I know you’re saying to yourself, “Kettlebell– wth?” because I did, not that long ago. In fact, the first time I misheard its name, I kept referring to it as a kettleBALL!
I live in a pretty sizeable city, so it was only a matter of time before I would be introduced to the kettlebell. A friend of mine has been sharing the benefits of using kettlebells for overall fitness, and showed me some of his.
Closeup of a 12kg kettlebell
Once I actually saw a kettlebell, I kept bumping into them. It was kind of like when you get a new car, and all of a sudden, you see that exact same car everywhere. My friend started training with kettlebells and has been twittering about it after his sessions. A girlfriend of mine had been training with kettlebells over the past few years. And apparently, firefighters are using them all around the nation.
Sometimes kettlebells are referred to as Russian Kettlebells, due to their popularity in the former Soviet Union for strength training and in competitions. Although there are some typical weight-bearing movements that can be done with kettlebells, such as squats and military-style bench presses (they aren’t called these names in kettleworld, by the way), the main difference with a kettlebell is that it is used in a fluid, swinging motion.
Unlike machines or free weights, kettlebell training integrates both aerobic and anaerobic activity, or cardio and weight training. This aspect appealed to me most, since I don’t have a lot of time and in a sense, would be killing two birds with one… kettlebell.
Kettlebells typically are described in kilograms. My American mind has a hard time wrapping around this concept, so I’ll break it down for you: For every 1 kilogram, there are 2.20462262 pounds. Just to be clear- when talking about kettlebells, low numbers of kilograms equal much higher numbers of pounds. (I’m not an idiot, but for some reason, this troubles me.)
So, a woman may start out with an 8kg kettlebell, but she’s actually swinging and lifting almost 18 pounds of solid metal. A man may begin his program with a 16kg, which is really about 35 pounds.
I finally decided to take the leap and find myself a trainer. On this day, I am nervously awaiting our first meeting. In the meantime, I received what I’m calling a “babybell,” a 4kg kettlebell that looks like an orange bocce ball with a black handle.
My babybell: Cute, isn't it?
Just to give you an idea of how much work this program is going to be for me– I was quickly demonstrating a few kettlebell swings at home, and I broke into a sweat. The next day, my triceps hurt. (Although, I was also lifting my real 16kg babybell over my head for fun that day as well.)
My real 16kg babybell
So, if you’d never heard of a kettlebell before KettleTell– I know from experience– you’re going to see a lot more about them from here on out! (And stay tuned for upcoming video and pics of me trying kettlebells for the first time with my trainer!)
Woman = strong. I know you can do it. I’m cheering 4 u all the way! BTW, I love the real life kettle bell u got!