Jillian Michaels 3pc Vinyl Kettlebell Set--Why?

contingencyplan

I've noticed walmart and amazon.com both carry something called the Jillian Michaels 3pc Vinyl Kettlebell set, which is 3 kettlebells packaged together which weigh 5, 10, and 15 lbs. Considering that, when done correctly, even a beginner who is very weak should be starting with a 15-20 lb bell, what is the point of this set? What benefit could you possibly get from doing kettlebell exercises with a 5 lb weight? Dumbbell exercises, I can see. But not kettlebell. So WTF is the point?

debussyschild

It's a good beginner set, I think. Especially for someone who's never weight trained. But, they'd quickly adapt to such low weight and would have to increase the weight they're using after a short time. Agreed. Money waster. But I'm sure it sells like hotcakes!

contingencyplan

It's a good beginner set, I think. Especially for someone who's never weight trained. But, they'd quickly adapt to such low weight and would have to increase the weight they're using after a short time. Agreed. Money waster. But I'm sure it sells like hotcakes!

Well the thing is its not even suitable for beginners really because, as I said, if you're doing it right, you should be starting out with the heaviest bell in the set, or even higher. But yeah, I'm pretty sure it sells a lot because of her name on it.

With KB training, the goal is to get as much many muscles to assist with a movement as possible. You're never isolating a single muscle group. You're trying to get your whole body to get behind the exercise. And if you're doing that correctly, even a beginner will need something heavier...

blonde71

I bought a 15 lb. kettlebell and wound up bringing it back b/c it was too light. I exchanged it for a 25 lb. one and it works out much better for me.

spartangirl79

It's a good beginner set, I think. Especially for someone who's never weight trained. But, they'd quickly adapt to such low weight and would have to increase the weight they're using after a short time. Agreed. Money waster. But I'm sure it sells like hotcakes!

Well the thing is its not even suitable for beginners really because, as I said, if you're doing it right, you should be starting out with the heaviest bell in the set, or even higher. But yeah, I'm pretty sure it sells a lot because of her name on it.

With KB training, the goal is to get as much many muscles to assist with a movement as possible. You're never isolating a single muscle group. You're trying to get your whole body to get behind the exercise. And if you're doing that correctly, even a beginner will need something heavier...

I worked at a gym that catered to women of all ages and fitness levels. Older women, deconditioned women, women who have never lifted a weight in their lives should not be pressing a 15lb kb.

Not everyone is even in moderate shape when they start working out. A woman in her 70s looking to gain strength is not going to swing a 15lb kb on her first workout, or possibly any workouts. A person with lupus or fibromyalgia is also not going to be doing these things when new to exercise, if ever.

What do you care? Don't be so condescending, dude. To each their own.

Telugammayi87

I purchased this a while ago, and if you go to the website and print the routines and do them correctly... you will be extremely sore the next day... and the workouts get harder every week... The way it's designed it definitely gets the heart pumping. Per my HRM in the 30 minute workout I was burning around 600 calories. Maybe it's not the best to build muscle, but it's a good workout....

2manyhats

My son has a 25 pound one and it kicks my butt. So when it gets to much, like on Bob Harpers workouts, I just use a dumbbell. They can definitely provide a workout!

mcarter99

WHY? Same reason as "Why Jillian?" Marketing. Make it cheap, make it accessible, slap her face on it, watch it sell.

Look at all the 30 Day Shred threads here. Out of like a million workout DVDs, apparently everyone is doing her's (or Insanity).

All this from a girl with virtually no training in fitness.

Regarding size- I'm an over-40 woman who started kettlebells with an 18 lb. one years ago, and quickly got a 26 lb. one.

wellbert

Not even a single pood!

schpanks

Maybe I'm more out of shape than I think, but I started doing Shred It with Weights with the 5 pound kettlebell. I moved up to the 10 pound shortly, but I still had to switch back to the 5 for the snatches or it stressed my shoulder too much.

contingencyplan

Maybe I'm more out of shape than I think, but I started doing Shred It with Weights with the 5 pound kettlebell. I moved up to the 10 pound shortly, but I still had to switch back to the 5 for the snatches or it stressed my shoulder too much.

Shred it with weights is a very very bad idea. The form taught in those videos has been heavily criticized as being bad and will lead to injury. Trust me, STAY AWAY from any Jillian kettlebell videos. Its been proven she has NO business teaching kettlebell. She has no clue what she's doing. Look into a Pavel or Michael Skogg video.

contingencyplan

I purchased this a while ago, and if you go to the website and print the routines and do them correctly... you will be extremely sore the next day... and the workouts get harder every week... The way it's designed it definitely gets the heart pumping. Per my HRM in the 30 minute workout I was burning around 600 calories. Maybe it's not the best to build muscle, but it's a good workout....

HRM is not accurate for strength training. When using a weight that is too low (which is why it is recommended that beginners start at 15 lbs and move up) it prevents you from being able to activate your glutes and hamstrings doing basic fundamental exercises such as the swing. As a result, what should be a total body exercise ends up being a purely upper body exercise. The HRM does not reflect this.

mcarter99

Maybe I'm more out of shape than I think, but I started doing Shred It with Weights with the 5 pound kettlebell. I moved up to the 10 pound shortly, but I still had to switch back to the 5 for the snatches or it stressed my shoulder too much.

Shred it with weights is a very very bad idea. The form taught in those videos has been heavily criticized as being bad and will lead to injury. Trust me, STAY AWAY from any Jillian kettlebell videos. Its been proven she has NO business teaching kettlebell. She has no clue what she's doing. Look into a Pavel or Michael Skogg video.

If you want something less testosterone-y than Pavel or Skogg, look into Sarah Lurie DVDs (once sold at Target, not sure if still) or Alysia Gadson (free online videos at livefitrevolution.org). Both are RKCs. I like Gadson and you can't beat that price!

MadeInDR022

To make money. My bf is a HKC, working up to his RKC. He's pretty good at teaching proper form and movement. And yes, its a total body workout. I love them!

going2befit4ever

they are the perfect size for the four old and i don't feel so stressed about her flinging them in the direction of her younger brother and sister cos she will try to use the heavier ones if she can't find hers to do her workout!!! we don't need a trainer in our house we already have a drill sargeant try not doing your workouts and your in trouble

litatura

I don't have a whole lot of upper body strength, so I bought a 5lb. and a 10lb. kettlebell to go along with my Shred it With Weights video. I ditched the 5lb. one halfway through the first time because it was way too light. However, I've been using the 10lb. one for a while and it's still sufficient for the time being, but I'll probably trade up in the next while. I can't even imagine starting with a 15-20lb. kettlebell.

megletgroves

I agree.. Don't be condescending. I'm 30, and have a kettlebell set of 5, 10, and 15lbs, and yes, just moving around to the workout video I have was exhausting, even without the weights! I like the heavier weights for the arm exercizes, but i'm not ready yet for them on the legs and deep lunges and stuff. So, no weight is used or the measly 5lb one. Everyone is of different abilities and fitness levels. Maybe I'm not using the heaviest weights, but I'm in there and I'm trying. And I'm not giving up.

contingencyplan

I don't have a whole lot of upper body strength, so I bought a 5lb. and a 10lb. kettlebell to go along with my Shred it With Weights video. I ditched the 5lb. one halfway through the first time because it was way too light. However, I've been using the 10lb. one for a while and it's still sufficient for the time being, but I'll probably trade up in the next while. I can't even imagine starting with a 15-20lb. kettlebell.

The reason for your trouble is because you're using the Shred it with weights video. This video has come under a lot of scrutiny due to the poor form it teaches which could potentially lead to injury. I really, really don't mean for this to sound insulting and I hope it doesn't come across that way, but if you go through a real kettlebell workout or at least follow a video that instructs proper form I think you will see what I mean. Your upper body is not the issue with kettlebell training. If your upper body strength is holding you back, then your form is wrong. Kettlebell training is about using your leg and core muscles to stabilize it. Your muscles are not doing any actual LIFTING with kettlebell training. Rather, momentum created by swinging is doing the "lifting" and your muscles only step in to keep it stable and controllable in its motion. And if they had to engage with a weight that small you would have trouble just walking around. I strongly recommend/advise for you to get a kettlebell video taught by an RKC certified instructor and throw the Jillian DVD you have in the trash. I can promise you that you WILL get hurt with it once you do move up to higher weights.

I agree.. Don't be condescending. I'm 30, and have a kettlebell set of 5, 10, and 15lbs, and yes, just moving around to the workout video I have was exhausting, even without the weights! I like the heavier weights for the arm exercizes, but i'm not ready yet for them on the legs and deep lunges and stuff. So, no weight is used or the measly 5lb one. Everyone is of different abilities and fitness levels. Maybe I'm not using the heaviest weights, but I'm in there and I'm trying. And I'm not giving up

You're going to see a common thread here I think... the only people who disagree with the point I'm trying to make are all working off of the same kettlebell DVD video which is notorious for teaching poor form and there is currently a lawsuit over.

sarah692

I had to start off with a 10 pound bell and I was using one of Sarah Lurie's DVDs, not Jillian's... it took me about two weeks to be able to start using a 15 pound bell for most things, but I still had to stick with 10 for some.

megletgroves

I don't care for Jillian Michaels and I am not using her video. I am using Kettlebell bootcamp with angie miller, and I dont know how to find out if she is RKC certified, or even what that means. All I am saying is that SOME of us newbies can't start with the full workout, with full intensity, with the heaviest weights, right off the bat. And in fact, I'm sure that trying to do just that was causing me to try then give up, try then give up, becuase i would be sooo sore after one try. I don't want to give up this time, and I think easing into things is working better than hurting myself.

mcarter99

Gadson's online classes have obese and older participants, pretty much exclusively. She does start them off the first day with something below an 8kg/18lb. bell but by class 4 or 5, I think they're mostly on to the 8 kgs.

The standard advice for women is usually to start with an 8kg/18lb. Nothing wrong with the littler ones, but I think they were sold mostly for the same reason JM had a kettlebell DVD, to capitalize on the trend in a cheap, un-intimidating way. I wanted one of those adorable Sarah Lurie kettlebells in red or yellow when Target carried them but they were too small. They knew women wouldn't be rushing in to buy a 26 lb. hunk of metal, and men probably didn't want the Lurie branded one in bright colors.

contingencyplan

Taken from an article on the subject:

"There are kettlebells from two pounds to 106 pounds and beyond, according to Marshall. Naturally, you should start with a lower weight until your skills improve enough to try a higher weight without risk. Men usually start with a kettlebell that weighs between 25 and 35 pounds, while women tend to begin with a 12 to 26 pound kettlebell, depending on their fitness level. Scott says that lighter kettlebells are not recommended for most people. "It is necessary to have a kettlebell that's heavy enough to engage your hamstrings and glutes during the swing, the most basic kettlebell exercise." Even though smaller kettlebells exist, even in the five to 10 pound range, these would be "totally inappropriate" for many exercises, according to Scott. Although it seems counterintuitive, a weight that is too light may encourage improper form. But more importantly, you'll derive little to no benefit from using such a lightweight kettlebell."

http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/fitness_articles.asp?id=1222 full article here.

Unless you're in recovery from sort of accident and doing it for physical therapy reasons, or are elderly, and you're working with a kettlebell in the 5-10 lb range, you're just plain doing it wrong. It's your form that's bad, not your strength. If you feel you need to work with a weight this light then it is VERY important you get one on one coaching before you attempt to move up to heavier weights because if you carry that poor form up to heavier weights, you WILL injure yourself.

megletgroves

I will definitly look into this, checking my form and such. Thanks!

contingencyplan

I will definitly look into this, checking my form and such. Thanks!

The key is that your lower body, specifically the hips and glutes, are the only body parts doing actual dynamic work. The upper body is not doing anything to really assist with the lift. The kettlebell swing is initiated and maintained by a thrusting of the hips from the squat position. Thrust your hips forward like you're a dude trying to . . well, you get the idea! Allow this hip thrust to initiate the swing. If you're not feeling it in your glutes and hamstrings within 10 repetitions of the basic swing, the weight you are working with is too light. If you're feeling it in your upper body before you do in your lower body, your form is wrong, because your upper body should not be doing any actual work here. Your quads, your glutes, your hamstrings, and your core are the muscles doing the actual work. Ther upper body becomes involved after you move on to other lifts from the basic swing, and even then the only work it actually does more or less is stabilizing the dynamic motion of the kettlebell. Your upper body gets worked by trying to ensure that the motion is maintained in a predictable and controlled manner.

Make sense now?

There is a very very very high risk associated with kettlebell training at home because videos are not able to provide proper instruction on form. Lower back and shoulder injuries are extremely common among people attempting kettlebell workouts at home because their form is bad. If it weren't for the fact that I had a trainer instruct me on form in the beginning one on one, I would not be attempting it myself for this very reason.

mcarter99

I bought my 26 lbs. one when I read that swings are actually easier with a 'right-sized' bell than a 'too-small' one. I can't press that puppy, though, at least not many times. It's great for deadlifts.

contingencyplan

I bought my 26 lbs. one when I read that swings are actually easier with a 'right-sized' bell than a 'too-small' one. I can't press that puppy, though, at least not many times. It's great for deadlifts.

My next fitness purchase is either going to be a sandbag or a 35 lb one. I hope 35 lbs is right. I know that 30 lbs is just right for presses but nowhere near enough for swings.