Kettlenetics is a workout program designed by Michelle Khai that incorporates dancing and cardio movements with weight training. The heart of the program is the kBell, a four-pound weight with a U-shaped handle. During the workout, you turn, swing, and pass the kBell from hand to hand.
Kettlebells have been used in their larger form for years as heavy weight training for workout junkies and Olympic athletes. Khai designed the smaller kBell to be used in cardio routines to create lean muscles instead of sheer bulk. The principle is sound, and the cardio program is definitely exercise.
But the big question is, does it work?
It depends.
When my Kettlenetics set arrived, I popped in the DVD right away and started swinging and squatting.
I didn’t even make it through the whole video. I can run a mile and burn rubber on the bike and elliptical machine, but Kettlenetics was beyond me. I paused multiple times to catch my breath and drink water while Khai and her energetic accomplices kept grinning and swinging.
The next day, I could barely walk. Like an old woman, it took me minutes to sit down and stand back up again, nevermind walking. I decided to screw the workout schedule that came with the DVD and took two days off. Then I got back up and pushed through it again. Once again, I didn’t make it through the whole thing. But I did get farther.
Then I started doing the ten-minute workouts for specific body parts instead of the general cardio workout.
And I got results. My hips shrank inches, my legs looked leaner, and I started seeing more muscle definition in my arms. I took a perverse pleasure in trying on jeans and skirts from two years ago, looking better now than I did then.
But then I went on vacation and left my kBell behind. Ten days without my kBell and I lost my motivation. I didn’t lose all the progress I made, but I did see a difference.
The bottom line is, Kettlenetics works. But, as with any exercise program, you have to commit to it.
And with that, I’m popping in the DVD again and picking up the kBell. Let’s see if I can get through the whole hour this time.
