Getting Kettlebell Serious

Today I begin an experiment.

An experiment using kettlebells.

I've read and read about how awesome kettlebells are and how they can get you fit. I'm not a fan of running. I'm not a fan of working out in general. I am able to work out, for which I am thankful, but I don't particularly enjoy it. The easier that I can make the workout (less barriers to getting it done), the more likely I am to do it.

I've been reading 4-Hour Body on and off for the last 18 months. I tried the 4-Hour Body diet, and I did well for about a month. But then, after that, I gave up because there were barriers to eating on the plan. Cakes and sweets loomed just around the corner. And my self control? Not too good.

At the beginning of this year, with the plan of starting a family, my husband and I decided to start eating Paleo. At least mostly Paleo, while cutting out most grains and sugar. With a cheat day each week. I needed to lose weight. Well, I NEED to lose weight.

So we signed up for eMeals.com so that I wouldn't have to think about what to each eat evening for dinner. And I have to say that I LOVE eMeals, it's great and streamlines both cooking and going to the grocery store.

And then I hit this wall. I was working out. I was eating Paleo. And yet nothing was changing. Talk about frustration. I would lose about one pound, and then if I looked at a cookie, that pound would come right back.

A really frustrating and confusing part of this whole process was that last week, I didn't workout at all. I didn't modify my eating (so about 50/50 Paleo and regular) and I lost 3.5 lbs! While awesome, that did not motivate me at all to workout!

So today, I started something new. Today, I started working out with a kettlebell doing one move - the kettlebell swing.

Last week, I ordered a 35lb kettlebell from Amazon. I had tried out different sizes of kettlebells at Dick's Sport Authority to get an idea of what size I should get. I had read that I should purchase a kettlebell that I could grow into. I tried a couple - 20lbs, 25lbs, 30lbs, and 35lbs. 35lbs was the best for me to work into. I could swing it, but it was difficult.

I told my husband that I wanted to do an experiment. I wanted to try working out according to the 4 Hour Body plan of doing kettlebell swings twice a week.

I worked out this morning and it was great. The workout was hard (not nearly as taxing as doing tons of cardio), but I can feel my muscles. And it only took me ten minutes!

So I plan to document this experiment here and report my findings. I'm really interested to see what happens. I know that I'll really have to commit to eating clean, but for now, an 80/20 approach is working for me and I can stick to it.