise anyone must do regardless of your goals. If you been stuck with the Get-ups and not getting any stronger or still figuring it out how to do it then this is a great instructional blog post for you.

But first let me know tell you more about the turkish getup with the kettlebell. It is an excellent core training exercise as well as the best full-body strength building exercise. According to world renowned spine biomechanist Dr. Stuart McGill in his book “Ultimate Back Fitness & Performance, 2nd Ed”, the Turkish Get Up is a terrific exercise for injury prevention and performance. That’s because in a Get Up you learn to lock the ribcage on the pelvis by controlling your spine posture and steering the overhead weight at the same time as the body figures out different ways to maintain torso stiffness while pushing through with other limbs.

If you looked at the Kettlebell Get Up closely, your shoulder joints have to move through different angles and stabilised at the same time. As a results of that, you shoulder will have increased stability, mobility and resilience. As said by Gary Cook who is a well-known RKC and physical therapist , Getups eliminate strength “leakage” and will give you the mechanical advantage to be stronger ( Russian Kettlebell Challenge Instructor Manual). Seriously, I really can’t say any better than Gray Cook in this Turkish Get Up Video below:

By now, I am sure you are convinced that the benefits of the Turkish Get Up in regards to back health and overall strength gain. Without further ado, here is the Step-By-Step of The Kettlebell Get Up.

Step 1: Foetal Position

Your set up of The Kettlebell Get Up is get yourself into a foetal position as seen in the picture below:

Step 2: Push the kettlebell to full lockout

Hold the kettlebell with both hands, roll onto your back and push the weight up with a full lockout in the right arm. Be sure to mainatin neutral wrist throughout the movement.

Step 3: Hold the kettlebell with a neutral wrist in the “sweet” spot

Bring the left arm down to the ground with about 45 degree or less away from the body while still having a full lockout in the right arm.

Step 4: Dig into your elbow

Dig your left elbow into the ground to get your top half of the body off the ground. While doing this, always keep the lockout arm in a vertical position. And always keep your chest open by pinching your shoulder blades in.

Step 5: Push into your hand

Still keeping the lockout arm vertical, you will get your left forearm off the ground by pressing into your left hand.

Step 6: Lift your hips into a high bridge

Without shifting your feet, you will lift your hips or butt off the ground by pressing hard into both heels of the feet and left hand. Be sure to form a vertical line on both left and right arms.

Step 7: Get into a Windmill Position

Bring left knee to the base of the left hand while still holding that vertical line on both left and right arms.

Step 8: Lunge Position

Get your upper torso into an upright posture by getting the left hand off the ground. Then align your rear foot (which is the left foot) to the front and set yourself in a lunge position. Be sure to keep the left knee on the ground.

Step 9: Standing postion

From the lunge position, push off from the toes and get into a standing position.

Congratulation! You just completed the first half of the Get-Ups! To complete the movement, you now have to move in a reverse order with the steps given above. Yup! Step 9 to step 1.

If you want to look deeper into the Get-Ups and get more insider tips (corrective drills) on how to get through your trouble spots, I highly recommend the Kettlebells From The Ground Up The Kalos Sthenos by Gray Cook, Brett Jones and Dr Mark Cheng.

BTW, hope you find this Turkish Get-Up blog useful for you. Let me know if you have any questions, feedback or comments below.

Tagged as: kettlebell, tgu, the, turkish get up, turkish getup