Kettlebell DVD

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jessifreehugs
jessifreehugs Posts: 81 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I'm looking to add Kettlebell workouts to my regular exercise regimen. For the past two weeks, I've been walking on the treadmill daily, and I'm ready to add some strength training in my routine (since steady state cardio bores me to tears). Anyways, there are a lot of options on Amazon, but I was curious about what would be a good choice for a beginner. Any ideas? Also, most of these beginner things start with just a 4-5 pound kettlebell. I'm used to walking with 5 pound walking weights, so I'm not sure this is the right place for me to start. I was thinking of getting a 10 pound bell. Would you recommend this, or am I going to kill myself?
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Replies

  • amann1976
    amann1976 Posts: 742 Member
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    you dont need dvd's to get a good kettlebell workout.

    just the basic swing and some turkish get ups for about 30 minutes is a great workout.
  • astrampe
    astrampe Posts: 2,169 Member
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    Angie Miller's "Kettlebell Bootcamp" dvd is an awesome workout, and you can do more as you get stronger...Found mine on amazon...Just swings and turkish get-ups would bore me to tears......
    And I would suggest get a 10lbs bell to start of with...you might struggle a little with the one arm stuff she has, but you will be fine soon...I had to get a 15lbs one and have asked Santa for a 20 and 25lbs one - as the swings with the 15lbs one gets too easy....
  • tiptoeketo
    tiptoeketo Posts: 271 Member
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    I enjoyed the Kettleworx DVD's.... I got them from a friend so I'm not sure how much they are. I tried the Jillian Michaels DVD but much preffered Kettleworx. You could also try youtube?
  • amann1976
    amann1976 Posts: 742 Member
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    Angie Miller's Kettlebell dvd is an awesome workout, and you can do more as you get stronger...Found mine on amazon...Just swings and turkish get-ups would bore me to tears......

    you would be sweating to much to be bored...
  • Capt_Apollo
    Capt_Apollo Posts: 9,026 Member
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    here you go

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SRpbM9nzDcM
  • MelisMusing
    MelisMusing Posts: 421 Member
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    bump
  • astrampe
    astrampe Posts: 2,169 Member
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    Angie Miller's Kettlebell dvd is an awesome workout, and you can do more as you get stronger...Found mine on amazon...Just swings and turkish get-ups would bore me to tears......

    you would be sweating to much to be bored...

    Yep, but Angie Miller's dvd makes you sweat, grunt and swear softly now and then, AND keeps you entertained! :bigsmile: :flowerforyou:
  • Topsking2010
    Topsking2010 Posts: 2,245 Member
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    Kettlebell is an awesome workout.
  • WendyCollinson2004
    WendyCollinson2004 Posts: 146 Member
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    I just got a Jillian Michaels DVD for kettlebells and I think it is the perfect place to start. I am sore from yesterdays workout and I used a 5lb kettlebell. You can use whatever pound you want. I will probably do this for a couple of weeks and the go to the more advanced level. She has 2 levels on her DVD. I would recommend watching the about kettlebell tutorial. I have used kettlebells before, but she taught me things I didn't know.
  • MsLTJ71
    MsLTJ71 Posts: 26 Member
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    Gin Miller has a great workout for beginners. Me and my workout buddies pull her out when we do kettlebells.

    http://www.ginmiller.com/gmf06/gmf_store/workouts/kettlebell.html
  • dym123
    dym123 Posts: 1,670 Member
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    I do Jillian Michael Shred w Weights, you don't even need a kettlebell, she does a modifier with a dumbbell. I use a 10lb dumbbell, though am looking for other workouts, will check out some that were recommended.
  • AntShanny
    AntShanny Posts: 366 Member
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    I have a couple of Bob Harper dvds, the one that came with my first kettlebell is a decent workout, but the form isn't good...you should watch some videos on youtube on the correct form. I started with a 10lb and now have a 15, but would like heavier ones.
  • jessifreehugs
    jessifreehugs Posts: 81 Member
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    Angie Miller's Kettlebell dvd is an awesome workout, and you can do more as you get stronger...Found mine on amazon...Just swings and turkish get-ups would bore me to tears......

    you would be sweating to much to be bored...

    Yep, but Angie Miller's dvd makes you sweat, grunt and swear softly now and then, AND keeps you entertained! :bigsmile: :flowerforyou:

    Awesome! Thanks for the input...going to Amazon for pricing lol
  • contingencyplan
    contingencyplan Posts: 3,639 Member
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    In general it is _always_ recommended that women start out with a 15 lb bell. The only people who should go lower are people doing it for physical therapy reasons. The reason being is because kettlebell exercises use COMPOUND MOVEMENTS and you need to be using a weight that forces you to get your whole body into it. If the weight is too light then many of the larger muscle groups, such as the glutes, and hamstrings, don't get involved, and your form ends up suffering. Going too light actually PREVENTS you from being able to use proper form. This is one of the reasons the Jillian Michaels DVD is so heavily criticized and is so injury prone. She recommends using 5-10 lb bells and when going that light it's virtually impossible to main proper form through the various swing exercises, so people end up suffering back injuries doing the program.
  • Goal_Driven
    Goal_Driven Posts: 371 Member
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    Jillian Michaels has a Ripped with Weights DVD and I believe she uses a kettlebell in it. I have tried that one yet though.
  • contingencyplan
    contingencyplan Posts: 3,639 Member
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    Jillian Michaels has a Ripped with Weights DVD and I believe she uses a kettlebell in it. I have tried that one yet though.

    See my post above about it. Her DVD is widely criticized and people are trying to have it removed from the market because the poor form she demonstrates in it and poor advice she gives leads to a lot of injuries.

    iFit, a subsidiary of ICON fitness, the company that owns Weider, was selling a Jillian Michaels adjustable 20 lb kettlebell. Due to the way it's packaged (the geniuses figured it would be a good idea to sit the kettlebell directly on the DVD-genius!) the DVDs are often damaged right out of the box and unreadable. I purchased one of these for my dad and when I found out the DVD was ruined I called them to ask for a replacement. They told me that due to liability issues (apparently they didn't know when they initially approached her that she had no formal kettlebell training or certifications) they were unable to replace it with the Jillian Michaels DVD and would instead send me the DVD that comes with the Weider Powerbell, which is conducted by Michael Skogg, a certified kettlebell instructor. Also, the iFit adjustable kettlebell is currently being rebranded and will no longer have JM's name on it. Apparently a lot of people hurt themselves following along with the DVD.
  • jessifreehugs
    jessifreehugs Posts: 81 Member
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    I enjoyed the Kettleworx DVD's.... I got them from a friend so I'm not sure how much they are. I tried the Jillian Michaels DVD but much preffered Kettleworx. You could also try youtube?

    I'd love to try these...they're just way out of my price range :cry:
  • jessifreehugs
    jessifreehugs Posts: 81 Member
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    In general it is _always_ recommended that women start out with a 15 lb bell. The only people who should go lower are people doing it for physical therapy reasons. The reason being is because kettlebell exercises use COMPOUND MOVEMENTS and you need to be using a weight that forces you to get your whole body into it. If the weight is too light then many of the larger muscle groups, such as the glutes, and hamstrings, don't get involved, and your form ends up suffering. Going too light actually PREVENTS you from being able to use proper form. This is one of the reasons the Jillian Michaels DVD is so heavily criticized and is so injury prone. She recommends using 5-10 lb bells and when going that light it's virtually impossible to main proper form through the various swing exercises, so people end up suffering back injuries doing the program.

    Thanks for this! I'm definitely getting a 15 pound bell then. I know it will be a workout...but that's the point right?
  • contingencyplan
    contingencyplan Posts: 3,639 Member
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    In general it is _always_ recommended that women start out with a 15 lb bell. The only people who should go lower are people doing it for physical therapy reasons. The reason being is because kettlebell exercises use COMPOUND MOVEMENTS and you need to be using a weight that forces you to get your whole body into it. If the weight is too light then many of the larger muscle groups, such as the glutes, and hamstrings, don't get involved, and your form ends up suffering. Going too light actually PREVENTS you from being able to use proper form. This is one of the reasons the Jillian Michaels DVD is so heavily criticized and is so injury prone. She recommends using 5-10 lb bells and when going that light it's virtually impossible to main proper form through the various swing exercises, so people end up suffering back injuries doing the program.

    Thanks for this! I'm definitely getting a 15 pound bell then. I know it will be a workout...but that's the point right?

    Yup!

    EDIT: Just remember that with kettlebell training all exercises for the most part are powered by lower body movements, so you need to be working with a weight heavy enough to challenge your LOWER BODY muscles, the strongest muscles in your body. Too many people make the mistake of gauging the weight of the bell on their UPPER BODY strength because they don't understand this fact, which leads to getting a bell that is too light, which in turn leads to poor form.
  • ItsCasey
    ItsCasey Posts: 4,022 Member
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    Do not use a Jillian Michaels DVD for kettlebells. She is not a certified kettlebell trainer, and her form sucks.

    If you can't afford DVDs or to hire a certified instructor (even just for one session to learn the very basics), three great YouTube channels to check out:

    Neghar Fonooni - http://www.youtube.com/user/negf03

    Lauren Brooks - http://www.youtube.com/user/kbellqueen

    Marianne Kane - http://www.youtube.com/user/Kitty8Tim

    As for weight, it depends on whether you are doing ballistics like swings or grinds like Turkish get-ups or presses. You can go heavier on most ballistics than you can on grinds. I started with 26 lbs (12 kg), but I was in good shape and already lifting weights at the time. I would suggest starting with 18 lbs (8 kg) if you are new to training with more than just tiny dumbbells. It may sound like a lot of weight, but if you are doing the movements correctly, you'll understand why 10 lbs is too light for any healthy woman to be doing swings with.

    On the grinds, start light to learn form, especially with the get-up. You'll find that you can add weight pretty quickly thereafter. I went from a 26 lb get-up to 35 lbs within a month, and I am now using a 44 lb bell as my go-to working kettlebell on get-ups. My ultimate goal was a 1-rep max of 53 lbs on get-ups, but I am already past that. You will amaze yourself by how strong you will get.

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