Tag Archives: kettlebell

4 Marvel Kettlebells for Collectors Who Actually Work Out

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If you were ever cast in a Marvel movie that would require you to be in an action scene, probably one of the first things you would do is sign up for a gym membership or start picking up those weights. You would also probably take inspiration from some of those Marvel characters, who are among the most fit actors in this universe. Now if you could put working out and Marvel together, it would be perfect, even if you weren’t actually going to be in a Marvel movie.

The Marvel Kettlebell Series by SUPERX in partnership with Strict Vision Athletics features four iconic Marvel characters to be part of your workout routine. You have Spider-Man, Wolverine, Venom, and Hulk sculpted into fully functional, premium cast iron kettlebells, and they come in two editions: the Matte Black Bundle and the Hand-Painted Bundle.

Designer: SuperX

These Marvel characters aren’t just painted onto the weights. Each one has a weight-to-character pairing based on the power level and role that they have in the Marvel Universe. The form of the bell itself becomes the respective character, and the handle is integrated into the functionality as well. The kettlebells are cast from high-grade iron with durable powder-coated finishes. The 3D figures are printed in premium resin with hand-painted details.

Spider-Man is the entry-level weight at 30 lbs since he’s more the agility type of superhero. At 40 lbs, Wolverine is more in the mid-range and is meant to build your endurance since he’s the kind of hero that never stays down. Venom, with his symbiote power, is heavier at 50 lbs and needs to be “fed” with a more intense workout. And of course, the heaviest bell at 60 lbs is the Hulk since they all believe he’s the strongest Avenger (well, maybe except for Thor, who says he is).

What makes this series even more special is how the two editions cater to different kinds of Marvel fans. The Matte Black Bundle offers a sleek, uniform finish across all four characters, giving your gym a clean, understated look that doesn’t scream “novelty item.” It’s the kind of thing you could have sitting in your living room next to a coffee table book and it would fit right in.

The Hand-Painted Bundle, on the other hand, is where things get truly collector-level. Each bell is individually hand-finished by a single artist, bringing out the full color and character detail of every figure. With only a handful of these existing per drop, this is less of a fitness purchase and more of a limited-edition art acquisition, one that you can actually use to get stronger. Think of it as the sneaker drop equivalent of home gym equipment: highly limited, art-quality, and the kind of thing most people have never seen before.

And that’s really the whole point of this series. Kettlebell workouts are among the most effective full-body training tools out there, targeting multiple muscle groups at once and helping build explosive power through moves like swings, cleans, and snatches. The progressive weight structure of 30, 40, 50, and 60 lbs means you can start with Spider-Man and work your way up to Hulk-level as your strength grows. It’s essentially a built-in training program disguised as a collector’s set.

For the Marvel fan who has been telling themselves they’ll eventually get around to working out, this might just be the push they need. There’s something motivating about picking up a weight that looks like your favorite superhero, and it’s harder to skip leg day when Wolverine is staring you down. And for the fitness enthusiast who’s already deep in their training routine, swapping out generic weights for a sculpted Wolverine or a menacing Venom is the kind of upgrade that makes getting off the couch a whole lot easier.

The Marvel Kettlebell Series is officially licensed by Marvel and ships from SUPERX’s headquarters in Nashville, Tennessee. Both bundles are available in extremely limited quantities, so if you’re the kind of person who collects things that matter and also wants to get stronger, this one is pretty much made for you.

The post 4 Marvel Kettlebells for Collectors Who Actually Work Out first appeared on Yanko Design.

This Clip On Handle Turns Any Water Bottle Pack Into A Kettlebell

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Every broke gym rat has done this at some point. You run out of dumbbells, you eyeball two water jugs, you duct tape a broom handle across them, and suddenly you have a homemade kettlebell that looks like a science fair project gone wrong. It works, technically, but it also looks like something you’d hide before your date comes over. Purra just looked at that entire genre of improvised home gym equipment and decided to make it official, good looking, and branded. The result is a plastic handle that clips onto a pair of their mineral water bottles and turns them into an actual kettlebell, weight marking and all.

Designed as a marketing stunt tied to Purra’s presence at HYROX Bangkok, the handle snaps over two 1.5 liter bottles to hit exactly 3 kilograms, which is either a happy coincidence or someone in R&D did their homework. The dome is molded in the same powder blue as Purra’s label, debossed with the brand name, and shaped with the same scalloped horns you’d find on a competition kettlebell. Nothing about it screams cheap giveaway. It screams someone in the marketing department actually asked an industrial designer for help instead of ordering branded tote bags like everyone else.

Designer: Purra (Singha Corporation)

I have made my own version of this exact object during the pandemic, so I have some opinions on how well the real thing pulls it off. The horn spacing on the handle matches a proper competition kettlebell almost to the millimeter, wide enough for a two handed swing without your knuckles clipping the bottle caps. That is the detail that separates a design object from a novelty prop. A lot of branded merch gets the silhouette right and ignores the ergonomics entirely, and you end up with something that photographs well and hurts your wrist on rep three.

Two 1.5 liter bottles of water land you at 3 kilograms on the nose, and the handle stamps that number right into the plastic like it wants to be taken seriously as an actual training tool. Most branded merch settles for looking the part. This one does the arithmetic and shows its work, which is a small thing but it’s the kind of small thing that tells you someone cared past the pitch deck.

Purra is Singha’s mineral water brand, sourced from nearly 1,000 feet underground in Sing Buri, and the kind of company that already runs annual designer bottle collaborations, so a marketing play like this isn’t a stretch for them creatively. HYROX is arguably the best possible stage for it, since the format runs on eight fixed equipment stations and the kettlebell is one of them, so a water brand showing up with literal kettlebell bottles is closer to a punchline than a pitch.

Whether this thing gets mass produced or stays a one-off activation prop is unclear, and honestly that’s fine. Not every good idea needs a retail SKU to justify existing. Sometimes the point is just proving the trick works, and this one does. I won’t be surprised if we start seeing 3D builds on online platforms for people to print on their own!

The post This Clip On Handle Turns Any Water Bottle Pack Into A Kettlebell first appeared on Yanko Design.

Stanley doesn’t make gym equipment… but this stylish kettlebell proves it should

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Fill a Stanley tumbler with a yogurt-based smoothie from bottom to top and you actually end up getting an arm workout. A 40oz Stanley cup can weigh close to 4lbs or upwards of 1.5 kilograms if filled to the brim with something dense like a smoothie or a thick latte. Jane Morelli just decided that if she was gonna give her arms a workout, why simultaneously rely on ugly looking kettlebells? Morelli superimposed Stanley’s design language onto kettlebells and the result looks just gorgeous.

Every gym equipment I’ve used has looked boringly functional. The kettlebells at my gym come in bright colors, but that’s just a color-code so you know the difference between a lighter and a heavier kettlebell even if the number on it wears off (it almost always does). Morelli’s design merely bridges two worlds together, and I won’t lie – the results look like the most seamless collab ever imagined. My only gripe is, I wish these kettlebells were actually tumblers too!

Designer: Emanuele Jane Morelli

Haute gym equipment might not be a category but these kettlebells definitely make a case for it. Each one is styled with chic curves, and a color palette I’d only expect from companies like Hermès or Stanley. Subtle pastel shades, punctuated by just one hot pink color for the yoga-moms who need their gym equipment to be as flashy as their gym outfits. Each kettlebell has a lacquer-like sheen on it, along with the Stanley logo emblazoned on the front, larger than the weight units below it because that’s what matters more. The style statement.

I get that I can sound a little ironic, but I’m all for brand crossovers. (The only time I really object is when Tesla does stuff like manufacturing vodka or whistles because they seem to be obsessed with side quests and not really making any cars). This one piques my fancy because Stanley isn’t just a social statement, it’s perfect for fitness-freaks too who love chugging protein shakes from their 30-40oz cups, or sharing Strava stats superimposed against their Stanley cups just to paint a picture of how much ‘aura’ they have.

Morelli’s done a pretty remarkable job of simply yet effectively distilling Stanley’s brand language onto a piece of gym equipment, without necessarily caricaturing the Stanley cup’s silhouette. The kettlebells have a separate, distinct character, and the dual-band colors on each individual kettlebell represents a palette that feels distinctly high-fashion yet accessible. Quite like the company’s big, beautiful, nearly indestructible tumblers.

The post Stanley doesn’t make gym equipment… but this stylish kettlebell proves it should first appeared on Yanko Design.