I've jumped on the kettlebell band wagon - thanks chicks! Even though I love lifting and resistance exercises I never really thought about kettlebells until I saw all the posts about them. I got a 15lb (random clearance item) and love it (left arm stop lagging behind right arm). Totally looking to add a 20lb or higher -- the 15 is just too light for two-handed lifts!

Are kettlebells better than dumbells? Is a claw hammer better than a sledge hammer?

Kettlebells are not better or worse than dumbells. They are both useful but different tools. While many exercises can be done using either tool, where the handle is in relation to the weight changes both the lever arm and the ability to control the weight, so one may be more desirable than the other at any moment depending upon what you are looking for at the moment as the change in lever arm and/or control can be an advantage or a disadvantage depending upon the circumstance.

I love to utilize kettlebells in my workouts and I use kettlebells at minimum of twice per week. I like the challenge to control the weight during a snatch. I also, in a sick way, like how the KB and my wrist tell me, when I do a snatch horribly wrong. However, I also use dumbells in my workouts as well.

Thank you soo much! I had no idea Jillian had poor technique! I love Jillian and her workouts are helping me lose weight and my clothes fit better, but I want to learn properly. Of course I now have to go and see if I can find those demo's of hers on the net!

I've read alot of excellent reviews of The Kettlebell Goddess! I definately will get that one. What do you ladies think of the book "Enter the Kettlebell..." by Pavel? I want to learn proper from and technique but also HOW to put together my own routines.

Love it! I've read excerpts and it's on my Christmas list. If I could get ETK into 100 middle schools in the poorest part of our country, I could save our future global competitiveness, not to mention the health of at least 1000 kids.

Are you on Twitter? There are several notable women in my "Kettlebell Buddies" list that Tweet. They have been a stronger motivator and more instant form of encouragement and technique clarification than any of my other resources [except of course for my singularly qualified Z-Health/RKC instructor, Jen Waak of Move Fit Fun (dot) com].

Many of them are doing ETK by the week and Tweet about it. We're an elite group of women lifters (still feels funny to include myself in the group at a weight of 306 lbs). I believe that there are only a few thousand RKC certified instructors on the whole planet and originally they were primarily men who were military elite forces, power lifters, martial artists, fire fighters, police, corrections officers, etc. Now that a few women have come into the program the best kept secret of high performance body acquisition is spreading all over the country and, indeed, around the world.

My daughter plans to be the youngest female RKC and is already training (with her stuffies in hand) at age 4. I use Pavel's body weight ideas that have filtered down to me while I've been in the R-Phase of my Z-Health drills: Rehabilitation, Restoration, Re-Education from a lifetime of injuries and imbalances. As my strength and stability improve, I'll be starting the ETK program and Tweeting/posting my progress here daily. If you wind up getting into ETK, let me know and we can start an ETK forum for the week by week program.

One thing that I've found learning the TGU, or Turkish Getup, is that it is an amazing diagnostic tool for what one needs in one's routine. You'll be amazed. I could go on like this for hours but I have to get my belly fat melting sleep so that I can have the most effective workout tomorrow. Yay!

Stay Strong,
RW

Thanks RW! I'm planning on buying a kettlebell in January(maybe I can get a bit of sale price for the "new year new you", but gotta save up $$$ anyway). The goddess dvd is going on my christmas list and ETK will be my christmas gift to myself. I'll let you know when I start. I'm not on twitter (actually it's amazing that I get on here somedays) but a forum on here for ETK for weekly posting sounds perfect.

Kettlebells have struck me as both pricey and the best investment that I can make in my lifelong wellness right now.

I don't have enough to pay my RKC instructor due to being out of work for over a year. Heck this is the 2nd year in a row that I won't be able to afford a turkey for my daughter and I for Thanksgiving. Two years without turkey and leftover turkey sandwiches is depressing but maybe we'll find a sale on them afterward. I have been getting us fed with help from food banks but with the demand for food amongst the staggering numbers of newly unemployed, there will be no turkeys for a lot of people this year. I'm just grateful we have healthy food to eat.

My trainer is going to let me get my first Kettlebell from her and it amounts to whatever Dragon Door is charging without the shipping. I've only gotten to work with them part of one hour per week since June. At home I'm using my instructor's old dumbbells, very helpful but just not the same. I know that when I get my own I will want to pick it up daily. I asked and she's letting me run a tab with her and get the bell anyway. To earn the credit to get it, I have to weigh-in under 300 pounds. She's awesome.

Sometime in the next few weeks, I'll hit that 299 or less mark and I'll get my very first Kettlebell. I'll ask her if she has a copy of ETK that I can borrow and also check my local library. I'm so excited by the changes taking place in my body and abilities. I trust that one day soon things will change and I will get to pay my bills with my head held high and not in fear of what the consequences will be. I keep lifting, I keep praying, I keep eating as best I can, QUIT is not in my vocabulary. It's got to get better eventually.

Looking forward to the New Year and our new ETK forum once we've both got books.

Have a great weekend,
RW

Probably just using the GoFit manual was a bad idea but I totally flunked the turkish getup with my 15lb kettlebell. Just awful. I'll be practicing the motion without weight, for now.

The TGU is an amazing diagnostic for how our bodies are/aren't functioning. I believe in the RKC, they start people doing the TGU with a flip flop or a sport shoe. If you are slow and careful and listen to your body, you'll be doing the TGU with 12 kg/26 lbs in no time.

There is no shame in where we begin from, it's a starting place, that's all. From there we can reach the stars if we believe we can. I believe.

Stay Strong,
RW

I am so excited to find this thread but I am late to the party. I have been doing kettlebells since Aug. 2009 and it has done some amazing things for me. My bp meds have been cut in half, no longer prediabetic, lost about 20-25 inches.......It is amazing. The problem I am having is that I can't lose any actual weight. And, after each workout I get ridiculously hungry. So, my question is does anyone follow a certain diet while doing kettlebells that also helps with weight loss?? Any help you can provide would be greatly appreciated. I am desperate to get out of the 300lbs range. thanks!!!!

I am completely in love with kettlebells!!!.. I've been at it about 6 weeks... I started out with a 5 pounder, just because I had no idea of how it would feel to use one & whether or not I could control a heavier one... it didn't take me long to graduate to a 10 pounder & now it's starting to feel too light for some moves... I still use the 5 lb. to warm up & cool down, but it doesn't give me the workout the heavier kb does... I've already noticed my upper arms losing that hangy-down appearance & my belly & my horrible back fat are shrinking too... most noticeable & most surprising is my double chin is shrinking & my face is getting thinner... so I know the kb is giving me a good cardio workout, because that's the only thing where I notice it in my face...

Thanks for this thread & all the good info & advice...
Hugs...

Sorry I've been absent from the party. Lost laptop reliability and Internet access for awhile. April should be better. If you've lost over 20 inches then you most definitely have lost weight. The single most important measurement is often thought to be that of your waist. If your waist is getting smaller, even 1/4" per month, then you're doing great. I usually only lose a little in my waist each month. Last month was unusual in that I lost 2" and 9.5 lbs. in February. We're gaining ridiculous amounts of muscles and functionality as we lift/swing/punch our Kettlebells. If you gain 3 lbs. of muscle and lose 3 lbs. of fat, the scale will show NO LOSS but your waist will still be significantly smaller. Eventually your metabolism will simmer up to a rolling boil and melt off all the unnecessary fat leaving you with a healthy, fit body full of functional muscle. Just keep measuring head to toe for the fun of it and keep up the good work.

As for nutrition, there are so many different good ways to nurture our bodies and I am a a firm believer that you have to find the way that works for your body. Some Kettlebell enthusiasts are also into Paleo nutrition also known as the Warrior Diet. Some like eating gluten free or grain free high protein diets. Some, like me blend the best of many programs to come up with an individualized approach that addresses their own needs.

I like the Schwarzbein Program, The Belly Fat Cure and tracking at Live Strong (dot) com. I don't subscribe to calorie restriction or counting but like tracking to see if I'm getting enough veggies often enough and whether I'm eating frequently enough. Without a functioning computer, I've not been able to track my intake and it has slowed down my pace at melting off fat.

Still gaining muscle and melting inches so I'm good even without tracking. I'm drinking a lot more water than 8 cups a day according to water intake for fat loss research. Mostly I'm living in a place of sensible choices, playful activity and self-love. My life is shifting to a place of peaceful nurture of my body, my dreams and my goals. Life is sweet.

Stay Strong,
ResilientWoman

RW-so frustrated, I just wrote you a long reply and it got lost in the cyber graveyard....
Anyway, thank you for responding to my post. I have been losing inches consistently and your feedback really helped. thank you !
I just started trying to do more of a paleo diet (called perfect 10 diet) and I will see how that works.
Most of all it is really great to get some advice from an actual kettlebeller. Not everyone I train with takes kettlebells as seriously as you and I seem to so it was great to meet you. Good luck in your journey.
Keep swinging,
Dolly

I started with a 4 kg/9 lb Kettlebell affectionately known as a 'doorstop' and have finally gotten my very own 12 kg/26 lb 'Real' Kettlebell. I have loved watching my C-section belly flap lift and tighten over the last few months. Having over 200 lbs to lose, I have wondered if I'll need plastic surgery when I'm done. While it's too soon to say, I know that my Kettlebell practice is giving me the best chance of being the most healthy, beautiful, functional me I can be. The only activity that comes even close to burning a similar amount of calories is uphill cross-country skiing. LOL I'll stick with my Kettlebells.

Looked at pics of me giving birth to my daughter in September 2005 the other day and looking at myself in the mirror today, I cannot even reconcile the two images logically. The beautiful woman that has always been just under all the grief, trauma, disease processes and bad habits is being melted free one ounce and one inch at a time. I honestly almost cried this morning looking myself in the eye in the mirror because I never in my life guessed that I was so beautiful. It is my conviction that Kettlebells could set women in this country free, that and good health care, good nutrition and a heaping dose of self-love.

RW, your post is so inspirational... thanks...

Now I want one. But I don't have the money for one right now. Darn.