Get Stronger Without Gaining Weight?

[jonjon]

I am 15 and a half.
Thanks Guys! I just don't understand how kettle bells "magically" strengthens a different strands of your muscle without bulking up and still produce more strength.

By the way, I'm broke. I just bought an expensive electric scale and a HD video camera, at this point I really couldn't afford a whole set of kettlebells. I don't want to just buy one kettlebell and then later on it becomes to easy and a waste of my time.... Tips?

just a thought, here they have a chain of stores called "Play it again sports" so I traded some old or too small wrestling shoes from my kids and got a great deal. The great things about kettleballs there is alot of things you can do with them. Many differant ways to workout with them as you can see in the youtube videos. 50 bucks would most likely hook you up with a great workout. You don't need a whole set. 2 kettlebells at about 20 lbs a piece would help you out. I also purchased "perfect pushups" which are a good workout for your pecs as well as arms. I have an old waterlogged 4by4 board about 8 feet long that the boys lift like a military press and they roll a tire up hill so you can get pretty inventive. I hope you find a great workout that suits you. I remember when i was in HS we had coffee cans filled with cement with a bar between them to look like a barbell at our school. So I have seen primitive ways to workout. The weight room at our school is open everyday for kids to workout so you may have to do alittle digging but their are ways to get stronger. If your arms feel the pain you are gaining in strength so don't think you have to lift to the max to build. So one set of kettlebells is a good way to start and you cannot damamge them so here in minnesota anyway I will take them in and trade them for a larger set when my boys are ready for it.Hope you get achance to workout with them and let me know what you think

[jonjon]

I am 15 and a half.
Thanks Guys! I just don't understand how kettle bells "magically" strengthens a different strands of your muscle without bulking up and still produce more strength.

By the way, I'm broke. I just bought an expensive electric scale and a HD video camera, at this point I really couldn't afford a whole set of kettlebells. I don't want to just buy one kettlebell and then later on it becomes to easy and a waste of my time.... Tips?

They are devoloped by the old Communist Block countrys so it is relatively new here, and if you follow international wrestling they are the best so I think they could help you

[pyromaniaque]

20lbs seems a little light. Am I wrong?

[jonjon]

Yeah, you could be right I had you mixed with a kid on another thread that is only 12 so maybe 25 with alot of reps. Like I say, get some advice from a trainer or a coach you trust. I wouldn't go much higher than that to start but I am just a guy trying to give you long distant advice and am not qualified to tell you exactley. I hope it works for you. you sound like a strong kid with the weight you described and saying that you are short and all. If you find a place that sells them swing them around where you are comfortable. They will not go down in value so I found a place to trade them in when my kids are ready for larger ones. You just have to pay the differance since they run about 2 dollars a pound in Minnesota.

[gjfovf]

20lbs seems a little light. Am I wrong?

It won't seem light after a long cycle of swings.. Lol.. I have my new students use 15, 20, or 25 pounds. Please learn the basics before you try the more advanced exercises. SWING, CLEAN, TURKISH GET UP.. Once you learn the swing and clean, you can really make out a great work out. The clean leads you to power cleans, clean/press, clean/front squat.. The swing leads to hi pulls which leads to snatches... It is similar to learning a "chain of moves" in wrestling. These are the first 3 exercises that I teach all of my new students.
Please consult w/ someone that has experience w/ kettlebells before trying these movements. I have over 8 years of experience w/ bells, and have found that "youtube learning" is never as good as having someone there showing you how to do things.

[FloggingSully]

I just don't understand how kettle bells "magically" strengthens a different strands of your muscle without bulking up and still produce more strength.

They don't, gaining or not gaining mass is a function of diet, the shape of the weight you're lifting is irrelevant.

[pyromaniaque]

Also, should I stay at 119?