guest post thursday! deb h.

by Janetha on April 1, 2010

in meals

hey guys! uh, april fools!

obviously i am NOT pregnant. but i hope i had a few of you for a minute :)

i played a april fools prank on marshall today and called him and told him i ran out of gas and was stranded on the side of the freeway.  i immediately told him “april fools!” but he did NOT think it was funny.. and hung up on me :( after all was said and done, things are OK now.. but i don’t think marshall really liked my fool.  sorry babe.. but you have to admit, i got you good ;)

this is the first of many thursdays where i will feature a guest post from one of the many fine bloggers around.  before i turn the show over to today’s guest poster, i wanted to share with you the list of links i complied (originally for yesterday’s post, but i couldn’t get my laptop to pull up the post i had saved on a disc..grr).. anyway, here you go!

BLOG POSTS i want to tell you guys about!

oh. blogs. i love you.

so, that should keep you entertained. and to entertain you even further.. here’s deb!

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Hey Mealie Movers!  I’m Deb from SmoothieGirlEatsToo.  Janetha is crazed and dazed with all her wedding plans and whatnot, so she asked about 4000 of her closest friends to write guesties to help her out.  I was going to write a post for my own blog about Kettlebells, so I figured I could loan it out to her as well (like they do with priceless works of art at museums, ya know?).

Mealie Movers (aka Janetha’s readers) get a bonus video where you can see me doing really bad Kettlebell Swings while Jenn of Girl Heroes does really good ones.  As an added bonus (BUT WAIT! THERE’S MORE!!), I’m including a video of a KILLAH oblique exercise because Janetha Bean asked 4000 of her closest friends for some DOMS-inducing AB exercises.  I call it the Side Bendy Thingy Exercise.  Enjoy.  Love your feedback, peeps

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A recent article in the journal for the American Counsil on Exercise (ACE) claimed that Kettlebells burn 1200 calories in an hour. True? Sort of. If someone performed continuous snatches for an entire hour they could burn 1200 calories. This would be about as much fun as gauging your eyes out with dull No. 2 pencils, but I digress. It is nearly impossible for a mere mortal to accomplish this feat. Having said that, Kettlebells STILL burn a lot of calories.

A few months back I spotted Kettlebells in the gym and decided to give them a try. Fair enough, but apparently I was lucky that I did not injure myself as my form was hideously wrong. How do I know this? My new bloggie friend/workout buddy, Jenn from Girl Heroes taught me the correct way to use Kettlebells.

This is Jenn doing “Jazz Hand” pose. Despite appearances, she doesn’t always wear head-to-toe pink.

First of all, some of you may be wondering, “what the heck are Kettlebells?”. They look like small bowling balls with large handles and come in all sorts of sizes/weights. Turns out they’ve been around for several hundred years. Used by Russian strong men, military and prisoners (honest!), KBs were one of the original heavy-duty weight-lifting tools. They incorporate cardio and strength training all in one fell-swoop. They are gaining popularity, so expect to see more of them in clubs and parks in the form of Kettlebell classes and Kettlebell Bootcamps.

Here is a whole family of Kettlebells: aren’t they cute?

Just like the stickers you used to see on the back of station wagons and SUVs everywhere

The Kettlebell community is quite a tight one. Just as Cross-Fit has devout followers, so do Kettlebells. The terminology is pretty entertaining. A person who practices Kettlebell exercises is called a Girevik. Your fellow Kettlebell enthusiasts are called Comrades and if you are training someone, that person is a Victim (I’m not making this up).

You need to use correct form with Kettlebells or you risk injury. Even high-standing members of the fitness community are confused. Specifically, Jillian Michaels butchered the proper Kettlebell form and the whole Kettlbell community is up in arms (doh!) about it. Even the respected ACE’s pamphlet demonstrates the Kettlebell swing incorrectly. (The model is descending into a squat before swinging the bell, just like Jillian- this is a mistake. Instead, he should stick his butt out as if to fart on a little brother, with a slight bend in the knees, but NOT descend into a squat.). A good site to find an instructor near you is at DragonDoor.com.

Here was the workout that Jenn devised for us and her recap of our fun day. It was my first ‘real’ supervised KB workout and I loved it:

Apparently this routine, performed 3X should have taken us 20 minutes. This is a huge boon for busy moms like Jenn- a total body workout in 20 minutes? Yes, please. Well, 2 hours later we finished our awesome workout/gab-fest and 800 calories were burned nonetheless- WOOT!

Turn your laptops on their sides or crick your necks to the right for this one…disregard my naughty comment at the end. ;-)

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kGrK3QiUBk0]

Yesterday, I used the Kettlebells at the gym between sets of Power Plate lunges and squats as a cardio-interval tool. I watched my heart-rate soar up into the 160s during swings. That’s high for me. It was fun to mix it up. Also it was great to have a cardiovascular workout without any high impact jolting whatsoever. In fact, the real true gireviks do not even wear shoes while doing KBs! Eek, my plantar fasciitis might not go for those shenanigans.

Our reward for all that effort? Burning more calories on the way back to the car, of course! 63 calories if you must know.

Honestly, I didn’t notice that this was a “hill” until we were walking back after the workout.

Finally we made it back and had our reward:

I believe that we were suckin down some sweet PB&J Smoothies.

By the way, thanks to Janetha Bean for inadvertently introducing us! If she and her Mom hadn’t been interviewed for Girl Heroes, I might not have found Jenn when I did!

I definitely see more Kettlebell lovin’ in my future. How about you?

Now for the KILLAH Oblique Exercise: The Side Bendy Thingy:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OtNktoNTJjk]

Side Bendy Exercise that’ll kill your obliques!

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janetha here. thanks deb! i love new moves and i know my readers do, too! maybe some day i can come meet up with you and jenn for some kettle bell fun :)

everyone: i will be back tomorrow for flashback friday! let me know if you are participating so i can link back to your flashback post!

Q:

1. Have you tried Kettlebells? Is it something that sounds like fun? Or torture?

2. did you play any april fool’s jokes on anyone or fall for any yourself? do tell!

xo. janetha b. & deb h.

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Jessica @ How Sweet It Is April 1, 2010 at 6:32 pm

Yeah Deb!! :)

I love me some kettlebells! And no jokes for me. :)

Kate April 1, 2010 at 6:51 pm

HAHA!! I love your prank. I wasn’t creative enough to think of anything to pull on anyone. Next year….

Sophia April 1, 2010 at 6:55 pm

You ladies are hilarious. That you for a great post that’s dear to my heart. And yeah i turned my laptop side ways. hahaha.

I love the door scraf side bend. Totally looks like a great oblique stretch.

I totally agree that one should take a class before picking up the bells. A trainer from my gym took a class and ended up hurting her back/hamstring. I also took a class and fell in love with the bells. I basically stop lifting weights and focused on this. I guess, i’ve gone from a victim to a Comrade to a Girevik. And yes, KBs get your heart rate up. I rank it up there with “insanity” workout.

No april fool’s joke for me today. I called in sick to work and went for a facial/massage today and it was so worth.
sophia

Hallie April 1, 2010 at 7:00 pm

I TOTALLY stole your pregnancy thing for facebook. It was so funny. But I actually felt kinda bad because people who are close to me knew the truth, but random high school and college friends (most of the ones who do have kids) thought I was serious. I hadn’t seen anyone else do that before you and I thought it was perfect! I was hoping my mom would see it but no such luck :-)

lisaou11 April 1, 2010 at 7:12 pm

Hey! My treaddie workout. Too cool! thanks for the linkage girl. you rock.

and loved the guest post! can’t wait to read all of them!

Melinda April 1, 2010 at 7:39 pm

Janetha,

Hi! I just stumbled across your blog because you posted a Handful review. I’ve added you to my blogroll because I think it’ll be motivational for me to watch what you’re up to! I wanted to ask you, what exactly is a yogurt mess? I think it’s oatmeal, greek yogurt, pb, and fruit, is that right? Oatmeal and greek yogurt really taste good together? It never occurred to me that it would! I guess I’ll have to try it. Love your blog!

Ashley April 1, 2010 at 8:42 pm

Alright I’ve gotta try that Deb!

I just hope my crappy house doesn’t topple in on me!

mom April 1, 2010 at 9:48 pm

Hey Deb great post! Love that darling family of kettlebells..I want to buy some just to look at because I’d be afraid I would fling one clear across the room!!

No jokes I’m too slow—love you ladies xoxo!

actorsdiet April 1, 2010 at 11:10 pm

you had me fooled, lady. my cousin got married at 8 months pregnant. she was miserable.

Deb (SmoothieGirlEatsToo) April 1, 2010 at 11:41 pm

Thanks for the linkage for the Sleep Post and for letting me do your guestie! :-)

However I am totally horrified that in the last video, when it ends, it gives all sorts of other video options to watch- some of them are mine but others are quasi-porn! EEEKK! Help, how do I turn that off?!?!

Hope you had a nice Thursday night with your not-so-easily-entertained fiance.

Deb (SmoothieGirlEatsToo) April 1, 2010 at 11:42 pm

Clarification: ‘some of them are mine but others are quasi-porn’ meaning the quasi-porn ones are NOT mine!!

Averie (LoveVeggiesAndYoga) April 2, 2010 at 2:13 am

Deb you’re awesome and so is Jenn (who i am meeting this coming week in Phx!!!!) and of course Janetha…all my faves in one post!

Lauren April 2, 2010 at 4:14 am

Thanks Deb for posting such a great post! :)

Janetha- Why are you still doing so much talking and work on your Thursday “off from blogging”? LoL, girl this is your day off!!! :)

Love you to death hun!

Kristin (Cook, Bake and Nibble) April 2, 2010 at 7:03 am

Great post! I’ve always wanted to try kettlebells.

I didn’t do anything for April’s fools, but Janetha’s was great! lol

xo
K

Naomi(onefitfoodie) April 2, 2010 at 7:13 am

love kettle bells! awesome workout! i saw that on deb’s page and it was awesome!!! Love your humor, deb :)

Janetha-too funny about pranking Marshall…I am sure he was heated at first but then looking back, he realized you got him goooood!!

love you!

Jenn N. April 2, 2010 at 8:25 am

Dear Deb and Janetha,

You guys make life all the more fun. THANK YOU!!!!

(((HUGS)))

Heather Eats Almond Butter April 2, 2010 at 8:34 am

Deb!!! I took a kettlebell class a few times and always thought they were really fun. Definitely a great way to combine strength training with cardio.

And to Janetha Bean, thanks for the link love. :)

Paige @ Running Around Normal April 2, 2010 at 8:48 am

Awesome post, Deb! I’ve been wanting to learn more about kettlebells, too :)

ellie April 2, 2010 at 8:49 am

Love this post- wow, those look like so much fun! I haven’t seen or heard of them before…going to google to see if they are in the UK yet.

Thanks for the shout-out and links Janetha-bean!

Kelly April 2, 2010 at 8:56 am

Kettlebells rock!! My husband is a certified KB instructor…those things hurt so good!! :)

homecookedem April 2, 2010 at 9:22 am

Love Deb!! :) I really need to try this kettlebell thing out!! Looks like such an awesome workout!! ;)

Susan April 2, 2010 at 9:44 am

Yes Deb H, I am a proud Mealie Mover ;)

I really want to try kettlebells, but I really can’t afford any lawsuits over whacking fellow gym-goers in the head with one. There’s a gym in town that I don’t belong to that offers a kettlebell class. I should sneak in!!

I have no clue what I’ll be flashing back to tonight, but flash I will :) Wait. YouknowwhatImean!!

traynharder23 April 2, 2010 at 10:46 am

i love kettlebells. i’m looking into getting aset for me: 12kg and 16kg ones but they are crazy expensive. my good friend is RKC, so it’s WAY cool. i’d love to et really good at it, since even learning the swing is hard to master!

Elina April 2, 2010 at 12:54 pm

I just found your blog and absolutely love it. You are GORGEOUS and so adorable. Good luck with all the computer issues.
Deb – I tried kettlebells once and hated them with a passion. Maybe I need to try them again. You make them seem fun. :)

Mari April 2, 2010 at 1:37 pm

I have a 10 lb Kettlebell and I love it! I like swinging it when I am home watching tv =)

Lara (Thinspired) April 5, 2010 at 11:03 am

Just catching up on my reader…THANK YOU, THANK YOU for mentioning my new blog! You are such a sweetheart. xox

sewa mobil murah April 16, 2010 at 9:11 pm

wow great post
Keep posting stuff like this i really like it.

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