FFF: Kettlebells

Have you tried kettlebells?

I had heard of them and had even signed up for a class while living in PA, but decided not to go when a coworker told me how hard the class had laughed the previous week at a girl after she smacked herself in the head with her own kettlebell.

I wasn't afraid of smacking myself.

I'm simply not confident that I could watch someone smack themselves in the head and not make a complete ass of myself laughing. At my age, I really should be able to control myself and not point and laugh. But really, it would be hysterical.

Anyway, Hallie had the kettlebells and was kind enough to lend them to me. I enjoyed them and bought my own, and I'm so glad that I did. Kettlebells come in various styles and weights. I have an 8 lb, but will be getting a 10 or higher soon. Some exercises are too easy with the 8 lb.

The kettlebell came with a DVD called "Calorie Burner Workout with Kettlebells" DVD, led by Gin Miller. She is upbeat without being a complete cheese head, and fairly likeable. The DVD is broken into 3 workouts. The workouts are made up of different workouts, but I wouldn't say that they necessarily increase in difficulty. Each workout is about 10 minutes long which is a perfect length of time for me to feel like I have worked a muscle group without feeling like I should be doing something else,around the house. Each exercise works multiple muscles all while keeping your core in mind. Gin Miller also offers variations on each exercise to enable the user to adjust the difficulty level. My favorite feature of the DVD is that while she is performing the exercises they are shown in split screen so that you can really mimic her form.
My arms always burn after I've finished the exercises and they are usually sore the next days which I take as a good sign. Overall I'm really enjoying using the kettlebells and would recommend them.

Before beginning I had watched many tutorials on YouTube and would suggest that any beginner do the same. The kettlebells are swung and one could easily injure themselves if they are using incorrect form or do not stop the momentum of the swing at the proper location.

Bryn