introducing… the black series kettlebell in this issue

ISSUE
03
MAR 2014
IN THIS
ISSUE
INTRODUCING…
THE BLACK SERIES KETTLEBELL
WALL OF STRENGTH 2
When Kettlebell Fever started
back in 2010 it was born to
bring the very best in strength
A MINUTE WITH
MAYYAH
2
PHOTO OF THE YEAR 3
SPOTLIGHT ON…
JASON KANE
EVENTS AND
COURSE SCHEDULE
4
5
NUTRITION MATTERS 6
FEATURE WORKOUT
7
ASK… RIF
8
UK. I was importing book after
book from the USA for my own
personal needs and tried every
way possible to lay my hands
on some of the very best
kettlebells available in the UK.
Why did I do this? Well, with
the books it was simple – they
just weren’t available in the UK
and were highly recommended
by mentors which, in fact
become life changing – Enter
The Kettlebell in particular.
with kettlebells, I thought, any
old one would do so I invested
in a 16, 20 and 24kg cast iron
kettlebell – the cheapest I
were all created equally.
They lasted great, for the
Much to my surprise the
handle had just been welded
on and wasn’t single cast –
something I just didn’t think
to check as a beginner. It
was prone to weakness and I
deserved what I got. I bought
cheap crap and that’s what
cheap crap does. It breaks.
Thus began my quest to sell
and distribute Dragon Door
kettlebells to prevent that
same mistake happening again
to anybody who remotely
cared about kettlebells and
demanded a premium product.
And they did ok.
However, times change,
fortunately I cut ties with
Dragon Door and this gave me
full licence to develop and
create a new type of kettlebell.
A kettlebell that would exceed
all expectations. A premium
cast iron kettlebell that was
affordable, yet practical. A
kettlebell that just felt great
and more importantly went
heavier than 48kg.
So it is with great pleasure
this month we announce
the launch the Black Series
Kettlebell. This includes a
whopping 92kg Monster.
Now, back to more pressing
matters – Rugby and the
Winter Olympics. Well it seems
my beloved Wales lost to our
Potato lovers over the water
and I have become strangely
addicted to curling!
TILL NEXT TIME!
James
James Breese
Kettlebell Fever Founder
happened…
CONTACT US
TEL +44(0)844 800 9948
[email protected]
www.kettlebellfever.com
I was busy snatching in the
living room (it was raining
outside) with my 24kg – as you
do. Mid-way through one of my
sets I snatched and suddenly
the bell felt lighter than normal.
You know that feeling you get
when time seems to stand still,
well I experienced that only
to be staring at the handle of
the Kettlebell with the body
of the bell flying off in front of
me, crashing into my beautiful
living room wall and floor.
I was not impressed.
Fortunately I only had a big
dent on the floor in front of me
and the wall hadn’t collapsed. I
went to inspect the kettlebells.
#madeforlife
WALL OF
STRENGTH
FOR YOUR CHANCE TO SEE YOUR PHOTO
IN PHOTO OF THE MONTH, UPLOAD YOUR
PICTURES TO FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM AND
TWITTER USING THE FOLLOWING HASHTAGS:
KETTLEBELL FEVER’S FIRST EVER SPONSORED
ATHLETE, 23 YEAR OLD OLYMPIAN, VICKI LUCASS
HAS ACHIEVED SO MUCH ALREADY. HEAR HOW
TRAINING WITH KETTLEBELLS HAS HELPED
HER PROGRESS FURTHER
#madeforlife #kettlebellfever
than many athletes might
do in an entire lifetime.
Having started synchronised
swimming at just 6 years
old, she soon flourished
into a a very strong athlete.
From a tender age, she’d
always dreamt big, one of her
aspirations being to make it to
an Olympic Games. In 2012,
this became a reality for her.
she’d been expe-riencing
in her arm was a lot more
serious and complicated
than she’d hoped. Not only
did she have a broken elbow
(which was the result of an
accident at 6 years old!), but
her muscle and soft tissue
had really suffered as a result.
However, with the help of a
great surgeon and physio
team, she managed to go on
and compete.
The road to the London 2012
Olympics had been a very
bumpy one for her, and with
only months to go to the
Games she learnt that the
severe pain and discomfort
Following all this, Vicki
decided that it was time to
move on from the sport and
to take on new challenges.
Having always been active
and passionate about sport,
she knew she still wanted to
compete at a high level, so
she decided to start kayaking.
With the help of a programme
called Girls4Gold, which
takes talented athletes that
have achieved a high level in
another sport to see if they
can be good at another sport,
she has now managed to get
through 3 out of 4 phases of a
PHOTO OF
THE MONTH
programme to get her into
the GB canoeing squad.
She would love nothing more
than to compete at another
Olympic Games, but this time
in a different sport, and her
kettlebell training with Claire
Booth of Kettlebell Fever has
helped to make her stronger
and more able to achieve
her goals.
1 176 LIKES
2 58 LIKES
3 105 LIKES
We loved this Image of Ironman and Thor
We found an old picture of James doing
farmers walks back in his police days ;-)
Justin Buckthorpe sent us this picture
4 108 LIKES
5 57 LIKES
6 96 LIKES
Anyway, moving swiftly
on… this month we’ll be
announcing more about our
second ever Strength Matters
Summit, and I’m currently in
talks with some great venues
to see what they can offer us,
and James has got a great
list of speakers lined up to
talk. We’ll be putting out more
information about this soon.
Paul Garvie sent us this picture of him
using his son as a kettlebell!
Pippin, the resident canine at the Kettlebell
Tim Harrison’s rainbow bell was made
to show solidarity with the LGBT people
As always, if you have any
questions about any of the
things we’re working on, just
give me a shout at
[email protected]
GOOD LUCK FOR
NEXT MONTH!
WE’D LIKE TO WISH VICKI THE BEST OF
LUCK IN GETTING THROUGH THE FINAL
PHASE OF HER PROGRAMME, AND IN
MAKING IT TO THE 2016 RIO OLYMPICS!
turns out that even top golfers understand
A MINUTE
WITH MAYYAH
SFL Barbell cert in the UK,
which is going to be held at
The Commando Temple in
London…and a few days later,
I’d be taking part in it!
This is why I love my job! :-)
Currently my training mainly
strongman and bodyweight
training, so getting some
quite nicely. I’ve been working
to perfect my form on my
deadlift quite a bit recently,
and something I need to
work a little more on for
Strongman is the log clean
and press, so hopefully some
extra barbell push press and
jerk will have some good
The only thing that I have
little to no experience with is
the bench press, so I’m going
to spend a little time with the
powerlifters down the gym
to pick up a few pointers. I’m
just hoping this doesn’t mean
I have to wear one of those
onesies!
Mayyah Shalchi
Vice President of Operations
Strength Matters newsletter!
www.facebook.com/KBFever
www.instagram.com/jamesbreese
www.twitter.com/kettlebellfever
nutritionally and we built up his
SPOTLIGHT ON…
JASON KANE
to me, he couldn’t do a press or
pull-up but ended competing
in the Iron Man – a fantastic
achievement.”
Taming the Beast – Greg Rhodes
speaks to Jason Kane
“HE WAS A
COUCH POTATO,
BUT WANTED TO
CHANGE HIS LIFE
AND COMPETE IN
THE IRON MAN
CHALLENGE TO
RAISE MONEY
FOR THE JADE
FOUNDATION
CANCER CHARITY”
KANE… AND
EXCEEDINGLY
ABLE
Kettlebells are part and parcel
of pretty much every training
programme Jason devises
and he stocks the standard
range of 16 to 48kg RKC
weights as well as a 64kg RKC
heavyweight.
“I steer clear of using machines,”
he stresses, “preferring to use
kettlebells, barbells and free
weights to achieve results for
clients.” In what is a busy city
gym, Urban Fitness works with
elite groups through the day,
starts early at 6.30am, most
clients training here three
times a week but we also hold
boot camps on site, run by an
associate.”
The prospect of major
contracts with key
international corporates based
in Dublin is looming large for
Jason and Joe. If they clinch
them, their fortunes will take a
quantum leap forward as they
prepare nutritional and training
regimes for staff. “We’ll need a
larger facility if that happens,”
enthuses Jason. Fingers
crossed.
EVENTS & COURSE
SCHEDULE
t KETTLEBELL FEVER FREE LESSON
12th April 2014, 1pm & 3pm, Bracknell, UK.
t PRIMAL MOVE FUNDAMENTALS
13th April 2014, Bracknell, UK.
t STRONGFIRST USER COURSE
27th April 2014, Bracknell, UK.
t STRONGFIRST SFG LEVEL I
9th—11th May 2014, Harlow, UK.
t DAN JOHN INTERVENTION WORKSHOP
12th May 2014, Harlow, UK.
t STRONGFIRST SFB BODYWEIGHT LEVEL 1
16th—17th August 2014, Harlow, UK.
t SFL BARBELL COURSE
3rd-5th October, London, UK.
t STRENGTH MATTERS SUMMIT
1st— 2nd November 2014, Heathrow, UK.
RUNNING
“TRANSFORMATION
PROGRAMMES” FOR
MEMBERS OF HIS
URBAN FITNESS GYM
IS JASON KANE’S
STOCK IN TRADE.
The Blackrock, Dublin-based
strength specialist is already
making his mark only a year
after launching the venture as
word spreads that his training
regimes achieve results.
my focus and study personal
high-calibre clients. “I gained
REPS accreditation after a
short spell working in a local
boxing club, before a stroke of
fortune hit him.
completed the CKFMS
functional movement
“I bumped into Joe, a friend
from school who had lost his
job as an electrician due to
the building slump, and we
looked into setting up together
in business as Urban Fitness.
We began by running boot
camps on the beach in Dublin
and it snowballed from there.
With clients stretching from
a professional golfer to an
Iron Man contender, Jason
Schooled in martial arts
and boxing, the 29-year-old
Jason passed up a career in
structural engineering at a
time when the impact of world
economic turmoil was shaping
many a future.
needs – whether improving
quality of movement or
general strength.
The years 2008 and 2009
saw a big downturn in the
construction sector,” Jason
recalls. “I decided to switch
comes in handy too, boosting
his credentials and giving
him the edge in attracting
both allow me to prepare
powerful training programmes,
for clients.”
Training is far from all plain
sailing for Jason however.
“When I was taking the RKC,
it was the snatch test that
I had trouble with. Pavel
[Tsatsouline – known as
the `King of Kettlebells` who
introduced bells into Britain
more than a decade ago] went
over to my team leader and
explained that he wasn’t happy
with the snatch and failed me
on the last day. I repeated the
movement – 99 reps and was
disallowed on the last one.
“That made me far more
respectful of training. I took
on board Pavel’s words - `Fail
with honour and integrity`
and buckled down to work
even harder.” It paid off as
Jason strived to achieve the
formidable – the Beast – in
Harlow last summer, and
achieved it – the only man
in Ireland then to hold that
accolade.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
ON EVENTS PLEASE VISIT
www.kettlebellfever.com
OR CALL 0844 800 9948
Corrective movement was at
the heart of the programme
he devised for Graham,
whose weight ballooned to
nearly 17 stone after a family
bereavement.
“He was a couch potato,” says
Jason, “but wanted to change
his life and compete in the Iron
Man challenge to raise money
for the Jade Foundation cancer
charity.
“I focused initially on dropping
his body weight right down
then looked at improving his
functional movement,” Jason
explains. “He stayed on track
Sign up to SFG 1 Harlow
NUTRITION
MATTERS
Tim Harrison
At 30 years old I’d being working in catering
for 16 years, so food had always been a big
part of my life; my profession and my passion.
My relationship with food was mostly to
indulge others and myself which meant that
my weight had crept up and up all my life.
Two weeks before my daughter was born,
for my brother’s stag party, we went to a high
ropes course and I had to wear a special ‘fat
man harness’ and alarm bells began ringing. I
was embarrassed and ashamed of myself.
I bought a kettlebell from Kettlebell Fever after
the ‘fat man’ incident, and I took to it with gusto.
I read Pavel’s “Enter the Kettlebell” from coverto-cover, researched HIIT and Tabata and
started training Hardstyle 3-5 times a week.
I turned my food knowledge around to cut
out on flavour and enjoyment of food. Just
nine months later I had lost six stone. The
world was a different place to me, from not
having to catch my breath to tie my shoes to
being able to enjoy the countryside that I love
without it being a battle.
FEATURE
WORKOUT
Stringer and John Matthews
at Stringer Fitness.
I’m now thirty three, I haven’t put any weight
back on and now perform Pavel’s Simple &
Sinister programme with a 44kg kettlebell.
done yet. The world is my oyster (dressed with
vinegar and shallots) to share with my family.
is the owner of Stringer Fitness in
Ashbourne Co.Meath Ireland. She’s been a keen runner
& swimmer for years, so switching to kettlebell training
didn’t come too easy to her to begin with.
John Matthews is a serving member with the Irish
Defence Forces. He is a full time soldier and in his spare
time coaches group hardstyle kettlebell training as part
of the Stringer Fitness team. John is a StrongFirst Level
2 Instructor, and is planning on doing the StrongFirst
Barbell course in the UK this October. He has just
returned to college to study a BA in Strength and
Conditioning.
“I train with Kettlebells 4 times a week, I’ve replaced my
the StrongFirst level 1 last August, and I am aiming for
METHOD
1. Heat the oven to 160°C.
Scrub and trim the beets but
leave whole with skin on. Place
them in an oven proof dish and
pour on the olive oil, vinegar,
orange juice and zest. Add the
thyme and season with a little
salt and pepper. Cover tightly
with foil and put in the oven for
an hour and a half.
DUCK WITH BEETS
AND PEAS
IN A WASABI, ORANGE
AND THYME DRESSING
2. Take the duck breast from
the fridge and allow them to
come to room temperature, this
will help heat penetration and
This is a flavour combination
that features in my house nearly
3. Towards the end of the
cooking time for the beets
put the duck breasts skin side
down in a cold pan then place
the pan onto a medium heat
for 6-8 minutes. In that time
the fat will render (melt) from
the breasts so there won’t be
a horrible layer of raw fat in
Happily I’ve spared you the
the day of photographing I used
legume like sugar snap peas,
French beans and so on will do
a hefty vegetable like beetroot is
PREP TIME 10MINS
COOK TIME 1HR 20MINS
SERVES 2
INGREDIENTS
beetroots
orange
giving you delicious crispy skin.
4. This would be a good time
to cook the legumes. I prefer to
blanch mine in boiling salted
water for 2-3 minutes then
quench them in cold water to
be reheated to serve.
5. After 6 or so minutes you
should see that the flesh of
the duck is cooked just beyond
halfway through. At that point
flip them over and turn the heat
up, cook for a further 2 minutes
basting with the fat in the pan
using a spoon whenever you
get a chance. Then take off the
heat and leave to rest.
6. Remove the beets from the
oven, take them out of the dish
and set aside to cool a little
otherwise you will end up with
both purple (inevitable) and
the wasabi paste in with the
oil mixture to make a dressing,
if you like and check seasoning.
7. Now refresh the peas in
boiling water for 1 minute,
drain then put in a bowl. Peel
the beets (this will be easy)
and cut them into chunks
then add them to the peas
with the dressing.
8. Now you can slice your
rested duck (if you slice before
it’s rested it will “bleed out” and
become dry and icky looking)
and serve with your colourful
earthy sweet hot crunchy veg.
BANANA “ICE CREAM”
I’m not going to sell you a pup
here and say that this is the holy
is fairly high calorie but they all
come from good things it is really
a pre-exercise sweet treat that’s
PREP TIME 5MINS
6HRS IN THE FREEZER
SERVES 1
INGREDIENTS
and I did a Turkish Get Up last week with a 24kg bell, I’m
(the great thing about this
recipe is the main ingredient
is cheap or even free)
(whichever takes your fancy
but make sure the only ingredient is nuts, no other crap)
some nuts, fresh berries,
dried fruit that sort of thing.
METHOD
said it, I will have to do it :)” – Yvonne
SNATCHES WITH GOBLET SQUATS
THIS IS AN EXAMPLE OF A HARD HITTING CONDITIONING
WORKOUT WE USE IF WE ARE SHORT ON TIME OUR JUST
LOOKING TO TEST OUR FITNESS.
1. Chop up your bananas and
put into individual freezer bags,
these now need to freeze for at
least 6 hours or until you need
them.
It mixes snatches with goblet squats. The snatches are increasing by 1 each side
while the goblet squats (GSQ) are decreasing by 1. You can work alone against the
clock (25 mins usually does it!) or you can work in an “ I go , you go” system with a
2. When you are in need of
a pre-workout (at least 30
minutes prior) sweet power up
get your blender out, throw in
the frozen banana and whizz
until it has broken down into a
coarse slush.
THE WARM UP
Set the clock for 5 mins and work TGU alternating each side. Nothing too heavy
as its not the aim of the session. Follow on with some dynamic movements and
ensure the hips and shoulders are warmed up properly. We are all grown ups here.
3. Add the nut butter and
whizz again until it is a smooth
familiar texture.
4. At this point you could add
a little something extra like a
swirl of raspberry or I add a
little dark chocolate…how about
some raisins…soaked in rum??
Anyway, enjoy then get to it.
THE WORKOUT
Either set the clock for the preferred time or have your partner start. Again use
common sense and use a weight suitable to your level that you can use for
repeated rounds with perfect form. Suggested weights for males is 24kg and
females use 16kg.
1. SNATCH L/R - 5 GSQ
2. SNATCH L/R - 4 GSQ
4. SNATCH L/R - 2 GSQ
ENJOY!
5. SNATCH L/R - 1 GSQ
ASK...
RIFF
WHAT DO YOU DO WITH GUYS OVER 50 THAT
ARE KYPHOTIC SO THAT THEY CAN SWING
SAFELY? JON COMPTON
MASTER SFG
MARK REIFKIND’S
RESPONSES
TO QUESTIONS
ASKED OF HIM
Well of course just as with the last question a course of
flexibility and mobility work as well as opening the body up
with myofascial release techniques with foam rollers, massage
ball tools and a focus on releasing the usually tight tonic
muscles takes the forefront. But what I’ve found is the one arm
swing is usually tolerated much more easily for people with a
strong kyphotic T spine than two hand or two bell swings. Plus
rotary and reflexive stability work is built into every rep. But
correctives has to be at the forefront as well.
AS A FORMER IRONMAN ATHLETE, WHAT’S
THE BEST TOOL/METHOD FOR STRENGTH
TRAINING A TOUGH MUDDER COMPETITOR?
COLIN STEWART
First off I trained for Triathlons for two years but I was
NEVER an Ironman. Want to make that perfectly clear.
It was in the very beginning of when triathlons had even
started and there were few races. I trained hard with the
goal of doing an Ironman but never competed.
Honestly I did NO weight training when I trained ultra
endurance. With my 8 years of gymnastics background I
had plenty of total body strength and need way more miles
in the legs than I did more strength.
If I were training a Tough Mudder competitor (which I have)
I would focus on low rep (3-5 rep) strength in the very basic
strength exercises such as deadlift, military press, pull
ups, KB and bar-bell cleans and snatches as the last thing
endurance athletes need is more repetitions. Increase their
absolute strength and their relative endurance will increase.
As Pavel says “ if you have no strength what is their to
of the obstacles in the course.
DO YOU HAVE ANY REGRETS FROM YOUR
YOUNGER DAYS? AND IF YOU COULD ANYTHING
DIFFERENT, WHAT WOULD YOU DO?
JAMES BREESE
I do regret that my coaches didn’t have better
understanding of progressions and strength training. I was
attempting skills in gymnastics I was clearly not ready for
and did most on just guts. Hence, three devastating injuries,
spend MUCH more time on the basics and truly master
them before trying more and more advanced skills.
As a bodybuilder I regret not maintaining my athletic skills,
like running, in the obsessive pursuit of size. It worked in
the short term but did not do me well in the long term. The
same as in my power-lifting; I regret not maintaining my
basic bodybuilding patterns in the pursuit of pure strength. I
guess the overall key is keeping balance in one’s routine no
matter the goal. It doesn’t have to be a lot, just enough to
stay in touch with the life skills and moves that will keep us
in good stead as we age.
WHAT’S THE BEST METHOD TO USE
KETTLEBELLS TO ENHANCE YOUR BARBELL
DEADLIFT? COLIN STEWART
Swings, swings and more swings. One arm swing, two
hand swings, two KB swings, dead-stop swing in all of the
above variations. Heavy swings as well as lighter overspeed
immediately thought it was identical to the arched back power
good morning I had done for ten years as a powerlifter as an
assistance exercise for my deadlift and squat. It is. It’s like a
dynamic power good morning.
IF YOU HAVE ONE, WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE
KETTLEBELL COMPLEX? MATT SHORE
the most “natural” progression to me . After the double
swings get tired the cleans seem easy, for a while then,
swing! but that soon changes. So many to choose from and
they are all good, but that’s my favourite. Simple and Brutal.
YOU’VE TRAINED & COMPETED IN A DIVERSE
RANGE OF SPORTS & DISCIPLINES; WHAT HAS
BEEN THE COMMON MENTAL OR PHYSICAL KEY
TO SUCCESS IN THEM ALL? ROGER MCCARTHY
That’s easy. The ability to completely devote oneself to
improvement no matter what it takes. As well as the self
DO YOU HAVE ANY GUIDELINES FOR TRAINING
AS YOU GET OLDER? 40S 50S ETC…
DON NAUGHTON
Yes indeed I do. As one ages, maintaining and increasing
one’s mobility, flexibility and overall suppleness becomes as,
or more, important than loading. The ability to recover from
the workouts becomes harder yet the ability to overload it
becomes easier, as one has trained for years, and has a great
reserve of strength. The balance has to be maintained and
usually this means more flex/mob work as well as active
recovery (massage, hydrotherapy, easy workouts). And of
course nutrition is vital. Eating real food can’t be emphasised
enough. Supplements, pills and drinks cannot makeup the
bulk of the diet. High quality ingredients from big three
macronutrients are key.