Lorna Kleidman - Body Sculpting with Kettlebells for Women

BODY SCULPTING WITH KETTLEBELLS FOR WOMEN

Text copyright 2009 Lorna Kleidman

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic or otherwise, without written permission from the Publisher.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Kleidman, Lorna.
Body sculpting with kettlebells for women: the complete exercise plan / Lorna Kleidman.
p. cm.
eISBN: 978-1-57826-433-9 1. Weight training. 2. Kettlebells. 3. Physical fitness for women. I. Title.
GV546.K55 2009
613.7045dc22

2009022189

Cover Design by Nick Macagnone
Interior Design by Nick Macagnone
Photography by Catarina Astrom

DISCLAIMER

Consult your physician before beginning any exercise program. The author and publisher of this book and workout disclaim any liability, personal or professional, resulting from the misapplication of any of the training procedures described in this publication.

v3.1

For my Mom, Phyllis.

Many thanks to Daniela Denaro
for her participation as a model.

My unending gratitude to those who have
always brought out the best and continue
to inspire meAdam Cronin, Michelle Khai,
Larry Twohig and, of course, Carl.

As a child growing up in New York, I was far from athletic. Bouts of exercise-induced asthma were practically routine, as much a part of my daily experience as getting out of bed. My lung capacity was so weak that I was unable to keep up with friends and classmates when playing basketball, volleyball or simply running around during tag at recess. After a few minutes into any game, I would be predictably hunched over, struggling to catch my breath as I watched my teammates continue to play without me. Unfortunately, that was simply the norm for me when it came to recreational activities. I just did what I could.

Yet, although my participation time was often limited, I actually enjoyed scholastic sports. I would not be dissuaded from playing with my friends or being active. The way I saw it, I simply had no choice. Still, it would take decades before I developed any kind of physical stamina.

At age fourteen, I began to study dance. Soon, I was thriving. The format of the classes enabled me to catch my breath while the teacher demonstrated new steps. My love affair with dance lasted for years and helped me navigate the awkward teen years. Although it was thrilling to perform in professional musicals, I knew theater would not be the right long-term career choice for me.

In 1991 I obtained a license in massage therapy. I immediately began to build a thriving private practice while continuing my education by studying many forms of bodywork including ART (Active Release Technique), an innovative form of soft tissue therapy used by athletes and non-athletes alike.

With my dance shoes now in the back of the closet, I joined a local gym, yearning to get back into some form of regular physical activity. At that point, most of my time was spent with free weights and machines, yet I was frequently fascinated by the sight of the drenched, gloriously exhausted aerobics-class participants exiting the fitness studio each day. Finally, thoroughly bored with the monotony of the weight machines, I gave the class a try.

It turned out that high-impact aerobics, with its fast and continuous pace, was a revelation for me. The classes were at once inspiring and humbling, since each day I would have to stop every 3 or 4 minutes to use my asthma inhaler and catch my breath.

I relegated myself to the back of the studio for much of the first year because I could not keep up with women twice my age. Yet the classs energy, pulsating music and motivation of the instructor fueled my desire to try to keep up with the other participants and motivated me to return to the class 3 days per week.

A full year passed before I was finally able to make it through the hour of aerobics class without stopping. Little did I know that this was to be my first step on the road to overcoming life-long debilitating asthma and becoming a competitive athlete. Encouraged by this first real glimmer of my physical potential, I challenged myself further by enrolling in step classes, kickboxing and traditional boxing training. I had always enjoyed exercise, but now that my lungs were able to keep up with the rest of my body, there was no stopping me. Gradually, over a five-year period, I was able to perform as well as my gym peers for the first time in my life.

Until the day in 2005 when I first picked up a kettlebell, I thought I had formulated the perfect exercise regimen of weight training, cardio and conditioning. I had a very specific weekly routine that I was devoted to. However, the reality that I soon discovered was that my fitness regimen was in control of me.

I had become the typical fitness-class junkie, working out two hours each weekday and four hours every Saturday. I was painfully afraid of gaining weight or losing the conditioning I had worked so hard for. I resented any obligation or social plans that might take me away from my routine. Thinking that my way was the only way to stay fit, I never could have imagined that there was an effective way to work out that didnt require hours and days in the gym. Everything about my life was to change the day I picked up a kettlebell.

In 2005, I moved to South Florida, where I treated myself to a personal training session at a local gym. Interestingly, the person I chose just happened to specialize in kettlebell training. By this time, I had participated in some very demanding workout classes and was very familiar with using weights, but the challenge posed by the kettlebell took me completely by surprise.

The first thing I noticed was the speed at which my heart rate increased within the first few minutes of learning the kettlebell swing, getting my cardio fired up early in the workout.

Immediately hooked on this new fitness tool, I quickly shifted the focus of my workouts to learning and practicing the skills of kettlebell movements. Within a couple of weeks, I experienced something I had never felt before: as I moved, I could actually feel the deepest layer muscles of my spine and abdominal region. These are muscles I had only known of through schematics in massage therapy manuals, but now they were becoming awakened, as I experienced the differences between muscles of movement and muscles of stabilization. These kettlebell workouts were recruiting the deepest levels of muscle, tendons and ligaments and it felt incredible!

These were results I could not only feel, but could also see! My physique was becoming leaner and more defined than ever before, heavier weights were easier to lift and my jumping ability had become more explosive and easier, without jumping (plyometrics) as an integral part of my kettlebell training. Most importantly, my lung capacity was becoming less of an issue and my overall endurance was increasing. Finally, the act of breathing, a primary hindrance since childhood, was coming naturally to me and I didnt have to scramble to use my inhaler every few minutes. I experienced the glory of being winded as opposed to struggling to breathe at all.