Tie Dye Kettlebells--!
Bad Aerobics Music --!
Fantastic Kettlebell Circuit --!
Providence is the first circuit-style kettlebell workout from Anthony Deguilio at Art of Strength. Anthony gives you roughly an hour of mixed kettlebell drills based on mixing up the basic lifts used by the kettlebell community - swings, windmills, squats, tactical lunges often combining these movements into combination sequences. Its a damn challenging session, but ideal if you are looking for some structure to your kettlebell workouts.
This was my first introduction to Kettlebell workouts delivered in a visual medium after reading Pavel Tsatsouline's "Enter the Kettlebell. Each round is delivered with an accompanying time bar to let you know how much torment is left... believe me, 2 days after I got my first 16kg kettlebell in the mail and I put in this dvd, I was thoroughly humbled. I pretty much regretted my purchases, and damn well felt like giving my kettlebell to a complete stranger. However after a week and more application, I really began to see how this varied from other forms of excercise I had been doing.
A preview of the AOS Providence workout:
First appearances can be very deceiving with AOS Providence (and later Art of Strength DVDS) - the multi-coloured bells, cheesy kung fu shoes & odd taste in music: the actual workout sequence is very good, with great combination kettlebell drills which last 2 minutes a piece (in the first few weeks, 2 minute rounds feel like a small eternity). The timing, both kettlebell rounds & duration of the AOS DVD provides what I think is a very good structure to get used to kettlebell drills, particularly if you are new to kettlebell lifting. It certainly boosted my overall body endurance & strenth after a few weeks, not to mention I experienced noticeable fat loss without a major change in diet - 15 Rounds at 2 mins a piece - with most rounds including full body movements.
The downside of this kettlebell disk apart from minor cosmetic tastes is that there is little in the way of technical information for the new kettle bell practitioner - snatches, swings, windmills and other standard movements can leave the body vulnerable to injury if not done correctly, which has personally occured to me on several occassions as I have never received instruction, nor ever seen another person lift a kettlebell in the flesh.
A product such as Steve Maxwells' 300 Kettlebell challenge does provide an accompanying disk of instructions prior to the workout DVD explaining the correct technique for each kettlebell drill. AOS providence could have been inproved by the addition of these basic instructional segments, which Anthony Deguilio did begin to add to DVD's later in the series.
Furthermore, this disk favours a lot of dynamic leg/squating movements, which led to me getting very tight hamstrings & glutes, particulary as I moved on to a heavier bell after 2 months. A disk like Steve Maxwell's 300 KB challenge alternatively favours shoulder pressing. Each trainer seems to have their favourite movements per workout.
If this is your first introduction to KB lifting, as it was mine, I strongly suggest learning correct technique from complimentary sources: Pavel, Steve Cotter, Steve Maxwell - correct breathing, hip action (RKC hardstyle or AKC style hip action....) etc.
Overall, AOS Providence is a very challenging KB workout written from the viewpoint of a beginner which resulted in me building up a much improved level of overall strength, endurance, Kettlebell agilty & fat loss over the space of 2 months before moving onto a heavier bell.
Highly Recommended.
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