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A: The girya (Russian for kettlebell) first appeared in the Russian dictionary in 1704. So yes... they are a fad. A fad I expect to around for another 300 years.
But seriously, what does the United States Secret Service, the US Marines, firefighters, champion Martial Artists, champion powerlifters, Chiropractors, grandparents, mothers, fathers, high school athletes, fitness enthusiasts, Hollywood actors and actresses, men and women around the country all have in common? They use kettlebells! So is it a fad...? If it is then it is one I'd sure like to be a part of!
A: That depends on your goals. If you want to be a champion powerlifter (bench press, squat and deadlift) then you must perform those exercises with a barbell just like your competition. If you want to be a champion marathon runner then you need to get out and run. Barbells, dumbbells, bodyweight, sandbags, etc. all have advantages and disadvantages but in my opinion the kettlebell upstages all of them due to it’s diversity.
You can use a kettlebell to get strong, lean, tone, big, superior cardio conditioning, flexible, coordinated for sports, etc. Some of the kettlebell exercises are unique and some can be reproduced with other tools but nothing can beat the one-stop-shop-efficiency. Use of kettlebells has carry over to other coordinated events such as sports, running, jumping, even barbell and dumbbell training. They are portable and best of all… they are just plain fun to train with.
A: Not all exercise ‘tools’ are created equal. While barbells, dumbbells, bodyweight, sandbags and certain other equipment is on the approved list; machines are almost always on the bad list. Why? Because any strength gained from machines does not effectively carry over to real world strength. You can leg press a ton but that doesn’t mean you will be strong enough to pick up your friend’s washing machine since you only worked your legs in ‘isolation’ before; but now you must use all of the muscles in your body in unison to lift real world 3D objects while standing on your own feet.
With kettlebell training all of your muscles have to know how to work together and with the assistance of stabilizer muscles and your core's strength. You don’t use stabilizer muscles with machines. The free flowing movements you do with kettlebells are much more organic, more fluid, more powerful, more skilled and more fun. Kettlebells make you move the way your body was designed to move.
Another draw back is that overuse injuries injuries such as tendonitis are more common with machines since the path of the movement has no variation as it would if you were press a ‘free’ weight. Using machines often puts ‘more stress’ on your lower back than picking up a weight off of the floor! While the definition ‘machine’ could be any number of different pieces of equipment there are with few exceptions no machines worth even glancing at. Just say no to wimpy machines and lift like a strong man (or woman).
A: To quote Pavel Tsatsouline when asked if kettlebell training was dangerous, comrade Pavel says, "yes, you could die!" Ok seriously, ANY exercise is dangerous if you you use poor form and don't get proper coaching; the same is true with barbells, pushups and even yes… exercise machines. Bottom line is that I have never heard of or experienced a single injury related to kettlebell use; you will not be the one statistic that makes me rewrite this paragraph. Having said that, you need to seek training from a ‘qualified’ instructor.
There are a lot of phony kettlebell instructors out there, frankly there are a lot of bad personal trainers out there. Make sure the trainer you choose has your health and safety in mind. They should not push you too hard or let you slack off too much. They should challenge you but only at a pace that you are ready for. If a trainer ever puts you in pain and tells you it is good or to just deal with it then find a different trainer.
A: Only if you wish. Some people do not want to get big, in fact, most of you want to get smaller and that is your reason for seeking exercise. However, like any resistance training, if your program and nutrition are tailored to gain muscle size you certainly can achieve those types of goals with kettlebells. By the way ladies, you will not get ‘big’ unless you take steroids and are incredibly disciplined with your training and nutrition; and I will not help you with steroids!
A: Let’s face it, who likes to spend an hour on the treadmill, stationary bike or elliptical machine? Boring! And it is also not nearly as effective to train that way as it is to do shorter, more intense and more fun, interval training. Interval training with kettlebells will shed the fat off of you, increase your heart’s strength to protect against heart disease and there are so many fun and creative workouts you can do, you will never get bored again!
A couple of interesting facts...
• 15 mins of elliptical training can burn around 50 to 125 calories*
• 15 mins of kettlebell training can burn around 300 calories
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60 mins of elliptical training can burn around 250 to 450 calories*
• 60 mins of kettlebell training can burn up to 1,212 calories!!!!! learn more here
* Lower numbers on the elliptical machine come from a slow steady pace while the higher numbers come from intense intervals... of course no one can really do 60 mins of intense intervals.
A: Jennifer Lopez and Penelope Cruz to name a few. You might be surprised because of the primitive and ‘hard-core’ look of kettlebells but there are a lot of women using and training kettlebells. And “no”, they do not look butch. Almost half of the kettlebell trainers who got certified when I did were female. There are also several female stars in Hollywood who use kettlebells to get fit before their movies. Women who use kettlebells are pleasantly surprised that not only do they have more fun with their workouts but kettlebells target muscles that most women prioritize, the buns, thighs and stomach!
A: Ask 69 year old Mary, a good client of mine who began training with me with no prior exercise experience. Now she routinely comments on how she had life heavy objects around the house that her husband and son can't lift. Or ask my 74 year old Chiropractor client how he is in the best shape of his life... in his 70s!!!
It is actually preferable that you train with kettlebells or something like them that is an awkward object because that is what you work with in real life when you pick up the groceries, the child seat, etc. Best to learn how to deal with real life as opposed to some fancy machine that makes your body build what I call "dumb muscles." Dumb muscles are muscles that you can't use in any real movements that life puts in front of us.
Ultimately it is not the kettlebell you should worry about, it is making sure you find a good fitness coach that can teach you how to get in shape without getting hurt in the process. Make sure you find a trainer, kettlebell instructor, fitness coach, etc. who treats you as an individual and allows you to make gradual progress with your fitness as your body allows.
A: Bodyweight training can be very effective for sure but it has its limitations. There is simply no bodyweight drill that will simulate the effect of lifting a heavy weight off of the floor. And lifting a heavy weight off of the floor is what wrestlers do, not to mention the rest of us when we pick up groceries, help our friends move furniture, etc. Plus it builds strength and power in the core, hips and legs that bodyweight training simply cannot. That strength and power carries over to your punch, kick and believe it or not increases your ability to take punches, kicks, throws and any other punishment. Kettlebells can be very effectively integrated with bodyweight training to achieve a perfect synergy that can’t be beat. By the way, many of the top MMA fighters are using kettlebells. Two of the top martial arts strength coaches Steve Cotter (Full Contact Kung Fu Champion) and Steve Maxwell (Brazilian Jujitsu Champion even into his 50s) are big fans of kettlebell training and having met both of these mutants and seen what they can do, I believe every word they say.
A: Well I can’t help you with lazy, if you want to rot away on the couch watching TV while life passes by that is your business. However, I think that perhaps you aren’t lazy; you just don’t have the right motivation. Motivation makes hard workers out of the laziest of all people. By motivation I don’t mean Vinny and Guido threatening to staple your tongue to your chin if you miss a training session. I mean that you must have a dream of ‘WHY’ you want to get in shape. If you can see your dream and it has a personal value to you, an emotion attached to it, then you will do what you need to do to get there. I can also almost guarantee that kettlebell exercise is just plain fun too. Give it a month and you will be hooked!
Finally, motivation is simple, at 65 you can be the "help I've fallen and can't get up lady" or at 80 you can be Clint Eastwood or in your 90s you can be Jack Lalanne... you get to decide.
Jack Lalanne in his 70s!
A: Not on your life, go away! I only deal with people who respect themselves and others and am not interested in dealing with personal drama.
A: Yes, and you do have time it just lies with your priorities. With few exceptions I think most people could sacrifice 15 to 60 minutes of TV 3-5 days per week in order to feel and look better. If you want something bad enough you will find a way to make it work.
A: Great question! Typically the average lady will start with an 18 lb bell but quickly progress to a 26. If you are an especially strong female then you can start with a 26 and quickly move to a 35. Most men will do well to start with a 35 lb bell if they are of average strength. If you have been lifting weights for a while and are fairly strong (you can military press a 60 lb dumbbell or bench press over 225 lbs) then go with a 53 lber. If unsure then get a 44 lber. The kettlebell will feel heavier than the same weight dumbbell and will last you a long time so don’t worry about having to buy a bunch of kettlebells. There are tons of ways to manipulate the leverage to make a lighter bell challenging to lift and a too heavy bell light enough to lift.
A: Contact me. I will correct any technique flaws, assess your strengths and weaknesses and help you to reach your next goal(s). I will also design a customized training program for you based on your goals, time, sleep, nutrition, stress levels and more. It will be a program built for you. Plus I will maintain weekly contact to ensure you are making progress and will adjust training as needed to ensure success.
A: You are like 97% of people, congratulations you just found out that you are normal... Even if you aren't so normal in other ways but we won't talk about that. The fact is that most people do not do well exercising on their own, they need to be part of a support system and be around like-minded people for encouragement. That is why you need to seek out either private or small group class training from a highly qualified instructor.
A: I'm glad you asked! I for one and shocked, appalled and generally irritated by 99.8% of the fitness industry. Too many poor quality trainers who are not educated enough or passionate enough about what they do to be of much if any use to you. Then we have the really good marketers who can pack their gyms full of clients but have super high injury rates...
You must be very discerning when looking for someone in which to trust your health and well-being.
Here are some things to look for:
- Multiple certifications
- Now for the record, certifications do not indicate good, they just show that someone is willing to continue their education. But don't get too hung up on certifications... What do you call a doctor who graduated medical school with straight "D"s? ... "Doctor!"
- Lots of Testimonials from happy clients
- Nothing says someone rocks like happy clients.
- Find out their fitness philosophy
- Make sure they are not one of those "puke bucket," "no-pain-no-gain," "push-harder!!!" type of trainers.
- An educated and wise fitness professional will make sure that you leave feeling better than when you arrived. If you feel like crap when you get done with a workout and think that you got a "good workout in" then think again. Training too hard leads to injuries, too many stress hormones such as cortisol (the belly fat hormone!) being released into your system and overall you don't enjoy the exercise so you are more likely to quit in the future.
- Ideally find a corrective specialist
- An amazing trainer will not just tell you to lift more, but they will tell you how to lift. They will look for and correct bad movement patterns. They will be able to help your "old injuries" improve or go away.
- Anyone can make you lift more weight, do more reps, etc. but a truly amazing trainer in the top 1% will be able to work around your painful knees or use exercise to help correct your bad shoulder.
- There are a small handful of certifications/educations that work with such populations: Z-Health, CHEK, CK-FMS to name a few... actually that is about it. Z-Health of course being, in my humble opinion, the best of the best. Z-Health is the only system that I have ever seen that looks at every single possible aspect of your health.
- Z-Health is also the ONLY system I have ever seen that can litterally improve someone's range of motion or eliminate pain, often instantly!
- A qualified Z-Health Specialist will understand why poor mobility and strength in the joints of your feet can cause shoulder pain and how to fix them. Or why poor breathing patterns raise blood pressure and teach you how to breathe. Or how the lack of ability for your visual system (your eyes and brain) to track near-to-far at a rapid pace is causing your kettlebell snatch numbers to be lower than Walmart's roll-back prices... and give you vision exercises to correct this issue. Or why lack of mobility in your cranial joints are causing your low back pain and how you can safely mobilize your own cranial joints through exercise.
- Intrigued? These are actual clients of mine, they are of course fixed now. If there were something out there better than Z-Health then I would be doing that instead.
If you would like to learn more, contact me.
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