A very private kettlebell workout
Sports explorers now have a lot of reasons to be happy! This week we’re finally able to go outside again and try out new activities, and Zimo Tam is starting his outdoor season with a sweaty workout from Kettlebell Club Berlin!
Good news for sports fans: most of us are allowed to sweat outdoors again! Little by little, Coronavirus measures are being relaxed in Germany and now we can enjoy a growing range of outdoor activities. So, even if you’ve converted your own living room into a fitness studio, you can now spice up your training programme with local partners outdoors!
Live classes displayed on our platform will still take place as usual, so now you have the choice to train indoors or outdoors.
This week Zimo Tam from fitness blog Fitness Agony showed us just how much fun a workout from Kettlebell Club Berlin is – with all necessary safety precautions, of course.
Don’t get me wrong. I haven’t been totally idle in the last few weeks – I’ve spent a lot of time running and training online at home. But what I enjoy most is training with a fun group of people, because that always pushes me to my personal limit.
Click here to read about the positive effects of joint group sessions.
With isolation measures lifting, I’m spoilt for choice with multiple sports options available to me. It’s time to try something new and push my limits.
I scroll my way through the wide range of options available on Urban Sports Club, searching for something that sounds truly exciting to me. I find it fast: a Kettlebell course. “Sounds interesting,” I think enthusiastically, and take a closer look at what the class entails.
I’ve trained with Kettlebells a few times already, and the beginner course simply doesn’t fit into my daily schedule, so I decide to try the level 2 course. “It won’t be that bad,” I think to myself and confirm my course booking online.
Two days later I pull into the bus stop at Berlin-Ostkreuz and walk less than 10 minutes to Ringside Gym.
Ringside Gym is actually a martial arts school where you can learn various martial arts from Monday to Saturday.
Today, however, sweaty Kettlebell training is on the agenda for me! “Kettlebell training is a great additional training opportunity for athletes and all Urban Sports Club members because of its functionality and versatility,” says coach Klaus-Dieter Lehmann as he explains the advantages of today’s workout.
Klaus-Dieter is about to finish training his 8 participant level 1 course. “This is currently the maximum number of participants allowed. Level 2 training will start in a few minutes. Let’s see if there are any other participants. Many people are still unsure whether to workout in groups because they’re being cautious or simply don’t realise that it’s possible to train outside in small groups again,” Klaus-Dieter says.
When nobody shows up after 15 minutes, it becomes clear: today I’ll have a private kettlebell lesson from the professional himself. I’m curious to see how this works out!
Klaus-Dieter Lehmann has been a certified kettlebell instructor for many years and was trained by none other than THE greatest kettlebell trainer of our time: Pavel Tsatsouline.
A personal training session with a world-class kettlebell trainer doesn’t come along very often in life, so I wanted to make the most out of our time. Klaus-Dieter decides to concentrate on my technique today.
After a short warm-up for the whole body, I familiarise myself with the kettlebell by doing a few basic exercises. “Today we’ll practice cross lifting with the kettlebell, kettlebell swings, one-armed kettlebell swings, bottom up cleans, military press with kettlebell, snatches and the Libra with kettlebell,” Klaus-Dieter says enthusiastically.
Sounds like a tight programme. And it is – as will become clear later on. Since I already have some experience, I make rapid progress and can work on my weaknesses. Klaus motivates me, observes my movements very closely and corrects my movement execution again and again.
Although we focus on technique training, I’m also working at full speed physically. At the end of today’s training I am happy, exhausted and proud because I know I’ve learnt a lot.
After the session I ask Klaus about his usual class workout techniques.
“I always start with a small warm-up, where I do different mobility exercises with the participants. After that it’s all technique training. This is important as it ensures that the exercises in the workout are performed correctly.”
“The workouts always consist of different strength and endurance elements. This can be a mix of kettlebell exercises and bodyweight or partner exercises, but I like to let my participants sprint once in a while so that they really get a good work out.”
“By the end, the participants should have worked up a good sweat without being completely exhausted. I encourage all-out training, where you go to your limits and beyond, about every two months.”
From my perspective, I’m going home today feeling satisfied that I’ve learned a lot and challenged my body, so I’m going to grant myself a well-deserved time-out!
If you would like to enjoy a fresh breeze while doing sports with your friends, take a look at our website or the app to discover a wide range of outdoor and indoor activities.
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