Table of Contents
PART 1
Introduction
Have you been discouraged to lift weights or do resistance training due to the fear of becoming big and bulky? Or are you just bored of the gym and not seeing the results you want? Kettlebells for Women is designed for any woman who wants to be strong but not bulky, who wants to lose fat without having to put in hours at the gym. This book will guide you every step of the way and explain why and how you should be using kettlebells to achieve a strong, sculpted, and sexy body in less than 30 minutes, four times a week. Thousands of women are seeing incredible results with the step-by-step programs in this book. Now its your turn!
You may want to know that I wasnt a star athlete as a kid. I was never fully engaged in organized sports since I spent a lot of time shuttling between my fathers house in Los Angeles and my mothers home in Texas. When I finally discovered surfing in high school, I tried to get into the water as much as I could.
It wasnt until I moved to California full time after high school and started surfing almost daily that I realized I wanted to focus on getting my whole body into tip-top shape. Sure, I was active enough to stop myself from getting overweight. However, I had no muscle and was far from toned. I wanted to continue to feel comfortable in a bikini while surfing, so I started working out hard and eventually developed a more muscular build. The process was so enjoyable that I decided to study kinesiology at San Diego State University. I spent my last two years of college as a personal trainer. It felt good to find my true passion.
After graduating college, I continued training clients using the tried-and-true methods to gain lean body mass and lose fat. As the years went by, however, I started losing interest in the long process it took to see results in my clients and even myself. I was sick of being indoors and seeing the machines. All I was seeing with my body was added bulk, and it wasnt helping me much with snowboarding or surfing.
Then I discovered kettlebells! They seriously changed my life. Kettlebell exercises helped freshen up stale routines and, more importantly, produced results more quickly than conventional training methods. I wanted to share the revolutionary and exciting kettlebell exercises with my clients, but the gym I was working for at the time wouldnt let me. The techniques didnt look safe and seemed dangerous. It left me no other choice. I quit and left the gymwith no clients.
I began training on my own and even flew across the country to become certified under Pavel Tsatsouline, the man responsible for popularizing kettlebells in the United States. After implementing the kettlebell methods and a new philosophy, I was more conditioned than Id ever been in my life. My body was leaner, more sculpted, and stronger than ever. I was soon one of the first female kettlebell instructors in the San Diego area. Getting new clients wasnt difficult when people saw how effective my kettlebell training was.
Life couldnt be betterI had transformed my body, had a growing clientele, and I met the love of my life and got married. Then I became pregnant. I was overjoyed but had concerns about exercising with the kettlebells during pregnancy. Are kettlebell exercises safe for my baby? Will I lose my hard-earned six-pack? Thanks to using kettlebells safely during two pregnancies, I was clearly able to keep my strength throughout, and doctors were amazed at my quick recovery. Although I had to have two C-sections due to a breech baby, it still didnt slow me down. I owe it all to training with kettlebells and smart program design. Now its time for you to get the same benefits as thousands of women and men who cant live without them!
A Brief History of Kettlebells
Kettlebells date back almost 300 years, although there are rumors that they could be thousands of years old, perhaps first used by Greek gladiators and athletes. The term girya, which means kettlebell in Russian, first appeared in the Russian dictionary in 1704. These heavy iron balls were used as counterweights in the markets for entertainment. Strongmen would juggle them like a circus act; the men who used these massive hunks of iron showcased unbelievable strength. As kettlebells caught on and spread in the community, they quickly became very popular. Who wouldve thought something so old and primitive would now be making its way into even Grandma Fays house?
In the 1900s, the Russian communityespecially athletes and bodybuilderstrained with kettlebells. Russians valued physical strength and it was quite an honor to be considered a strongman. Kettlebells quickly became a matter of Russian national pride and a symbol of strength. A Russian strongman was referred to as a girevik.
In the 1980s, the Russian track and field team trained with kettlebells and won all the throwing events at the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscowthey were unstoppable. In the military, the Russians used kettlebell exercises for their testing procedures instead of the useless push-up tests that Americans used.
In the late 1990s, Pavel Tsatsouline, a trainer for the Soviet Special Forces, became responsible for popularizing the kettlebell within the United States. Youll see and hear about kettlebells everywhere due to the incredible, rapid results most people who use this tool receive.
WHO USES THEM?
Today, unlike hundreds of years ago, kettlebells are used and enjoyed by the entire spectrum of people: men, women, boys, girls, athletes, martial artists, firefighters, Navy SEALs, celebrities, grandmas, military personnel, surgical rehab patients, and pre- and post-natal women. Because of their endless benefits and easy learning curve, kettlebells are now one of the hottest exercise tools in America. In my career as a fitness instructor, Ive trained people ranging from 11-year-old kids to 85-year-old grandmothers to elite athletes. When I say kettlebells are for everyone, they really, truly are.
I have many documented success stories of people who used my kettlebell workout DVDs and achieved amazing results even though they had scoliosis, multiple sclerosis, diabetes, fibromyalgia, back pain, and more. Youll find these inspirational stories and testimonials on my blog at kbellqueen.blogspot.com and on my website at www.OnTheEdgefitness.com. If you incorporate a smart training program and effective nutrition strategies as well, youll see great results. Make sure to check out some amazing before and after pictures on my website.
FAQ #1:Ive never done any strength training and Im not athletic at all. Are kettlebells the right way to go?
Kettlebell training is one of the best ways to exercise. The foundation drills contain no jarring movements and they teach the body to work together as one unit, which often prevents injury. Through the years, Ive worked with many people whove either had long absences from strength training or are complete beginners. The beauty of kettlebell exercises is that they enforce proper movement patterns that carry over to all exercises and are also beneficial in everyday life. Learn the movement first and then enhance the workout by gradually adding weight. Youll be astonished with the results.
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