My New Kettlebell Valentine

At first I thought Mike would be a little jealous that I chose my kettlebell to be my Valentine...but then I saw him buying a card for HIS kettlebell and hugging it, and that's when I knew that all was forgiven. Hee hee. Only kidding about the card.

It's time to tell the story of how our love affair began, just in time for  Valentine's Day. ...I'm still talking about my kettlebell and the workout it gives. When I was teaching for Total Woman for the last 8 years, I was always on the cutting edge of fitness, giving my students what killer sessions they could bear. They were getting the best workout out there, every time they came to my classes, because that's how much work I put into my sessions. I was so pumped and so prepared, other instructors would often mention how much they liked the way I did things. I was also the first instructor in that building to not only teach for 3 hours a week straight, but to offer my students a kettle-style workout. Of course I found out later, that I was doing it all terribly, terribly wrong.

...Okay so I'm exaggerating...a little bit... because when you feel the explosive power of a kettlebell swing, and then you feel the incredible rush of feeling the power course through your veins when you actually get a rep correct for the first time, you finally understand, after years of solid diligence, what it means to throw 50+ pounds of iron through the air. Thing is, you probably didn't even get THAT rep right. All you know, is that you loved trying. I daresay that is a might bit different than any staid, standardized weightlifting workout routine. I almost want to cry, thinking of all the time wasted, not building my body into healthy kettlebell submission. The bell has truly transformed the way my body looks and thinks.

I have to give Mike some credit for my inspiration. We had many talks about the bells, and how we wanted to incorporate them into our lives. Then after a series of discussions, World Gym, our teaching and training home, agreed to buy a set. Once this began, they asked Mike to teach an exclusive kettle class, and proceeded to buy more kettles! We were absolutely stoked!! (Mike more than I, at the time. I didn't know any better!) Once the kettles landed, it was a choice: me or the bell. It was so incredibly difficult that it turned me off, after training hard for several months. I gave up!! But lucky for me, there's nothing like failing to assist you in your greatest achievements, and I think I am, two years later, finding that to be true for me.