Kettlebell Training

bengal128

Hi

I've just found an article in Womens Health Sept issue (US) ref a workout with a kettlebell, says you can drop 2 dress sizes and burn 300 calories(it only takes about 20mins to do all the exercies) and half again for recovery. I don't know much about it, I've done it a couple of times and it does seem good, anyone have any advice, experience or success stories?

Thanks

lauralynette

I am thinking about starting up doing kettlebell I have been doing bootcamp, but I am thinking about doing the kettlebell yoga. http://www.shape.com/fitness/yoga_workout_kettlebell_exercises_yoga_routine

Azdak

There's nothing magic about it--it is just another form of exercise. Depending on what kind of exercise you do, it can either have a high resistance/minimal cardio effect or a low resistance/moderate to high cardio effect. You can make kettlebell exercises part of a metabolic circuit.

The effects you get will depend primarily on the intensity of your exercise, similar to most other modalities. If you like the movements and they motivate you to be consistent and work hard, then kettlebells can be effective.

The calories you burn will depend on your body mass and how hard you work. There is no way anyone can say a certain type of exercise will "burn X amount of calories" and have that number apply to everyone. Some studies I have seen suggested that something like a heart rate monitor will overestimate calories burned during kettlebell exercises if they involve a lot of upper-body movement. One in particular showed that, while heart rate was 85% of maximum, on average, for kettlebell swings, oxygen uptake ( VO2) averaged about 62% of max. Normally at that HR level, you would expect VO2 to be at 70%-75% of max.

Ryhenblue

I have Kettlenetics and I enjoy it. I think the losing 2 dress sizes is more about the diet and not the kettlebell but they will help you tone your muscles.

Clew

I love kettlebell! Indeed there's nothing MAGIC about it, but it is very effective because it works you out all over instead of isolated muscles - so you get more accomplshed in less time. That's a plus in my book.

Feel free to friend me if you want a ketlebell pal

Azdak

I love kettlebell! Indeed there's nothing MAGIC about it, but it is very effective because it works you out all over instead of isolated muscles - so you get more accomplshed in less time. That's a plus in my book.

Feel free to friend me if you want a ketlebell pal

Not to belabor the point, but "working you out all over" can be accomplished using a number of different types of exercises, different modalities, etc. Those characteristics/results are not exclusive to kettlebells. Hence my statement that there was nothing inherently unique about kettlebells that made them superior to any other type of training. That is not in any way meant as a criticism or negative comment about kettlebells. Too often, however, articles like those in magazines like Shape are written in a tone that makes it sound like a certain type of exercise is unique or magical and they end up misleading people rather than informing them.

I suppose I should be happy since correcting the mistakes that people make from reading Shape magazine is one of the primary ways I earn my living, but I would rather spend my time helping people move forward rather than constantly having to undo the damage first.

Clew

?? Sorry Azdak - I didn't mean to sound like kettlebells were the only way to achieve an all over workout. Our friend asked for opinions so I gave my opinion that I liked the benefits, including the multitasking it offered. Maybe I'm misunderstanding - I guess an article was cited, but I was just throwing my opinion out there. I love my kettlebell workout -much mor e fun than standard weights. And who wants to do a boring workout