Note: Kettlebells, as well as an
extensive catalog of related fitness products, are ordered
directly from DragonDoor through our links above and below.
A "kettlebell" or girya is a traditional
Russian cast-iron weight that looks like a cannonball
with a handle. Kettlebells are used by both men
and women to achieve superior strength and flexibility.
As the 1986 Soviet Weightlifting Yearbook put it,
"It is hard to find a sport that has deeper roots in
the history of our people than kettlebell lifting."
So popular were kettlebells in Tsarist Russia that any
strongman or weightlifter was referred to as a girevik,
or "kettlebell man."
"Not a single sport develops our muscular strength
and bodies as well as kettlebell athletics," wrote
Ludvig Chaplinsky in the Russian magazine Hercules
in 1913.
In the Soviet times, weightlifting legends such as
Vlasov, Zhabotinsky, and Alexeyev started their
Olympic careers with old-fashioned kettlebells.
Yuri Vlasov, who defeated the mighty Paul "the Wonder of
Nature" Anderson, once interrupted an interview he was
giving to a Western journalist and proceeded to press
a pair of kettlebells ten times. "This is a wonderful
exercise for developing strength and flexibility
simultaneously," commented the world-champion
weightlifter.
The Russian Special Forces personnel owe much of
their wiry strength, explosive agility, and
never-quitting stamina to kettlebells.
Soldier, Be Strong!, the official strength training
manual of the Soviet armed forces, pronounces kettlebell
drills to be "one of the most effective means of
strength development, representing a new era in the
development of human fitness."
Pavel Tsatsouline is a leading authority on
Russian kettlebells. NaturoDoc is proud to
offer Pavel's outstanding strength training information
in the form of books, videos, and discussion
groups, as well as the ability to purchase your own set of
the kettlebells.
The following link takes you to DragonDoor
where you can order directly from them as a
NaturoDoc affiliate. Thank you for accessing
these quality products through NaturoDoc.
