Kettlebells for Full Body Conditioning

Kettlebells have gained much popularity and sparked the interest of many fitness enthusiasts as of late. However, the Kettlebell, which originates from Russia, has been a training tool used since the turn of the century to develop full body conditioning and fitness. There is no other tool that does it better.

The Kettlebell is a cast iron weight that looks like a cannonball with handles. It comes in ‘poods’, which is an old Russian measure of weight which equals 16kg (roughly 35 lbs.). An average man should begin with a 35-pounder, while an average woman should begin with an 18-pounder. These weights may not sound like a lot, but in its use, they feel a lot heavier than they should. Most men will progress to a 53-pounder, while women advance to a 26-pounder.

The benefits of Kettlebells in your fitness program or athletic training are numerous and diverse. Regardless of the reason a person trains with Kettlebells (to lose weight, get stronger, develop a toned body or to improve or enhance athletic performance), the Kettlebell workout provides the body with a challenge that will engage multiple muscle groups at once. This forces the entire body, specifically the core, to contract as a group, building both strength and stability at the same time.

Below are a few other key benefits to training with Kettlebells:

Full body conditioning - the body learns to work as an integrated unit (linkage)
Big results despite spending less time in the gym
Increased resistance to injury
Work multiple energy systems simultaneously - aerobic and anaerobic
Improved flexibility, mobility and range of motion
Increased strength without increased mass
Learning how to produce AND reduce force
Enhanced performance in athletics/sports and everyday functioning
Decreased body fat
Decreased stress
Increased energy levels
Increased endurance

When training with Kettlebells, it is important that you maintain proper posture. You must avoid an excessively rounded spine and shrugged shoulders. Do NOT let the knee track over the toes frontally, laterally or medially. Regarding its movement, keep your motions smooth, controlled and performed with intent. Gradually increase your weight, volume and intensity. Failure to follow these guidelines WILL lead to injury and/or over-training.

If you want to maximize your Kettlebell workout and get personal instruction of proper technique and form of the Kettlebell exercises, find a Certified Kettlebell Trainer (CKT) to instruct you.

Michelle is an IKFF Certified Kettlebell Trainer, with 11 years of experience in the field, available to work with you and get you started in learning the skill of training with Kettlebells. Let 2010 be the year you have your body fully conditioned and performing at an optimal level with PBP Fitness!

Passion Quote

My goal has always been to help people help themselves. Your body is your most priceless possession; you've got to take care of it! - Jack Lalanne

Passion Quote

"I do the very best I know how - the very best I can; and mean to keep doing so until the end. If the end brings me out all right, what is said against me won't amount to anything."

Abraham Lincoln
1809-1865, Sixteenth President of the United States

Passion Quote

"Get to the Top!"

"I do not know anyone who has got to the top without hard work. That is the recipe. It will not always get you to the top, but should get you pretty near."

Margaret Thatcher
Former Prime Minister of England

DON'T EXERCISE TODAY! You don't have enough time!"

"Not enough time."

Be honest with yourself. You probably have time, but don't want to set some aside for your exercise, for your health. How long will you keep selling yourself the excuse that you don't have time to take care of yourself?

What concerns me is that you know by not making time you are passing up the great benefits of exercise, such as more energy, a strong heart, strong bones, strong immune system, improved circulation, better metabolization of fat, an outlet for stress, a fulfilling sex life, lowered cholesterol levels, good posture, the ability to eat foods you enjoy, a good night's sleep, self-confidence, a firm and toned body, and a positive outlook on life. You know this, so why "no time"?

Take an honest look at your daily life and see what you find more important than your health. Visualize yourself in the future and answer this honestly, could you afford to not take care of your health today? NOW? If you don't have your health, you may not be able to do or enjoy those other important things taking up your time.

You say you don't have enough time, but you have time to schedule a lunch date, surf the Internet, catch the nightly newscast, shop at the malls, meet friends or co-workers for "Happy Hour" or a night on the town, or watch a movie with a friend. Why not make it an "exercise date" and DO an activity while you chat? I drove by two women, that I know for a fact to be very busy, out with their dogs walking around a golf course and waved them down to say I was proud to see them out. They were my clients, hard at work making time to exercise together on their own, separate from a scheduled appointment with me.

Schedule your workouts just as you schedule everything else. If you have to get up at 6:00 a.m. instead of 7:00 a.m. to catch a brisk walk or exercise with weights, do it. A woman who has never been a morning person said, "I can't believe people don't make the time to do this more. It is such a small part of my day. I just finished 30 minutes of cardio and now I have the entire day to do everything else. I'm so glad I've made this time." She couldn't have said it better, "made this time".

A very busy couple realizes the importance of their health and consistently schedules their workouts, at least three times a week with a trainer (yes, me) and daily on their own. They have said, "If we didn't write it down and block that time to exercise, we wouldn't do it." It's that important to them that they schedule other things around their exercise (their health) time.

Another woman has been so dedicated to achieving her fitness goals that she completely drops her work in the middle of very busy days and exercises for 30 to 90 minutes, dependent on what is scheduled to do be done that day. She realizes that exercise is an extremely powerful tool to help get her through stressful periods. As a reward for her dedication and discipline, she surpassed her initial fitness goals!

Another woman called me with a very hectic day planned on a day she was scheduled to workout and said, "I'm not canceling today. I'm keeping you in the book. I'm making the time for you." I'm sure she meant to say "for her". Her commitment has caused her pants to loosen in its fit.

And another woman has said to me several times that if I were not meeting her, she would not be exercising that day because she had so much to do. This same person, an avid swimmer and cyclist, also admitted to not wanting to exercise on a day she had scheduled a time to meet me, yet once I arrived she was glad I was there.

Not to shock you, but I recently called a friend to ask her to go on a hike because I needed the accountability to exercise on a day I was busy working from home and would have gladly stayed home because it was too cold outside. If I did not do that, I would not have worked out that day. (Yes, personal trainers sometimes struggle with making time too. I'm sure you've seen those out of shape trainers in the gym.)

There are many more extremely busy people that are an inspiration because they continue to make time for their health by staying committed to scheduling their exercise. The common denominator is they schedule it and reschedule it if there is a time conflict. They make the time.

Time constraints should not be an excuse to skip workouts. Schedule it as you would an important business meeting. Think of your daily workout as a date or a party you wouldn't want to miss out on if that helps you stay committed. When you're writing down the next holiday event, take the time to write down your exercise event for that day too. Write it down. Put it in pen in your calendar. If that doesn't work, hire a personal trainer to hold you accountable to it. Once that happens, a good personal trainer will check to see what you are doing to exercise on your own and will say they missed you if you miss a workout with them. There is more value to making time and keeping it when you have to pay for it.

You have the choice to make the time to take care of your health and of yourself. Do it today and start improving the quality of your life NOW!

"Yes! You CAN!"

~Michelle

Your Chance To Make A Difference

Cardiovascular Disease Foundation 5K Walk For Life & Free Health Fair

On February 25, 2007 in Carlsbad (North County San Diego), CA.

FUN FAMILY EVENT! HEALTH SCREENINGS! HEALTHY FOOD! MUSIC! ENTERTAINMENT! GREAT PRIZES! KIDS FINGERPRINTING!

FACEPAINTING! KIDS MEDALS!

Warm up with a light aerobic work-out. Then join Carlsbad Mayor "Bud" Lewis for a walk along the beach to fight heart disease and stroke, while taking in the beautiful coastal scenery of Carlsbad!



Register or make a donation online to Walk For Life today.

Cardiovascular Disease Foundation's mission is to lessen human suffering from cardiovascular diseases and improve the quality of life for its people through prevention, research and education.

The Cardiovascular Disease Foundation was established in order to help people benefit from the great strides made in the treatment, detection and prevention of cardiac and vascular diseases. With your help, we will beat heart disease.

~Exercise Your Passion For Life!

Know Your Heart

Did you watch the Super Bowl this weekend? If you did, one of the commercials provided a visual of how high cholesterol, hypertension, diabetes and being overweight "beats-up" the unsuspecting human heart. It's not a very emotionally powerful visual, but it does cause one to stop and think about their heart....least I hope it did.

Remember, many people at risk for heart disease go undetected because hypertension provides no symptoms to the person who has it. A physically fit looking person could very well suffer from hypertension and be at risk and not know it.

Click on the photo below and you can learn more about your risks, or the risks of those you care about, for a heart attack.



In addition to knowing your risks, here are other ways to reduce your risks of heart disease:

Get active. Many of us lead sedentary lives, exercising infrequently or not at all. People who don't exercise have higher rates of circulatory disease and death compared to people who perform even mild to moderate amounts of physical activity. Even leisure-time activities like gardening or walking can lower your risk of heart disease.

Eat right. Eat a heart-healthy diet low in fat and cholesterol. Try to increase the amounts of vitamins you eat, especially antioxidants, which have been proven to lower your risk for heart disease.

~Exercise Your Passion For Life!