Kettlebell advice appreciated

Hi. I'm in the UK. Get the Kettleworx series. With a 10lb bell. Don't be tempted to go for the 5lb bell. It's useless. You'll grow out of it, in a week or two. It was about £80, but comes with 10 disks. Incredible programme, your strength increases very quickly and great results. You can always but a cheap 2kg bell off eBay for things you may struggle with. I used the 5lb bell for punches inky for about 2 weeks then moved over to 10lb for everything. It's not like picking a 10lb weight up. Once your swinging it you get momentum and it feels lighter.

First 3 weeks you'll be very sore, push through it after that it gets much easier and it changes your body in a huge way. Cannot recommend it enough. Definitely worth the price tag!

They should give me commission. Lol. X

bump so I can come back and read when Im fully awake

Kettleworx does demonstrate perfect form and he keeps remind sing you. Very important to not sustain injury. I think 10lbs is enough to start with unless your already very strong.

Beware of cheap bells. Your grip on them and how they feel just isn't the same. My friend has cheap ones and I just couldn't use them. I think the kettleworx ones are worth the price tag. X

Hi! I've been swinging kettlebells for a few years now -- I have to take Iron Smasher's side on this. Glad to hear you're not just looking for a modified aerobics class. These things can hurt you, though. May I suggest that, before you buy anything, see if there's an instructor certified by RKC, IKFF, or StrongFirst in your area and try a class or two? Have someone TEACH you to swing, correct your form, help you figure out what KB weight you need, etc., then move forward? I started on my own with Enter the Kettlebell, but when I had an RKC instructor work with me, I progressed a lot faster!

(Disclaimer: I am not an RKC instructor).

Best of luck -- kettlebells are great!

base kettlebells on ebay are by far the cheapest bells in the Uk as far as i'm aware.

I have a 24kg and the quality is decent, handle is thicker than a competition bell from wolvestons or such like but then you are paying probably 3 times the price for one of those, no point for a beginner imo.

Thanks for the reply IronSmasher, and company suggestions.

I'm totally new to the concept of kettlebells so am looking for ideas. There are no local classes to me so I will need to find a dvd for home workouts. I've been reading reviews of dvds (admittedly primarily on Amazon) but am already picking up conflicting advice on what weights to start with - some say minimum of 8kg for a woman, others suggest much less. Hence the confusion.

I'd rather not be doing what is essentially an aerobics class where kettlebell/s are being substituted for other weights.

I'll be a total beginner, so I'm looking for something to demonstrate safe form, and start to build strength and endurance.

Ah, I missed this post.

Yeah, I had a friend recovering from anorexia that I started off with a 8kg 'bell. My little sister, who worked at a stables and has lifted before, I got a 12kg competition 'bell for her first.

The confusion does indeed come about from the typical case of trainers just picking up a piece of equipment that has got a 'buzz' surrounding it, and just doing their own thing with it. They water it down to make sure it has mass appeal, minimum difficulty, and unfortunately minimal results.

I understand (same as you I assume) the place and effectiveness of exercise classes where they do aerobics with varying props, but they really need to stop robbing people by pretending it is something that it is not.

I know Argos do them. They might even do a deal if you check randomly.

Please warn the staff before they try to take the 'little' box off of the shelf!

I've not really seen any that meet my approval. To fill a whole dvd, they have to get kind of fancy, and they start to go down the same route of having 100 exercises.

I'd recommend you out some of the videos and articles in link I posted earlier, get yourself a good book by a RKC instructor, and start practising your 'face the wall squats' and turkish get ups. You don't need a kettlebell for those.

Let me be the first to say there is nothing magical about kettlebells, and the majority of exercises have their dumbbell equivalent. I know it's tempting, but you don't need to spend money on a kettlebell right now, and you can wait until you can make your own informed choice. The alternative is to get one that's too light, or hurt yourself with the right size.

Seconding Iron Smasher (or thirding nanook)here on staying away from Kettleworx. I borrowed a DVD thinking that perhaps it would get my wife started. It's a joke, just an updated version of the workouts with 2 lb dumbbells.

YouTube has some great videos - just make sure they're from someone with RKC certification.

As for a workout, try http://breakingmuscle.com/workout-of-the-day - they have an RKC workout of the day posted twice a week. You'll have to learn the exercises somewhere else, though.