Customer Reviews

The Firm 5-Pound Kettle Bell Kit with Transform Your Trouble Zones DVD

5 star:		(29)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

First time using a kettlebell in any type of workout. I found the FIRM's 5lb KB easy to use. The one issue I had is that during certain moves the KB would scrape the back of my knuckels.

Kelsie is absolutely superb and precise in her instructions. The KB is used in over 60% of the workout. The warmup and cooldown do not use the KB. Also there are 2 to 3 cardio intensifiers that don't use the KB. During the KB portion of the workout you are doing traditional type moves such as biceps, tricpes, and on arm rows. You also do a few swinging type moves and moves where you change the KB from hand to hand.

The hardest move for me was the "Turkish Getup" (I believe that is what Kelsie called it). This move uses the KB. While lying down you have to roll your body up into a standing position using mostly one foot and then you roll yourself back down to the floor. I am going to need to practice this move. The DVD includes a nice 8 min core workout that uses the KB. As the headline states, I thought the workout was solid.

Minor issues with the video, I could barely hear the music. Kelsie was signficantly louder than the music. Some of the camera angles were a bit haphazard.

This is a great full body workout - Would like the music a little stronger. I purchased this kit before I got my russian kettlebell certification. Lot of great basics and non-kettlebell moves.
Workout great - Kettebell not so great! This small kettlebell needs a differnt type of handle. I do not have large hands and it is hard to work with. I went out and purchased a 10 lb kettlebell from Target. This one from Go Fit was much easier to work with. If you don't thnk you are ready for a 10 lb there is also 7 lb ones available.

I workout often with an exercise ball and this was my first time to use a kettlebell. I am 50 years old but in great physical shape except for a car accident 3 years ago that hurt my back. The range of motion for the kettlebell is great, however, she does a sit-up that eventually is a sit-up to standing up, that is impossible to do if you have any sort of back or neck problems. When I read other reviews I thought this would be perfect but I can only do parts of it.

I have to admit that the first time I did the DVD, I hated every last grueling moment of it. I was out of breath... okay gasping for breath and felt like I was literally going to sweat every ounce I fluid in my body. But, I kept with it and it got easier. Two weeks later, I found myself 6 pounds lighter - of course the loss was a combination between the workouts and a 1200 calorie diet. You will workout hard with this, but you will also get results. I am a size smaller!

I tried the Biggest Loser Workouts, specifically the 30 Day Shred and they don't even compare. I am a FIRM believer! Trust me, if you want results, this is the way to go.

I ordered the Kettle Bell for my wife....when it arrived the first thing I noticed was the handle. The shape of it did not allow for comfort, as a matter of fact every time I raised the bell it would scrape my knuckles. I thought it would be OK for my wife since my hands were bigger than hers....but that wasn't the case. We liked the idea but it was not usable for us. I repacked the bell and returned it to Amazon.

The FIRM 5-Pound Kettle Bell Kit with Transfirm Your Trouble Zones DVD

I just got this and over all I like it. The cueing is very good, but I have difficulty with the kettleball. Although I know there is going to be some give with it, I'm having difficulty gripping and stabilizing it enough to not hurt myself. Once warmed up and perspiring a bit, it really slips, scraping my knuckles and banging my wrist-I'm pretty sure I could end up bruised. Tensing because of this takes some of the enjoyment of the workout out of it. Although if you have bigger hands, it may not be much of a problem.
I see some have a coating on the handle and I think it might be a good idea to put something on the handle to improve grip during manufacture.
But it is good work-out. All in all I would recommend this highly.

****I'm going to amend this**** All of the above still applies however I'm getting a bit discouraged. This has bruised my wrists & scraped my knuckles because I just can't seem to get enough of a grip on it it to stabilize it. Even the smoother moves bounce and rub on my wrists.
I know these are the latest things going but I don't know that they are such a great idea, especially if you don't have larger sturdy hands. I'm kind of sorry at this point I bought it. I find working out with it rather fustrating as I'm tensed and bracing against the impact of the kettleball.It's hard to focus on the work-out when the accessory is causing pain.

I've had this DVD for about 6 months now, and I love it. I feel like I'm getting a total body workout, and Kelsie (the instructor) is great. Her instructions are clear and easy to follow. She's also encouraging. I have not had any problems with the kettlebell scraping my knuckles as some of the other reviewers have mentioned. I've tried a couple of other kettlebell videos - like The Kettlebell Goddess one. I like The Firm's video MUCH more.

If this is for beginners, which it might not be, then I would have to say that the instructions on the DVD were lacking. The exercise portion of the DVD assumes you know all the steps and goes too quickly, especially if a person is trying to learn to use the kettle bell and do the steps. And, in the short segment where the movement of the kettle bell is shown, it is only from the front. Side angles would be very beneficial to avoid doing it incorrectly and pulling muscles. I would not say that a person should be discouraged from purchasing this item based on this mediocre review. They just need to be aware of the shortcomings of the DVD.

This workout by The Firm, for once, didn't disappoint me. This was the first kettlebell workout I've ever tried, and I thought it was a blast. It's not for those who have a lot of experience with kettlebell workouts, but it's a great workout for those who are just starting out (like myself!).

Here's the breakdown:

GOOD:
1) If you are an experienced exerciser, you can actually keep up with the moves! Usually, this is a problem for me when I try a workout by the Firm--any of the ones involving dance moves just go too fast for me to keep up, because they change up the moves so often. I had no problems catching up to Kelsie Daniels even if I was unsure of the moves. Also, the moves were not overly and unnecessarily complicated.
2)The moves with the kettlebell are definitely tailored to people who haven't used the kettlebell before. There is even a "Learn the Moves" segment in the Bonus section of the DVD so you can familiarize yourself with basic kettlebell moves.
3) The kettlebell is used a lot (I hate DVDs where they say it's a sculpting or weight-training DVD, and then hardly use the weights!), and is interspersed with some brief cardio sections. However, I found my heart rate up even while doing most of the moves with the kettlebell, because compound movements are used.
4)There are modifications shown for beginners; again, I liked these because if I did get a little lost when Kelsie switched up a move, I could follow the beginner moves and still get a good workout.
5) I liked how the kettlebell was incorporated into the brief abs section at the end of the workout. I especially liked the Turkish Get-Up and the pushups with overhead flies.

NEEDS IMPROVEMENT:
1) As other reviewers have said, the kettlebell is a little hard to grip and handle, especially for people with big hands. I found it a bit difficult to get a good grip on the thing during the moves where you had to switch what hand the kettlebell was in between moves. In one move where you swing the kettlebell in front of you with one hand and switch it to the other, I was worried the whole time it was going to slip out of my hands and crash into my flat-screen TV. I would suggest buying a different kettlebell if you love the workout but are having issues with gripping the one sent with the kit, or get lifting gloves to get a better grip.
2) I love Kelsie Daniels as an instructor, but I've noticed her workouts involve a LOT of lunges (some of them jumping lunges). I began to feel pains in my knees after a while; be careful with this. I made my lunges a little smaller because of that.
3) The stretch at the end could have been a little better; I would have liked to see more hamstring and glute stretches since you do so many lunges. I added these in after the entire workout was over.
4) As with most of The Firm workouts, Kelsie does add on to moves fairly quickly. You have to pay attention to when she switches; but again, I didn't find it hard to catch up to her, as the moves weren't complicated to follow or do to begin with. I don't mind some fast switches between moves every now and then, as long as I can eventually catch up and keep up pretty reasonably!

Overall, I LOVE this workout; the good outweighs what needs improvement in my opinion. It was a great introduction to the kettlebell, the moves were pretty easy to do and follow, and Kelsie Daniels knows her stuff. If you want to vary your routine and try something new, then I would definitely recommend this workout. If you are experienced with the kettlebell, you may want to pass on this one.

It is my first Firm video with Kelsie Daniels and I already know it is not going to be the last. Her cuing is superb, she is friendly and encouraging.
The moves are easy to learn and make you feel you worked your body from all angles.
The only problem I had with this set was the KBs - I do not have particularly big hands but still during some transitions the grips were squishing my knuckles.