Step Away

Christine Uberti

TRAINING TIP 051130:

this is a detritus article

Step AWAY from the kettlebell:

Pretend that’s been uttered by a cop through a megaphone.
Kettlebells require focus and respect. If you have ever learned to shoot a gun, you know that a gun requires focus, respect and breath control. Know that you must use your brain and your intelligence to shoot a gun – and I am talking about target practice.
Never contest for space with a kettlebell. Never swing a kettlebell when your kids and pets are under foot. Never take your eyes off the bell during an intense overhead move. Never look into the sun when using a kettlebell. If you do and someone gets hurt – then your bad.
I see too many people zone out during the course of their days. I see kids behind the counter at Rite Aid, barely able to count out change, allowing their brains to turn to mush. I see little children on the subway being told to sit motionless, without a toy or a game to stimulate their incredible, plastic minds. I see grown adults with jobs who can’t focus enough to repeat my last name correctly. I see people stopping at the top of the escalator and WAITING, totally unaware that there are 50 people behind them, ready to be squashed.
If you are one of these people and you have no interest in changing your ways, then please, do not pick up a kettlebell. Please, sit in the leg press and do your crossword puzzle. Lie down on a mat with your iPod and read your Glamour mag while doing leg lifts. Stay away from the kettlebell.
However…
If you are interested in the exercise of the mind as well as the body, then I hope you can appreciate the focus required of kettlebell work. To build real, quality strength (and I don’t mean bulk – that’s for the machines) you need to pay attention to the form of the lift. You must feel your muscles working, listen to your body. Don’t train to failure (that is mindless), feel when your form is not at its best. Then stop, walk around, allow the lactic acid to dissipate. Pay attention to your body and wait until you are fresh again. Know what it feels like when you are recovered enough to start the next lift.
Kettlebells are not rocket science, but they do require you to use your mind. And that is something that seems to be out of style here in the big city. I hope I am wrong about that. I know you are out there!
Any comments/questions, feel free to drop me a line.
For more information on this subject, I encourage you to read: “The Marching Morons” by Cyril M. Kornbluth, 1951. [Make this the link. Here is the URL: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Marching_Morons]

Christine Uberti is a clinical research consultant, musician and writer. She is a certified kettlebell instructor through Pavel Tsatsouline and Dragon Door and has a CSCS certification through the NSCA. Christine studied yoga and pranayama with Swami Yogiraj V. Subrahmanya Bua for 8 years. www.refinedclinicalresearch.com