How many people still using Kettlebells? How much of your training is KBs. While the big ironball ones look cool as all hell and are probably great to use I have one concern with them. The weights seem to jump up a bit to sharpely. Any comments? Ciao. 
I have the 1 pood and 1 1/2 pood. I love them both ( metaphorically of course lol ). They have added a new dimension to my training especially when i travel. The weight jump does seem drastic but once you get the movements down it is not as scarey as it seems at first. I definitely recommend them especially for the home gym. Plus the āLook Cool Factorā ( i keep mine in my common room )is always a bonus.
PS i found they really carried over to my olympic lifts with a bar because of the hip snap involved repeatedly with the ballistic movements
Hmmmm I thought this post didnāt go through. Does anyone like those converta dumbbell to kettlebell thingies? Thanks for the reply Mean Pete. 
Hey ArcaneCocaine,
I use KB, I use them 3-4 days a week. I use them for warmup right now. I have mine made at a local machine shop ā¦ cheaper. They arenāt spherical, mine are cylindrical. Alot easier to get the weight I want too.
Peace,
T-Ren
Not to Highjack this post, but it does contribute to the discussion of K Bells. Let me explain my situation.
Iām in the US Navy. Soon, I will finish at my training command and be sent to a ship. I can either go on a āfast attackā Submarine or an Aircraft Carrier. The benfits to the Aircraft Carrier include a full gym open 24/7, a galley open 24/7, Place to store protien, surge, & other necessary supps and a pretty lax schedule. The Submarine would provide a tight knit work crew that would build excellent commraderie (sp?) and would have the maintenance schedule available to become an expert mechanic (If I get commissioned it would also be a better place to work, I think). Schedule on a sub is 6 on/6 off constantly.
So my question isā¦ since most subs (especially Fat Attacks) have a pretty piss poor gym (if any), would hiding k bells on board be enough to sustain a healthy workout regiment? Could I still get lean/muscular/strong/progress w/ limited supplements? Can only training w/ K bells for extended periods of time (between 2-3 months) be productive?
Kyle
Iām a RKC certified guy, so a lot of what I do is kettlebell work. That being said, I still think that thereās a time and place for a lot of different training methodologies within the larger picture of your training. I do probably 50-60% of my work with kettlebells, but there are plenty of lifts that I like to do with a standard barbell or dumbells. You just canāt deadlift with KBs. On the other hand, nothing beats KBs for GPP and strength-endurance work.
Kyle, to answer your question, one or two kettlebells can keep you in pretty damn good shape even with no supps or any other gym. Just like you can get in shape with a barbell or dumbells by themselves, you can also get in shape with just kettlebells. The nice part about it is the portability factorāone or two weights, and youāre set. You can stow 'em anywhere.
Dan
Kettlebells are just another fad. Dan had a really good point, like most fads they defenitely have their place in your training but if possible they should never make up your entire training regime, just one more good tool in your toolbox to pull out from time to time to keep from boring yourself and keep your training diversified. KB are great in that you can do a lot with them and yeah they make a great addition to a Navy sub with limited space and gym equipment.
Agathos, I never said Kettlebells were a fad.
Kettlebells can work as 100% of your total training load. Look at Mike Mahler: no one disputes that heās got some great training ideas and methods, and, from what I know, the stuff that heās not doing with kettlebells, heās doing with his own bodyweight. Heās in great shape.
There are people who work only with dumbells, and are in good shape, people who work just with barbells, and are in great shape, and people who work with machines and are inā¦ wellā¦ shape. Obviously, itās not ideal to work with only one method, but I donāt think that means that kettlebells are going away. Personally, in the last year and a half of training with kettlebells, Iāve gained more strength and athleticism as in my previous ten years of strength training.
Kettlebells are the real deal, heavy metal, and they deserve a place in every gym. By themselves, they equal or better any other piece of training equipment for most purposes, and in terms of space, they are the most efficient way to have a home gym (or a gym on a sub). I canāt store my oly bar and bench under my bed, but my six kettlebells go right under there. (Letās not even talk about my squat rack.) Grab one or two KBs, and youāve got a great workout with a single piece of equipment. Portable, equally great for cramped spaces and apartments as for the great outdoors, KBs are a great solution for many people.
Just like I wouldnāt ask someone to pick barbells over dumbells or vice versa, I wouldnāt want to pick kettlebells over traditional American-style strength training. Like I said, there is room enough in most peopleās training to accomodate a number of training methodologies.
Dan
Sorry Danā¦ Hehe, wasnāt trying to imply that you said that they were a fad, just that you made some good points in your first post thatās all. And I totally support what youāve saidā¦
When I say fad I donāt mean that they donāt have their place as I said and I donāt beleive that they are going anywhere either. I consider them a fad for the same reasons I classify swiss balls as a fad, and by that I mean that they started out slowly and became widely popular overnight by drawing interest and a lot of people soon started using them all the time for everything! Eventually though their popularity deminished and they became what they should be, a really good tool (let me say again a really good tool) in a tool box of many tools, and I expect KBs to do much the same. When I say fad I donāt mean that they arenāt good tools or that you cant accomplish gains with them, or that their use will be any less applicable in 10 or 100 years, my classifying them as a fad is based more on their level of acceptance and popularity not usefullness.
For example you mentioned Mike Mahler whoās about my size and who uses KBs extensively for his regime, I use mostly freeweights. It just means that there are different options out there for meeting your goals, however my personal opinion is that you shouldnāt limit yourself to any one tool, among other things itās boring!
Hehe, good thing I didnāt point out that KBs are pretty much DBs with a convenient handleā¦ (jokes!)
Sorry, I get a bit grumpy about my KBs.
Anyway, theyāre great. If you havenāt tried 'em, you should.
Dan
unfortunately for me I donāt have acces to KB and their too expensive for me.
I do use DB with the KB idea though everyday during the week. 5 days a week.
Da boxer
PDA at fractionalplates and ironmind both sell kettlebell handles.
The hardcore Tsatsouline/Dragondoor fans will insist the authentic russian style kettlebells are better because (they say) the weight is rounded and this limits it when the 'bell flip over and smacks into your forearm, but this is very easily remedied in many ways with the adjustable handles.
Agathos KB are not the same thing as DB they are two totally diffrent things! the is distrubated diffrently so that makes the lift diffrent I do agree though that people get to fixed on one perticular training regimne and ignore or discount all other types of training this includes Kbellās, O-lifts, Swiss ball training, Clubbells (again weight is disributed diffrently then the kbells and dumbbells, Indo - Boards, Qigong (for relaxation and stress relief) ect.
In Health,
Silas C.
Thanks for the replies everyone. Ciao.
I just ordered the 16 and 24 kg KBās. Canāt wait to get them!