You’ve probably watched in awe as a trainer worked through the first few steps of the Turkish getup—they start with the kettlebell aloft, then raise themselves up, and then… they just keep going. Deep down, you might have been suspicious about the actual training benefits of the maneuver. You’re not alone.
There are many better options for your time and energy, especially if you have specific goals you’re looking to accomplish in your workouts, say Men’s Health fitness director Ebenezer Samuel, C.S.C.S., and Men’s Health Advisory Board member David Otey, P.P.S.C., C.S.C.S., in the latest installment of our Overrated video series.
“It is not the exercise and the optimal movement that everyone has been trying to sell you,” Samuel says.
The problem with the Turkish getup, Samuel says, is what he refers to as “inconsistent loading”. Instead of lifting as heavy a weight as you can to progressively adapt, as one of the goals of strength training normally is, the complexity of the Turkish getup forces you to shift through many movement patterns quickly, providing less than the ideal muscle engagement through some of the phases.
“Unfortunately, when it comes down to doing the Turkish getup, the attention is the need to keep this weight from falling down,” Otey adds. “So you’re not focused on individual parts of hip extension or internal rotation. You’re more focused on not failing.”
Also, completing just one rep is a long process—seven unique (and not all necessarily beneficial) steps. By the time you get to the final movement of the first phase, standing up, fatigue has likely set in. Also, Samuel says because length of time in between movements, it’s nearly impossible to establish any type of mind-muscle connection with this move.
“When I’m repeating reps of biceps curls, when I’m repeating reps of squats, I’m working and focusing on a muscle group and working to sort of explore that make it better understand how I move,” Samuel says. “But when you combine seven different movements into one exercise, suddenly, I only get to spend a very brief moment training my glutes when I’m in that hip range of motion in the Turkish getup.”
In other words, there are several options you should be incorporating into your workouts instead.
“Surviving in an exercise is not worth it,” Samuel says. “Focus on better exercises than the Turkish getup.”
3 Exercises for Turkish Getup Alternatives
Here are three alternatives:
Quarter Getup
In this position you’re lying flat on your back with the kettlebell directly overhead, with your arm locked out in a nice and stable position. With this activating plenty of your front side core.
“This is an amazing stabilization drill for the backside shoulder as well as the front side shoulder,” Otey says. “And it’s more core work than you’ve ever used in a lot of other exercises, it’s going to put your crunches and planks to shame.”
Kettlebell Windmill
With this exercise, you’re getting hip extension and also a chance to hinge and rotate at the same time. The windmill also helps with shoulder stability. And you also get much more reps than you would with the Turkish getup. “It’s one of my favorite moves,” Samuel says. “You can repeat this and take your time through that motion that’s a lot more effective than the twice that you get to hit that part of the motion… it takes a whole 90 seconds to do the entire [Turkish getup].”
Overhead Reverse Lunge
This can be done either unilaterally or with both arms overhead, usually with dumbbells or kettlebells. It’s a vital move from a practical sense just for getting off the ground and standing up, something you’ll need to do for the rest of your life.
“That is an important thing when it comes to unilateral leg strength, it helps with your basic support and stabilization,” Otey says. “And if you’re talking about actual balance training, getting into that split-stance position is how you’re going to want to do that.”
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