Kettlebell Workout

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grag79
grag79 Posts: 70 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Hi,
My friend and I are starting kettlebell classes tonight.I was just wondering how do I log the exercise as it doesn't seem to be in the log.
I don't know how many calories you would use up in the session.
Has anyone done this and if so how do you log it?
Thanks
Gràinne

Replies

  • sarahmaryfearnley
    sarahmaryfearnley Posts: 366 Member
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    Generally, people log it as circuit training.
  • 40Marbles
    40Marbles Posts: 188 Member
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    I don't really know if what I do is correct or not - but I log a one hour workout as 30 minutes low impact aerobics and 30 minutes strength training.
  • chele76
    chele76 Posts: 28 Member
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    Good luck on your new adventure! I've done kettleball workouts in the past and they are a GREAT all over toning workout.

    My suggestion would be to get a heart rate monitor to accurately calculate calories burned. Then you can enter the workout manually.
  • efarrar13
    efarrar13 Posts: 78
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    You burn a ton of calories with the kettle bell. Just doing kettle bell swings for 15 min I can burn 300 calories. Since you are doing a class I would guess you could burn more.

    Get a Heart Rate Monitor!!! That way there is no guessing.
  • efarrar13
    efarrar13 Posts: 78
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    You burn a ton of calories with the kettle bell. Just doing kettle bell swings for 15 min I can burn 300 calories. Since you are doing a class I would guess you could burn more.

    Get a Heart Rate Monitor!!! That way there is no guessing.


    I got a decent one at Walmart for $50 with a chest strap. You can get one that is just the watch and you touch the face for even cheaper.
  • grag79
    grag79 Posts: 70 Member
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    I just looked it up on another site called sparkpeople and It said 1 hour kettlebell was worth 1200 calories.Not sure is that for everyone or for me and my weight.I am soooooooo going for that lol.Thats my daily calories worked off can't believe it.Thanks for all your advice on it xgx
  • grag79
    grag79 Posts: 70 Member
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    P.s how do you work out the calories by the heart monitor?xgx
  • nicolemarie045
    nicolemarie045 Posts: 131 Member
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    I would be careful with using that 1200 number...when I did a kettlebell class at my gym I burned usually about 375-450/hour depending on how hard i was pushing myself that day.
  • grag79
    grag79 Posts: 70 Member
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    Oh really darn that!!!!How did u calculate it?xgx
  • nicolemarie045
    nicolemarie045 Posts: 131 Member
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    My Polar FT4. It was always in that range, just depending on how hard the workout was. I usually used a 15 or 25 lb kettlebell depending on the activity, but those are pretty consistant numbers with others I have seen as well, just don't want you to estimate way too high!
  • grag79
    grag79 Posts: 70 Member
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    Ok I just finished now.It was a 45 min workout and my hair was soaked with sweat and my legs are like jelly I can hardly walk but I wasn't breathless.What would you suggest I put in to log it tonight?Thanks xgx
  • GeoJenna223
    GeoJenna223 Posts: 68 Member
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    I have recently used a HRM during a kettle bell class. The monitor said I burned 587 calories. The class was 50 minutes long, including warm up and cool down. I rarely got out of breath, but was covered in sweat the whole time. I checked by HRM a few times right after doing the swings and it was pushing 165, but the between sets it would get down to the 130's and 40's.

    Hope this helps.
    CW: 220
  • grag79
    grag79 Posts: 70 Member
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    Thanks a mill.I put it in as a circuit training for 45 mins and that came to just over 500 cals.I didn't eat them though just incase it wasn't acurate.Its not just for extra calories I am doing it though its to tone up and get my core good.Its one tough class! was half way through and thought I dont think I can do this but I stuck it out.Sore today lol xgx
  • ItsCasey
    ItsCasey Posts: 4,022 Member
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    The "kettlebells burn 1200 calories per hour" theory is based on a study done by the American Council on Exercise. They took a group of males and females, had them do kettlebell snatches (much harder than swings) for 20 minutes, and the resulting aerobic burn + anaerobic burn (which your HRM is not going to measure) was about 20 calories per minute. That's 1200 calories per hour, but there are a lot of variables to be accounted for, like age, sex, weight, fitness, what size bell you're using, etc.

    Swings still burn a lot of calories, though. I wrap up all my workouts with 10 minutes of swing intervals, and when I'm really pushing it (20 seconds of work, 10 seconds of rest for 10 minutes, alternating between 12 kg and 16 kg), I burn about 160 calories, according to my HRM (heart rate between 165 and 185). That is my aerobic burn, and that's all I record in my exercise diary because, without measuring my blood lactate levels, I have no real way of knowing what my anaerobic burn is.

    Beware of people who will tell you that an HRM is not accurate for kettlebell training. Those people are assuming, incorrectly, that kettlebell ballistics like swings and snatches are upper body exercises. HRMs are perfectly valid for ballistics. My HRM stats align very well with the aerobic burn stats produced in the ACE study mentioned above.
  • raevynn
    raevynn Posts: 666 Member
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    *bump*
  • naticksdonna
    naticksdonna Posts: 192 Member
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    bump
  • glamsam1221
    glamsam1221 Posts: 1
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    I see a lot of people posting that Kettlebells are not relly cardio, which is NOT true. It is very dependant on what type of kettlebell workout you are doing. The traditional Russian two-handed swing, done with heavy weight (ie, no less than 35 pounds for a beginner woman), burns approx 70 calories a minute, or 400 in the standard 20 minute two handed swing workout. It is considered a combination of strength and cardio, since it will tone you like weights, but peel fat off you quite efficiently. Your heartrate will rise to the same as running! You will sweat like a crazy person! Since kettlebells are not on the app as cardio OR strength, I add in a 400 calorie burn for my standard 20 minsute workout, which includes 72 two handed swings, 72 goblet squats, and 72 rowing or sumo squats. I am a 5' 8" woman who learned kettlebells from a Russina certified personal trainer. Read Tim Ferriss's book The Four Hour Body; it has extensive info on the effectiveness of kettelbells as cardio.
  • GregoryHorner
    GregoryHorner Posts: 1
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    I can't speak to calories with data, but I strongly believe the 1200 per hour estimate (that's an hour of swings/snatches, not 1/2 hour with 1/2 hour of screwing around. But I'll say a few things.

    I was Army for 9 years. My ankle got hurt badly, which means I can't run. After my 3rd surgery, I shot up to 310 (I'm 6'8"), and that was an inactive, flabby 310 with a 44 waist. In 2009, my brother got me a 35 pounder, a video and the "Enter the Kettlebell" book by Pavel (RKC guy). I started the "program minimum," which was 12 minutes of swings twice a week and 5 minutes of get ups twice a week. By the end of the first few four months, I was 265 and wearing a 40 waist, with NO OTHER EXERCISE. I could not eat before these workouts, which to me, is the measure of a cardio workout! I set my app at losing 1 pound a week, and yet, in 16 weeks, I lost 45 pounds, never exercising more than 15 minutes at a time. Do the math. The KB's were burning HUGE numbers of calories. I fully believe 1200 per hour is accurate, assuming the weight is heavy enough to make it tough to get through 20 reps at a time with good form.

    Today, I'm nearly done with the "rite of passage" program (largely presses, snatches and swings). I am a hard 257 (but still need to lose about 15 pounds of fat - I eat about 3500 calories a day). I'm the strongest person I know (except the brother who got me the first bell). My BP is 105/65. My HR is typically mid 50's at the doctor's office. I wear 38 pants, just like I did when I was 235 and on active duty in the Army at age 20 (I'm 40 now). And remember, I have severe limitations with my busted up ankle. I can't run or even walk very far.

    Let me say this. At first, trying to grunt out 175-200 swings with the 35 in 12 minutes, my HR was extremely high (no HR monitor). At least as high as running sprints (I only take 30 second breaks). Now, when I do swings, I'm moving 80 pounds for roughly 250 reps in 15 mins. My HR is very, very high during these workouts. God knows how high. Anyone who says this isn't "cardio" is either a moron, isn't using enough weight, or has a very skewed sense of what "cardio" means.

    This is the most hardcore, effective and painful exercise I have ever seen. It's also the only "workout" I've ever not hated. If the goal is fat loss, development of lean strength and general health (not muscle mass or beach muscle), you will NEVER find anything better. Just make sure you do it right, do it heavy and keep it safe.
  • IronSmasher
    IronSmasher Posts: 3,908 Member
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    Hi Gregory, welcome to the club!

    Big kudos and respect to you man, you're more that welcome to head over to this group to find more like minded people. - http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/129-enter-the-kettlebell

    However, it pains me to reveal this to you brother-in-iron... but there are a large number of people who may be referring to this monstrosity when they say kettle bell
    v v v v v

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ob7LQHIAX4Q

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