The kettlebell workout is one new fitness trend that has actually been around since the turn of the last century -- in czarist Russia, to be exact. The cast-iron ball with an easy grip -- think a cannonball with a handle -- is a low-tech comer finding new popularity with hard-core lifters and other fitness enthusiasts.

Andrea Rippe, a trainer at the Sport and Health Club in Reston, uses kettlebells herself and with several clients. "I like them because they're so old school; it's a retro-style throwback that really gives you an efficient full-body workout." A few other gyms have shown interest, but for now most individual enthusiasts have to buy the bells on their own through masters like Pavel Tsatsouline.

Tsatsouline -- whose grueling kettlebell workouts have earned him the nickname "The Evil Russian" -- traces the girya, or kettlebell, to strongman competitions in pre-revolutionary Russia. "Kettlebells were used . . . to give that extra edge in strength and endurance training," says Tsatsouline. "Back in czarist times, a strongman or weight lifter was called a girevik, or kettlebell man." More recently, the bells were used in training by Soviet Olympians and members of the Spetznaz, the Soviet equivalent of U.S. Special Forces.

Tsatsouline, a former Spetznaz instructor who now trains SWAT and special police response teams in Texas, New Mexico and Washington state, is the author of "The Russian Kettlebell Challenge: Xtreme Fitness for Hard-Living Comrades" and a one-man kettlebell industry. The Evil One's books, videos and kettlebells, as well as training tips and a list of certified trainers, are distributed through the Web site www.dragondoor.com.

Kettlebells come in a variety of "poods," an old Russian measure of weight; one pood equals about 16 kilos, or about 35 pounds. Kettlebells designed for women come in quarter-pood and half-pood sizes and sell for $90 to $100. The next size is 1.5 poods, followed by 2- and 2.5-pood models, which cost up to $140.

Many of the exercises that Tsatsouline outlines in his books and videos are familiar from conventional weight training: dead lifts (in which you lift a weight from the ground, keeping your back straight and head up), clean-and-jerks (in which you explode up from a squat position) and military presses (in which you press the weight overhead from a seated position). Others, such as the windmill, the one-arm swing and the Turkish "Get-Up!" -- in which you start on your back, holding the bell above you, and slowly get up, still holding the ball above your head -- are not.

"It's the momentum," explains Gunnery Sgt. James A. Coleman, chief instructor at the Marine Corps Martial Arts Center of Excellence at Quantico. "There are more muscles involved in balance and leverage with the kettlebell; you work every muscle just keeping them up."

The 34-year-old career Marine, a powerlifter who has set four U.S. armed forces records, says he has seen a big difference since introducing kettlebells into his training: "Everything has jumped up: my power -- I've increased my squats by 100 pounds -- and my endurance has more than doubled. It's easy to see why they're popular here at the center."

A caveat: Swinging a 53-pound cannonball-shaped weight over your head can be a hazardous proposition. Rippe, who advises novices to consult with a trainer before trying them, uses her own checklist to see if clients are kettlebell-worthy; to qualify, they must be able to perform basic pull-ups and dead lifts, have good core and lower back strength and possess good coordination.

Walt Thompson, a professor of kinesiology and health at Georgia State University in Atlanta and a fellow with the American College of Sports Medicine, advises caution. "I can see the appeal," says Thompson. "But ouch! These weights are clearly for those with a good sense of balance and coordination. Otherwise, I'd advise a helmet. This would take a high level of fitness at the start."

-- Wendi Kaufman
© 2002 The Washington Post Company

"The Russian Kettlebell Challenge video isn’t your run-of-the-mill advice. Pavel’s on-camera presentation is done in an articulate and refreshing manner seldom seen these days. I learned at least a dozen new things. I marveled at the matchless ease he demonstrated while doing many of the one arm lifts with a 97 lb kettlebell. The Russian Kettlebell Challenge video is excellent!"

-Dennis B. Weiss, author of Mass!, Raw Muscle & Anabolic Muscle Mass

"Author Pavel Tsatsouline presents a masterful treatise on a superb old time training tool and the unique exercises that yielded true strength and endurance to the rugged pioneers of the iron game. Proven infinately more efficient than any fancy modern exercise apparatus, the kettlebell via Pavel's recommendations is adaptible to numerous high and low rep schemes to offer any strength athlete, bodybuilder, martial artist , or sports competitor a superior training regimen. The book provides much insight from kettlebell routines of the world's strongest all-time athletes and incentive for any person to develop his own applications. As a former International General Secretary of the International All-Round Weightlifting Association, I not only urge all athletes to study Mr. Tsatsouline's book and try these wonderful all-round kettlebell movements, but plan to recommend that many kettlebell lifts again become part of our competitions!"

-JOHN McKEAN
Past International General Secretary I.A.W.A.
U.S.A.W.A. Hall of Famer
Current IAWA world and national middleweight champion
Certified Instructor - American Combatives Association

Some thoughts on Kettlebell (KB) training and Infantry fitness.

I just finished Annual Training (AT) with the National Guard Light Infantry unit to which I am assigned. We spent 6 days in the field doing Search and Attack missions. Not as long and grueling as most of the field problems we did when I was on active duty, but a pretty good test nonetheless.

Daily movements were dismounted and fairly long. I found I was as tired as usual during movement, but my recovery time was much shorter when we stopped for a break. I "caught my second wind" in about half the time I used to.

When we made contact and began rushing or crawling, my movements were faster than before I started with the KBs. As before, I was able to shorten the time between rushes because my recovery time was quicker. I attribute this to many sets of high rep, one arm snatches. I figured that short bursts of intense activity with short rest periods in between would closely mimic dismounted movement and 3-5 second rushes. Seems I was right.

This led to some problems, as I ran off and left the platoon.

Most interesting was the ability to absorb repeated impacts. The shock absorption effect of KB training was demonstrated when I hit the ground. There was none of the usual jarring and crunching associated with hitting, crawling and rolling. While I had the usual number of bruises, I had no soreness or stiffness, even after 5 nights of sleeping on the ground. (I’m too lazy to carry the sleeping mat.)

After we redeployed and I got home, I grabbed the KB’s and started in. I only lost one rep off each set (I usually do 3-4 sets of 3-5 reps) but had no trouble completing my workout. I lost nothing on the one arm snatches, but because we had been wet for so long, my hands had softened so much I couldn’t complete the cleans. I had no trouble pulling the weight; I was just shredding my hands. My muscle tone was undiminished, proving Pavel’s contention that this muscle is "real" not "virtual," pumped up fluff.

Best of all was grinding a bunch of buffed 20-year-olds into the ground. At 37, I was the third oldest guy in the platoon and am in better shape that I was at 27, on active duty. We really need to keep doing this.

—Randy Bartlett, former active duty Army Infantry Officer,
currently employed as an Instructor with Wackenhut Services, Inc.
under contract to a federal agency.
Currently assigned to C Company, 1/153D Infantry.
Randy is a Master Fitness Trainer and a former SWAT Officer

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